Seahaven Academy

Seahaven Academy is an inclusive and harmonious school where pupils feel safe, cared for and part of a strong community. Inspectors found the school to be fulfilling the expected standard across achievement, attendance and behaviour, curriculum and teaching, inclusion, leadership and governance, and personal development and well-being, with safeguarding standards met. Leaders, governors and the trust share a clear vision focused on inclusion and improving life chances, and staff provide strong pastoral support. Pupils generally behave well, classrooms are calm, and pupils benefit from a broad curriculum, wide enrichment opportunities and effective support for disadvantaged pupils and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Pupils achieve well from their individual starting points and gaps are narrowing, including for disadvantaged pupils and pupils with SEND. However, attainment remains below national averages in some measures, and attendance, although improving, is still below the national average with persistent absence above average. The curriculum is generally taught well, but adaptations for pupils with specific barriers to learning are sometimes not refined enough, leading to inconsistencies in how well those pupils learn across subjects. The school is part of United Learning Trust, and the principal took up post in September 2024. The school is smaller than average, has well-above-average proportions of pupils with SEN support and is located in an area of above-average deprivation. The main priorities are to continue improving attendance for all pupils and to ensure teachers consistently adapt the curriculum to meet pupils’ specific needs so that all pupils overcome barriers to learning.

Strengths

• Strong pastoral support and an inclusive ethos that helps pupils feel safe and valued
• Pupils behave well and classrooms are calm, respectful and conducive to learning
• A broad, balanced and ambitious curriculum is generally taught well
• Effective support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities and disadvantaged pupils
• Reading is a high priority, with effective help for pupils who need to catch up
• Pupils benefit from a wide range of enrichment opportunities and leadership roles
• Well-designed personal development and careers provision prepares pupils for next steps
• Leaders, governors and the trust work collaboratively with a clear vision and accurate self-evaluation
• Staff access high-quality professional development and feel valued
• Safeguarding standards are met, and pupils trust staff to deal with bullying or discrimination

Areas for Improvement

• Overall attendance remains below the national average
• Persistent absence remains above the national average
• Curriculum adaptations for some pupils with specific barriers to learning are not consistently refined enough
• Attainment 8 has been below the national average in recent years

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 Seahaven Academy attended 87.4% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 31.7% 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, 13.6% of pupils at Seahaven Academy were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). 4 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 Seahaven Academy had 20.9 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 26.8% 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, 22.5% of pupils at Seahaven Academy were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 1.9% 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 Seahaven Academy received £8,850 and spent £9,101 for each of its 746 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £667,000 (£894 per pupil).

Across all 93 schools of United Learning Trust, income was £8,687 and spending £8,616 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 Lewes · East Sussex local authority: places and applications

Seahaven Academy is part of United Learning Trust, which runs 98 schools. The nearest others:

• Glebe Primary School Brighton
• Shoreham Academy Shoreham-By-Sea
• The Regis School West Sussex
• Southway Primary School Bognor Regis
• Midhurst Rother College Midhurst
• Newstead Wood School Orpington
• Chilmington Green School Great Chart
• Sedgehill Academy London
• Conisborough College London
• Ernest Bevin Academy London

What is Seahaven Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Seahaven Academy is Expected standard, from an inspection in January 2026.

When was Seahaven Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Seahaven Academy was last inspected in January 2026.

How many pupils does Seahaven Academy have?

Seahaven Academy has 701 pupils on roll.

What age range does Seahaven Academy cover?

Seahaven Academy for pupils aged 11 to 16.

What are Seahaven Academy's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 42.7, and 45% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Seahaven Academy?

Seahaven Academy is at Haven Way, Newhaven, East Sussex, BN9 9TD.