Darlinghurst Academy

Darlinghurst Academy, previously judged as good in its last full inspection, is showing strong signs of improvement across all areas in this recent ungraded inspection. The school is part of the Legra Academy Trust and benefits from clear leadership and a committed staff team. Pupils are happy, engaged, and exhibit positive behavior, reflecting the school's values. The curriculum is well structured and ambitious, allowing pupils to make significant progress in their learning journey.

Strengths

• Pupils demonstrate very positive relationships and high levels of engagement.
• The curriculum is well planned, ambitious, and effectively sequenced.
• Effective phonics teaching helps children become confident readers.
• Strong support for pupils with SEND ensures they learn effectively alongside their peers.
• The school prioritizes personal development and teaches pupils about diversity and responsibility.

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 Darlinghurst Academy attended 95.4% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 13.7% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 13.0%).

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, 1.1% of pupils at Darlinghurst Academy were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). One pupil was 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 Darlinghurst Academy had 22.1 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 7.8% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 15.7%).

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, 11.0% of pupils at Darlinghurst Academy were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 4.8% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

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 primary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2024–25 Darlinghurst Academy received £6,739 and spent £6,620 for each of its 552 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £891,000 (£1,616 per pupil).

Across all 2 schools of Legra Academy Trust, income was £7,141 and spending £6,868 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 Leigh-On-Sea · Southend-on-Sea local authority: places and applications

Darlinghurst Academy is part of Legra Academy Trust, which runs 2 schools. The nearest others:

• Belfairs Academy Leigh-On-Sea

What is Darlinghurst Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Darlinghurst Academy is Good, from an inspection in March 2025.

When was Darlinghurst Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Darlinghurst Academy was last inspected in March 2025.

How many pupils does Darlinghurst Academy have?

Darlinghurst Academy has 547 pupils on roll.

What age range does Darlinghurst Academy cover?

Darlinghurst Academy for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are Darlinghurst Academy's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 68% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Darlinghurst Academy?

Darlinghurst Academy is at Pavilion Drive, Leigh-on-Sea, Essex, SS9 3JS.