Tuckswood Academy

Tuckswood Academy is a primary academy sponsor-led school within the Broad Horizons Education Trust. Following its previous inspection, which judged the school as requiring improvement, leaders have driven rapid improvement and the school is now performing well across the inspected areas. Pupils enjoy learning, most achieve well, behaviour is calm and orderly, and the curriculum and teaching are effective. The school provides strong support for pupils with SEND, has a consistent phonics and reading approach, and offers a well-designed early years provision. Pupils benefit from a wide range of clubs, visits and the ‘Tuckswood 70’, and staff feel well supported. Governance and trust accountability are strong, and safeguarding arrangements are effective. The main areas for further development are limited but clear. In a few subjects, teachers do not adapt learning tasks sufficiently for pupils who find learning difficult and for some pupils with SEND, so these pupils do not learn as well as they could. Handwriting and presentation expectations are also not consistently maintained across all subjects, which can reduce the quality of pupils’ work. Overall, the school has improved significantly since the last inspection and is well placed to address these remaining priorities.

Strengths

• Leaders have driven rapid improvement since the last inspection
• The curriculum and teaching are effective, and standards are rising
• Pupils achieve well and remember what they have learned in most subjects
• Support for pupils with SEND is strong, with effective identification and external partnerships
• Phonics is taught consistently well, helping pupils learn to read from Reception
• Pupils rapidly develop a love of reading and talk enthusiastically about books
• Behaviour is mainly calm and orderly, with effective systems for pupils who need help regulating
• The early years curriculum is carefully designed and delivered through caring relationships
• Pupils enjoy a wide range of extra-curricular activities and the ‘Tuckswood 70’
• Peer mediators help pupils resolve disagreements, and pupils are confident talking to adults
• Staff are proud to work at the school and are well supported with well-being and workload
• Governance and trust accountability are strong
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective

Areas for Improvement

• In a few subjects, learning tasks are not sufficiently adapted for pupils who find learning difficult and for some pupils with SEND
• Handwriting and presentation expectations are not consistently maintained across all subjects
• Occasionally, a small number of pupils do not have tasks that help move their learning forward

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 Tuckswood Academy attended 92.4% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 23.5% 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, 2.8% of pupils at Tuckswood 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 Tuckswood Academy had 15.2 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 0.0% 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, 16.5% of pupils at Tuckswood Academy were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 6.9% 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 Tuckswood Academy received £8,122 and spent £7,704 for each of its 214 pupils. It ended the year with a deficit of £15,000 (-£69 per pupil).

Across all 18 schools of Broad Horizons Education Trust, income was £8,232 and spending £8,091 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 Norwich · Norfolk local authority: places and applications

Tuckswood Academy is part of Broad Horizons Education Trust, which runs 18 schools. The nearest others:

• Edith Cavell Academy and Nursery Norwich
• Eaton Hall Specialist Academy Norwich
• Bluebell Primary School Norwich
• Sewell Park Academy Norwich
• St. Clements Hill Primary Academy Norwich
• Hillside Avenue Primary and Nursery School, Thorpe Norwich
• Sprowston Community Academy Norwich
• Thorpe St Andrew School and Sixth Form Norwich
• Dussindale Primary School Norwich
• Hemblington Primary School Norwich

What is Tuckswood Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Tuckswood Academy is Good, from an inspection in December 2024.

When was Tuckswood Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Tuckswood Academy was last inspected in December 2024.

How many pupils does Tuckswood Academy have?

Tuckswood Academy has 188 pupils on roll.

What age range does Tuckswood Academy cover?

Tuckswood Academy for pupils aged 4 to 11.

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

In 2025, 43% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Tuckswood Academy?

Tuckswood Academy is at Tuckswood Centre, Tuckswood, Norwich, Norfolk, NR4 6BP.