Kings Meadow School

Kings Meadow School is a special school for pupils with social, emotional and mental health needs, all of whom have an EHC plan. It is part of Creating Tomorrow Multi Academy Trust and has experienced significant change, including new interim leadership since January 2025 following earlier staffing turbulence. Inspectors found safeguarding standards met and judged inclusion and leadership and governance as expected standard, with new leaders providing clear direction, stabilising staffing and improving governance, morale and safety. Pupils feel safe, valued and included, behaviour is improving, and most pupils benefit from strong relationships and a highly tailored environment. However, the school still has significant areas needing attention. Achievement, attendance and behaviour, curriculum and teaching, and personal development and wellbeing are all judged as needing attention. Attendance is improving for some pupils through personalised support, but overall attendance remains too low and persistent absence is high. Academic progress is inconsistent because teaching is not consistently effective, assessment is still developing, and learning activities sometimes prioritise engagement over secure knowledge and skills. Handwriting and spelling are weak for some pupils, and personal development delivery varies, so pupils do not always build secure understanding of relationships and life in modern Britain. The school has a broad, ambitious personal development offer and a carefully organised curriculum, and many pupils make progress in social, emotional and behavioural development. Leaders know their priorities and have appropriate next steps: improve teaching responsiveness and assessment, raise handwriting and spelling standards, increase expected progress, reduce persistent absence, ensure consistent PSHE and relationships delivery, and develop middle leaders' subject expertise.

Strengths

• Safeguarding standards are met, with an open culture where concerns are identified and acted on.
• Pupils feel safe, valued and included, and build warm, trusting relationships with staff.
• New leadership has brought clear direction and rapid improvement, stabilising staffing and improving morale.
• Governance is much improved, with effective support and challenge from the local governing body and trust.
• Inclusion is a strength: detailed EHC planning and specialist therapeutic support help meet pupils' SEMH needs.
• Pupils access a wide range of therapeutic and specialist support, including speech and language, occupational therapy and emotional support.
• Multi-agency working with families and social care supports pupils known to social care well.
• Alternative provision is carefully selected and monitored, benefiting pupils' engagement, attendance and emotional development.
• Pupil premium funding is used thoughtfully for therapeutic support, staff training and wider experiences.
• Behaviour is caring and supportive; most pupils behave positively, bullying is rare and dealt with quickly.
• Attendance is improving for an increasing number of pupils through personalised plans and multi-agency reviews.
• A structured phonics programme is in place and many pupils develop into increasingly confident readers.
• The curriculum is carefully organised through Base, Bridge and Beyond pathways to build gradual independence.
• Personal development is broad and ambitious, with outdoor learning, sports, creative activities and community projects.
• Pupils make progress from their starting points, especially in social, emotional and behavioural development.
• Leaders communicate effectively with parents and professionals, building confidence and trust.

Areas for Improvement

• Academic progress is inconsistent, and some pupils do not build knowledge securely over time.
• Pupils are not yet consistently well prepared for the next stage of education, particularly academically.
• Overall attendance remains too low, and too many pupils are persistently absent.
• Teaching is not yet consistently effective across all classes.
• Learning activities sometimes prioritise engagement over systematic development of knowledge and skills.
• Assessment systems are still developing and do not give leaders a clear enough picture of what pupils know and can do over time.
• Some pupils do not develop handwriting as well as they should, limiting the quality of their written work.
• Pupil premium funding is not yet consistently leading to improved academic progress.
• Personal development delivery is variable across classes, so some pupils do not build secure knowledge of relationships and life in modern Britain.
• Middle leaders need further development to lead curriculum and teaching improvement effectively.
• Some pupils do not receive clear, consistent support to take part in learning confidently and successfully.
• Leaders are still in the early stages of securing sustained whole-school attendance improvement.

In 2024–25 pupils at Kings Meadow School attended 75.0% of sessions (the national figure for special schools was 87.2%). 63.5% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 35.3%).

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, 35.7% of pupils at Kings Meadow School were suspended at least once (nationally 5.1%). 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 Kings Meadow School had 7.9 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for special schools was 6.6). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 55.9% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 14.5%).

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 Kings Meadow School had 53 pupils, 100.0% of them with an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 99.5%).

It says it provides for: social, emotional and mental health.

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

In 2024–25 Kings Meadow School received £30,243 and spent £40,997 for each of its 42 pupils. It ended the year with a deficit of £839,000 (-£19,976 per pupil).

Across all 5 schools of Creating Tomorrow Multi Academy Trust, income was £30,552 and spending £29,897 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 Northampton · West Northamptonshire local authority: places and applications

Kings Meadow School is part of Creating Tomorrow Multi Academy Trust, which runs 5 schools. The nearest others:

• Wren Spinney School Kettering
• The Gateway School Northampton
• Isebrook School Kettering
• Daventry Hill School Daventry

What is Kings Meadow School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Kings Meadow School is Needs attention, from an inspection in July 2026.

When was Kings Meadow School last inspected by Ofsted?

Kings Meadow School was last inspected in July 2026.

How many pupils does Kings Meadow School have?

Kings Meadow School has 53 pupils on roll.

What age range does Kings Meadow School cover?

Kings Meadow School for pupils aged 5 to 11.

What are Kings Meadow School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 0% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Kings Meadow School?

Kings Meadow School is at Manning Road, Moulton Leys, Northampton, Northamptonshire, NN3 7AR.