The Forest School
The Forest School is an academy converter in Horsham for pupils aged 11 to 16. It has 1,115 pupils on roll. The latest Ofsted rating for The Forest School is Good, from an inspection in January 2022 of its predecessor, The Forest School. In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 43.1, and 42% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.
Ofsted inspection: September 2025. GCSE results: 2026.
| Type | Secondary / Academy converter |
| Age Range | 11-16 |
| Religion | Does not apply |
| Address | Comptons Lane Horsham West Sussex RH13 5NT |
| Reference Number | 151923 |
General Makeup
| Number of pupils | 1115 |
| Boy/Girl ratio |
Boys: 67%
Girls: 33% |
| Percentage of students eligible for free school meals | 12.7% |
| Percentage of students where English is not their first language | 11.4% |
Class Sizes
| Average size of one teacher classes | 23.2 |
Year Groups
| Year | Boys | Girls | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | 145 | 93 | 238 |
| 8 | 147 | 81 | 228 |
| 9 | 145 | 83 | 228 |
| 10 | 147 | 74 | 221 |
| 11 | 163 | 37 | 200 |
Ethnicities
| Ethnicity | Percentage |
|---|---|
| White, British | 79.3% |
| Mixed, Other | 4.5% |
| White, Other | 3.9% |
| Unclassified | 2.3% |
| White & Asian | 2.2% |
| Asian, Other | 1.6% |
| African | 1.2% |
| Indian | 1.1% |
| Pakistani | 0.7% |
| White & Black (Caribbean) | 0.5% |
| Chinese | 0.5% |
| White & Black (African) | 0.4% |
| Irish | 0.2% |
| Caribbean | 0.1% |
This school has not been graded since it changed URN, usually on converting to an academy. The rating shown is from its predecessor, The Forest School, inspected in January 2022.
| Overall Ofsted Rating | Good |
| Last Report Date | This school has not had an inspection yet. |
| Date | Report |
|---|---|
| 03 Sep 2025 | Academy conversion letter |
Attainment 8 Score
Attaimenment 8 is a measure of a pupil's average grade across a set of 8 subjects. The 8 subjects which make up Attainment 8 are:
- English
- Maths
- 3 subjects from qualifications that count towards the English Baccalaureate (EBacc), like sciences, language and history
- 3 more GCSE qualifications (including EBacc subjects) or technical awards from a list approved by the Department for Education
Each grade a pupil gets is assigned a point score from 9 (the highest) to 1 (the lowest). These scores are added up, with English and maths counted twice.
| School Score | Percentile (local) | Percentile (nationwide) |
|---|---|---|
| 43.1 | Locked: unlock for £9.99, one-off payment | Locked: unlock for £9.99, one-off payment |
GCSE Results
| Metric | School Score | Percentile (local) | Percentile (nationwide) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 41.8% | Locked: unlock for £9.99, one-off payment | Locked: unlock for £9.99, one-off payment |
| 5 or more GCSEs at grade 9-4 (or A-C) | 53.1% | Locked: unlock for £9.99, one-off payment | Locked: unlock for £9.99, one-off payment |
Unlock Premium
See how The Forest School ranks locally and nationally. Percentile rankings against every other school, historic result charts, admissions data and post-GCSE destinations are all included.
£9.99 one-off payment. Lifetime access, no subscription.
Unlock for £9.99Year 7 admissions, 2026 entry
Locked: unlock for £9.99, one-off payment
| Number of Applications | Number of Offers | |
| First Preference | Locked: unlock for £9.99, one-off payment | Locked: unlock for £9.99, one-off payment |
| Second Preference | 357 | 28 |
| Third Preference | 203 | 3 |
| From another Local Authority | 6 | 0 |
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).
Destinations after GCSE's
| Staying in Education | Locked: unlock for £9.99, one-off payment |
| > Further Education | Locked: unlock for £9.99, one-off payment |
| > School Sixth Form | Locked: unlock for £9.99, one-off payment |
| > Sixth Form College | Locked: unlock for £9.99, one-off payment |
| > Other Education | Locked: unlock for £9.99, one-off payment |
| Apprenticeships | Locked: unlock for £9.99, one-off payment |
| Employment | Locked: unlock for £9.99, one-off payment |
| Not in education or employment | Locked: unlock for £9.99, one-off payment |
| Unknown | Locked: unlock for £9.99, one-off payment |
In 2025–26 The Forest School had 18.1 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7).
