Hawkes Farm Academy

Hawkes Farm Academy is a happy, nurturing primary school where pupils feel safe and relationships between adults and pupils are caring. Inspectors found good provision across the quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and early years. Pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), respond well to high expectations and achieve well, while behaviour is strong and pupils make a positive contribution to school life. The curriculum is ambitious and well structured, reading has a high priority with strong phonics teaching, and pupils with SEND are identified quickly and supported appropriately. Personal development and attendance support are good, and safeguarding arrangements are effective. The school is part of the STEP Academy Trust and has had a new headteacher since September 2024, alongside significant staff change; the trust acted quickly to put an experienced team in place, and governance provides rigorous oversight. The main areas for improvement are in the early years, where planned activities do not consistently make clear the language and vocabulary children should learn, and in assessment, which is new in some subjects so staff do not always identify gaps or misconceptions, including for pupils with SEND, before moving on. A few staff also felt that recent initiatives had increased their workload in the short term.

Strengths

• Happy, nurturing and safe school with caring relationships
• High expectations help all pupils, including those with SEND, to achieve well
• Pupils behave well, are considerate and show kindness
• Ambitious, well-structured curriculum builds knowledge step by step
• Reading has high priority and phonics is delivered to a high standard
• Books match pupils’ phonics knowledge, helping them become fluent readers
• SEND needs are identified quickly and appropriate adaptations are made
• Good personal development through clubs, health education and preparation for modern Britain
• Well-established routines and tailored support promote regular attendance
• Rigorous trust and governance oversight, with effective safeguarding arrangements
• Early years children settle quickly and learn routines and sharing

Areas for Improvement

• Early years planned activities lack clarity about the language and vocabulary children should learn
• Assessment is new in some subjects, so gaps and misconceptions, including for pupils with SEND, are not consistently identified
• A few staff felt recent initiatives increased their workload in the short term

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 Hawkes Farm Academy attended 93.5% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 16.5% 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, 1.8% of pupils at Hawkes Farm Academy were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). No 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 Hawkes Farm Academy had 18.8 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 16.9% 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, 22.9% of pupils at Hawkes Farm Academy were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 2.7% 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 Hawkes Farm Academy received £6,659 and spent £6,874 for each of its 335 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £93,000 (£276 per pupil).

Across all 18 schools of Step Academy Trust, income was £8,072 and spending £8,194 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 Hailsham · East Sussex local authority: places and applications

Hawkes Farm Academy is part of Step Academy Trust, which runs 19 schools. The nearest others:

• White House Academy Hailsham
• Thornton Grove Academy Hailsham
• Breakwater Academy Newhaven
• High Cliff Academy Newhaven
• Peacehaven Heights Academy Peacehaven
• Telscombe Cliffs Academy Peacehaven
• Tudor Academy Croydon
• Applegarth Academy Croydon
• Heathfield Academy Croydon
• La Fontaine Academy Bromley

What is Hawkes Farm Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Hawkes Farm Academy is Good, from an inspection in January 2025.

When was Hawkes Farm Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Hawkes Farm Academy was last inspected in January 2025.

How many pupils does Hawkes Farm Academy have?

Hawkes Farm Academy has 328 pupils on roll.

What age range does Hawkes Farm Academy cover?

Hawkes Farm Academy for pupils aged 4 to 11.

What are Hawkes Farm Academy's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 74% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Hawkes Farm Academy?

Hawkes Farm Academy is at Hawks Road, Hailsham, East Sussex, BN27 1ND.