The Ramsey Academy, Halstead

The Ramsey Academy is a safe and inclusive school where pupils respect their teachers and feel confident raising concerns with staff. Staff provide strong support, including for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities, and pupils now learn an ambitious, broad curriculum. Where leaders have focused sharply, particularly on curriculum and attendance, improvement is clear, and pupils generally produce high-quality work and remember what they have learned. This was the school’s first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic, and it took place under the current framework in which no overall effectiveness grade is given; the school is part of the Bridge Academy Trust.

Strengths

• Pupils feel safe and are confident telling staff about concerns.
• Staff provide strong support, including for pupils with SEND.
• The curriculum is broad, ambitious and well considered.
• Teachers generally explain and model new content clearly.
• Pupils produce high-quality work and usually remember and apply their learning.
• The personal development curriculum is coherent and effective, including online safety and careers education.
• Attendance has improved significantly.
• Trustees and governors provide appropriate challenge and support.
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective.

Areas for Improvement

• Behaviour is inconsistent, with noisy and unsettled periods in lessons and around the site.
• Some bullying happens and, in some instances, persists despite the school addressing it.
• Many parents have concerns about behaviour.
• The school does not teach pupils effectively enough why positive behaviour is important, so misbehaviour often recurs.
• Pupils in the early stages of reading do not receive the quality of support they need, including phonics support.
• Teachers do not always check pupils’ understanding thoroughly, so gaps in learning remain.
• The extra-curricular offer is not extensive and some pupils do not participate much in school life.

Admissions: local authority offers data from the Department for Education. A school is oversubscribed when at least 5% of the families who put it first were not offered a place, and undersubscribed when everyone who put it first got in but 10% or more of its places were unfilled in the Department's school capacity survey (the latest survey is used for entry years it does not cover). Places: Department for Education, School capacity, from local authorities' annual survey as at 1 May. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024–25); the survey was not run in 2020. Places include sixth form places. Forecasts are the local authority's own for the school's planning area, an area it uses to plan places that is not the school's catchment area. The forecast starts from a head count in 2025; the dashed line is the Department's estimate of places in that area, including those the authority has firm plans for. Planned places are cumulative, and only those with firm plans are counted.

In 2024–25 pupils at The Ramsey Academy, Halstead attended 90.7% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 26.7% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 23.4%).

Sessions missed

Pupils persistently absent

Source: Department for Education, Pupil absence in schools in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Persistent absence means missing 10% or more of sessions; severe absence means 50% or more. No figures were published for 2019/20.

In 2024–25, 11.8% of pupils at The Ramsey Academy, Halstead were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). 5 pupils were permanently excluded.

Pupils suspended at least once

Source: Department for Education, Suspensions and permanent exclusions in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). A pupil can be suspended more than once, so suspensions per 100 pupils can be higher than the share of pupils suspended. Very small numbers are hidden by the DfE. Exclusion figures dropped in 2020 and 2021 because of school closures.

In 2025–26 The Ramsey Academy, Halstead had 18.5 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 25.0% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 14.1%).

Pupils per teacher

Teachers who left the school within a year

Source: Department for Education, School workforce in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Pupils per teacher counts full-time-equivalent pupils and teachers. Turnover is the share of a year's teachers (full-time equivalent) who were not at the school the following year, whether they moved to another school or left state-funded teaching. Turnover and sickness figures run one year behind the ratios. Sick leave is the share of teachers who took at least one day in the year, so it swings widely at small schools, where a few teachers can make it 0% or 100%. The national figures are for all state schools of the same type.

In 2025–26, 9.1% of pupils at The Ramsey Academy, Halstead were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 3.4% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 3.5%).

Pupils by main type of need

Source: Department for Education, Special educational needs in England (the 2025–26 school census). SEN support is extra help in school without an EHC plan. National figures are for all state-funded secondary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2024–25 The Ramsey Academy, Halstead received £8,439 and spent £7,852 for each of its 744 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £834,000 (£1,121 per pupil).

Across all 11 schools of Bridge Academy Trust, income was £7,606 and spending £7,532 per pupil.

Income per pupil

Spending per pupil

Source: Department for Education, Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool. Each year is the one the financial year ends in (2024 is 2023–24). Academy figures include a share of the trust's central services, shared out by pupil numbers, and are rounded to the nearest £1,000. Premises costs were defined differently from 2024, so compare them across that gap with care.

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Halstead · Essex local authority: places and applications

The Ramsey Academy, Halstead is part of Bridge Academy Trust, which runs 11 schools. The nearest others:

• Richard de Clare Community Academy Halstead
• Notley High School and Sixth Form Braintree
• Acorn Infant Academy Witham
• Oaklands Infant School Chelmsford
• Moulsham High School Chelmsford
• Mildmay Primary School Chelmsford
• High Ongar Primary School Ongar
• The Ongar Academy Ongar
• Ongar Primary School Ongar
• Chipping Ongar Primary School Ongar

What is The Ramsey Academy, Halstead's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for The Ramsey Academy, Halstead is Requires Improvement, from an inspection in October 2024.

When was The Ramsey Academy, Halstead last inspected by Ofsted?

The Ramsey Academy, Halstead was last inspected in October 2024.

How many pupils does The Ramsey Academy, Halstead have?

The Ramsey Academy, Halstead has 702 pupils on roll.

What age range does The Ramsey Academy, Halstead cover?

The Ramsey Academy, Halstead for pupils aged 11 to 16.

What are The Ramsey Academy, Halstead's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 46.5, and 52% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is The Ramsey Academy, Halstead?

The Ramsey Academy, Halstead is at Colne Road, Halstead, Essex, CO9 2HR.