Melksham Oak Community School

Melksham Oak Community School has demonstrated a good overall effectiveness during its first inspection. The school's leadership has fostered a culture of ambition and raised aspirations, contributing to a calm and well-organised environment where students feel safe and cared for. Although most students respond positively to high expectations and benefit from a broad and ambitious curriculum, there are some concerns regarding the clarity of curriculum planning in certain subjects, which impacts students' understanding of learning objectives. Additionally, while there is effective support for students with special educational needs, a few students express concerns about derogatory language among peers that occasionally disrupts the positive school culture.

Strengths

• Strong leadership and management promote a culture of ambition.
• Pupils demonstrate good behavior and feel safe at school.
• A broad and ambitious curriculum is in place across most subjects.
• Effective support is provided for students with special educational needs.
• A variety of extracurricular opportunities engage students.
• Strong emphasis on personal development and understanding of British values.

Areas for Improvement

• Some curriculum areas lack clear planning for learning steps.
• Concerns about the management of derogatory language among a minority of pupils.

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 Melksham Oak Community School attended 89.0% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 29.2% 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, 12.4% of pupils at Melksham Oak Community School were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). 2 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 Melksham Oak Community School had 20.6 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 21.1% 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, 5.9% of pupils at Melksham Oak Community School were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 5.3% 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 Melksham Oak Community School received £8,595 and spent £8,083 for each of its 1,152 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £716,000 (£622 per pupil).

Across all 30 schools of The White Horse Federation, income was £7,712 and spending £7,474 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 Melksham · Wiltshire local authority: places and applications

Melksham Oak Community School is part of The White Horse Federation, which runs 30 schools. The nearest others:

• Bowerhill Primary School Melksham
• Forest and Sandridge Church of England Primary School Melksham
• The Manor CofE VC Primary School Melksham
• Seend Church of England Primary School Melksham
• St George's Church of England Primary School, Semington Trowbridge
• St Mary's Broughton Gifford Voluntary Controlled Church of England Primary School Melksham
• Shaw CE Primary School Melksham
• Southbroom Infants' School Devizes
• Devizes School Devizes
• Larkhill Primary School Salisbury

What is Melksham Oak Community School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Melksham Oak Community School is Good, from an inspection in November 2022.

When was Melksham Oak Community School last inspected by Ofsted?

Melksham Oak Community School was last inspected in November 2022.

How many pupils does Melksham Oak Community School have?

Melksham Oak Community School has 1,058 pupils on roll.

What age range does Melksham Oak Community School cover?

Melksham Oak Community School for pupils aged 11 to 18.

What are Melksham Oak Community School's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 38.3, and 33% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Melksham Oak Community School?

Melksham Oak Community School is at Bowerhill, Melksham, Wiltshire, SN12 6QZ.