Gilbert Ward Academy

Gilbert Ward Academy is a small special school where all pupils have an education, health and care plan, predominantly for social, emotional and mental health needs, autism, and/or cognition and learning needs. It opened in September 2023 and is part of Prosper Learning Trust. Safeguarding standards are met, and inclusion and personal development and wellbeing are at the expected standard. The school has strong tailored pathways, effective pastoral care, positive community engagement, and a recently implemented careers programme with work experience. However, achievement, attendance and behaviour, curriculum and teaching, and leadership and governance all require attention. Teaching quality and curriculum implementation are inconsistent, leading to gaps in pupils' knowledge and variable progress, particularly in reading, writing and mathematics. Attendance and persistent absence are significant concerns, and leaders' actions are not improving these quickly enough. Ongoing problems with the school building have delayed leaders' response to these issues, and professional development is not yet closely aligned to improvement priorities. Leaders know the school well and have identified accurate priorities, with supportive governance and staff who are proud to work there. Even so, overall improvement is too slow, and the impact of recent actions is not yet evident. Next steps focus on rapidly improving attendance, ensuring consistently high-quality teaching, securing foundational knowledge, and monitoring the impact of improvement work.

Strengths

• Safeguarding standards are met, with an open culture of safeguarding.
• Leaders identify and assess SEND quickly and accurately.
• Clear, tailored learning pathways meet pupils' social, emotional and mental health needs.
• Staff receive the information they need to support pupils, including disadvantaged pupils.
• Pupils and families are included in decisions about support.
• Personal development programme covers safety, health, independence and community access.
• Pupils feel cared for and receive effective pastoral support.
• Pupils benefit from community visits, clubs and student council opportunities.
• Most pupils make positive progress towards their EHCP outcomes.
• Behaviour structures are clear and consistently applied, and bullying is dealt with effectively.
• Governance and trust oversight provide suitable challenge and support.
• Staff are proud to work at the school and value professional learning.
• Leaders engage positively with parents, carers and external professionals.

Areas for Improvement

• Teaching quality and curriculum implementation are inconsistent across the school.
• Pupils' progress is variable and some have gaps in learning.
• Some pupils do not receive effective support in reading, writing and mathematics.
• Attendance is poor; too many pupils are regularly absent and persistent absence is high.
• Leaders' work to improve attendance is not reducing absence quickly enough.
• Teachers do not spend enough time teaching subject content, leaving knowledge gaps.
• Teachers do not always check pupils' understanding regularly enough.
• Actions to address these issues are in their infancy, so impact is not yet clear.
• The school is not improving as quickly as it should.
• Premises problems have delayed leaders' response to teaching inconsistencies and poor engagement.
• Professional development is not closely aligned to improvement priorities.
• A minority of pupils remain reluctant to participate.

In 2024–25 pupils at Gilbert Ward Academy attended 73.4% of sessions (the national figure for special schools was 87.2%). 72.3% 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, 80.0% of pupils at Gilbert Ward Academy 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 Gilbert Ward Academy had 7.2 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for special schools was 6.6). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 10.2% 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 Gilbert Ward Academy had 83 pupils, 97.6% 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 Gilbert Ward Academy received £37,453 and spent £37,269 for each of its 55 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £265,000 (£4,825 per pupil).

Across all 3 schools of Prosper Learning Trust, income was £26,838 and spending £26,156 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 Blyth · Northumberland local authority: places and applications

Gilbert Ward Academy is part of Prosper Learning Trust, which runs 3 schools. The nearest others:

• Thomas Bewick School Newcastle-Upon-Tyne
• Harry Watts Academy Sunderland

What is Gilbert Ward Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Gilbert Ward Academy is Needs attention, from an inspection in June 2026.

When was Gilbert Ward Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Gilbert Ward Academy was last inspected in June 2026.

How many pupils does Gilbert Ward Academy have?

Gilbert Ward Academy has 83 pupils on roll.

What age range does Gilbert Ward Academy cover?

Gilbert Ward Academy for pupils aged 11 to 16.

Where is Gilbert Ward Academy?

Gilbert Ward Academy is at Princess Louise Road, Blyth, Northumberland, NE24 2TS.