Farringdon Community Academy

Farringdon Community Academy has improved considerably and is now performing well in several key areas. Inspectors found the curriculum and teaching, and inclusion, to be strong: the curriculum is ambitious and well sequenced, teaching is consistently effective, disadvantaged pupils and pupils with SEND are prioritised, and the school’s resourced provision for pupils with autism is well integrated into mainstream life. Safeguarding standards are met, behaviour is calm and purposeful, and pupils feel safe and cared for. Leadership, governance and trust support are effective, and staff report that improvement work is having a positive impact. Achievement and attendance are positive but not yet consistently strong across the board. Pupils often achieve well, including above-average outcomes in some subjects such as English and modern foreign languages, but this is not yet reflected across all curriculum areas. Attendance has improved and persistent absence has fallen, yet absence rates remain higher than national averages, and some pupils miss important learning. The personal development programme is ambitious, but pupils do not always develop secure knowledge of topics such as fundamental British values and different faiths and cultures, and participation in extra-curricular clubs is relatively limited. Leaders know what needs to improve next: ensure consistently high achievement across all subjects, bring attendance in line with or above national averages, and strengthen pupils’ secure knowledge across the personal, social, health and economic curriculum so they are well prepared for life beyond school. The school serves a disadvantaged community with above-average levels of free school meals and SEND, and it is part of Northern Education Trust.

Strengths

• Ambitious, well-sequenced curriculum that builds the knowledge and skills pupils need
• Highly effective teaching is embedded across the school
• Strong inclusion with early, accurate identification of SEND and precise classroom adaptations
• Resourced autism provision is seamlessly integrated into mainstream lessons and school life
• Disadvantaged pupils are prioritised and their achievement and wellbeing are closely monitored
• Pupils behave well, disruption has reduced, and bullying is rare
• Attendance has improved and persistent absence has reduced significantly
• Effective leadership, governance and trust support are driving rapid improvement
• Staff feel well supported and positive about improvements under current leaders
• A well-considered personal development programme promotes health, respect and reflection
• High-quality pastoral care helps pupils feel safe and cared for
• Careers advice is tailored for disadvantaged pupils and vulnerable pupils
• Excellent facilities encourage participation in sport

Areas for Improvement

• Achievement is not consistently high across all curriculum subjects
• Outcomes are not above average across all national tests and examinations
• Attendance rates remain above national averages
• Persistent absence remains higher than national averages
• Some pupils miss important learning and struggle to catch up with gaps
• Some pupils still lack foundational knowledge and skills to access the ambitious curriculum
• Pupils do not have a deep, secure understanding of fundamental British values and other faiths and cultures
• The personal, social, health and economic curriculum content is not well understood by pupils
• Participation in extra-curricular clubs is relatively limited

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 Farringdon Community Academy attended 88.4% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 33.4% 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, 23.9% of pupils at Farringdon Community Academy were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). 10 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 Farringdon Community Academy had 19.8 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 2.7% 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, 18.0% of pupils at Farringdon Community Academy were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 5.2% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 3.5%).

The school has resourced provision with 31 pupils.

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 Farringdon Community Academy received £9,464 and spent £10,240 for each of its 682 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £711,000 (£1,042 per pupil).

Across all 30 schools of Northern Education Trust, income was £8,462 and spending £8,166 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 Sunderland · Sunderland local authority: places and applications

Farringdon Community Academy is part of Northern Education Trust, which runs 30 schools. The nearest others:

• Red House Academy Sunderland
• Hetton Academy Houghton Le Spring
• Hilton Primary Academy Newcastle-Upon-Tyne
• Dyke House Sports and Technology College Hartlepool
• Walbottle Academy Newcastle-Upon-Tyne
• Thorp Academy Ryton
• Manor Community Academy Hartlepool
• The Blyth Academy Blyth
• Frederick Nattrass Primary Academy Stockton-On-Tees
• Norton Primary Academy Stockton-On-Tees

What is Farringdon Community Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Farringdon Community Academy is Expected standard, from an inspection in July 2026.

When was Farringdon Community Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Farringdon Community Academy was last inspected in July 2026.

How many pupils does Farringdon Community Academy have?

Farringdon Community Academy has 712 pupils on roll.

What age range does Farringdon Community Academy cover?

Farringdon Community Academy for pupils aged 11 to 16.

What are Farringdon Community Academy's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 46.2, and 58% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Farringdon Community Academy?

Farringdon Community Academy is at Allendale Road, Sunderland, SR3 3EL.