Pupils per teacher
| 2026 | |
|---|---|
| Pupils per adult | 12.0 |
| Teachers who left state teaching | – |
| Teachers who took any sick leave | – |
| Sick days per teacher | – |
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, 19.3% of pupils at The Forest School were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 2.7% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 3.5%).
Pupils by main type of need
| SEN support | EHC plan | |
|---|---|---|
| Specific learning difficulty | 108 | 4 |
| Social, emotional and mental health | 42 | 10 |
| Autistic spectrum disorder | 23 | 8 |
| Speech, language and communication needs | 20 | 5 |
| Moderate learning difficulty | 8 | 0 |
| No specialist assessment of need | 6 | 0 |
| Physical disability | 5 | 1 |
| Other difficulty or disability | 2 | 1 |
| Hearing impairment | 1 | 0 |
| Severe learning difficulty | 0 | 1 |
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.
| Name | Distance |
|
Heron Way Primary School
Heron Way, Horsham, West Sussex, RH13 6DJ |
0.31 miles |
|
Horsham Nursery School
Harwood Road, Horsham, RH13 5UT |
0.63 miles |
|
Kingslea Primary School
Kings Road, Horsham, West Sussex, RH13 5PS |
0.66 miles |
|
Leechpool Primary School
Leechpool Lane, Horsham, West Sussex, RH13 6AG |
0.93 miles |
|
St Mary's CofE (Aided) Primary School
Normandy, Horsham, West Sussex, RH12 1JL |
1.02 miles |
|
Oakfields Primary School, Horsham
Leith View Road, Horsham, West Sussex, RH12 4ET |
1.07 miles |
|
Trafalgar Community Infant School
Victory Road, Horsham, West Sussex, RH12 2JF |
1.41 miles |
|
North Heath Community Primary School
Erica Way, Horsham, West Sussex, RH12 5XL |
1.41 miles |
|
St Robert Southwell Catholic Primary School, Horsham
Lambs Farm Road, Roffey, Horsham, West Sussex, RH12 4LP |
1.5 miles |
|
Greenway Junior School
Greenway, Horsham, West Sussex, RH12 2JS |
1.51 miles |
|
Arunside School, Horsham
Blackbridge Lane, Horsham, West Sussex, RH12 1RR |
1.54 miles |
|
St John's Catholic Primary School
Blackbridge Lane, Horsham, West Sussex, RH12 1RR |
1.54 miles |
|
All Saints CofE Primary School, Horsham
Tylden Way, Horsham, West Sussex, RH12 5JB |
1.6 miles |
|
Holbrook Primary School
Holbrook School Lane, Horsham, West Sussex, RH12 5PP |
1.83 miles |
|
Shelley Primary School
Wickhurst Lane, Broadbridge Heath, Horsham, West Sussex, RH12 3LU |
2.37 miles |
|
Castlewood Primary School
Castlewood Road, Southwater, Horsham, West Sussex, RH13 9US |
2.55 miles |
|
St Andrew's CofE Primary School
Nuthurst Street, Nuthurst, Horsham, West Sussex, RH13 6LH |
2.62 miles |
|
Holy Trinity CofE Primary School, Lower Beeding
Church Close, Lower Beeding, Horsham, West Sussex, RH13 6NS |
2.79 miles |
|
Southwater Junior Academy
Worthing Road, Southwater, Horsham, West Sussex, RH13 9JH |
2.87 miles |
|
Warnham CofE Primary School
Freeman Road, Warnham, Rh12 3rq, Horsham, West Sussex, RH12 3RQ |
2.89 miles |
| Name | Distance |
|
Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee School, Horsham
Comptons Lane, Horsham, West Sussex, RH13 5NW |
0.14 miles |
|
Millais School
Depot Road, Horsham, West Sussex, RH13 5HR |
0.3 miles |
|
The College of Richard Collyer In Horsham
Hurst Road, Horsham, West Sussex, RH12 2EJ |
1.1 miles |
|
Aurora Vincent House School
Vincent House, 31 North Parade, Horsham, RH12 2DA |
1.25 miles |
|
Tanbridge House School
Farthings Hill, Guildford Road, Horsham, West Sussex, RH12 1SR |
1.96 miles |
|
Bohunt Horsham
Bailey Road, Horsham, West Sussex, RH12 6AP |
2.24 miles |
|
Christ's Hospital
|
2.73 miles |
|
New Barn School
Guildford Road, Broadbridge Heath, West Sussex, RH12 3PQ |
3.41 miles |
|
Farlington School
Strood Park, Horsham, RH12 3PN |
3.49 miles |
|
Muntham House School
Barns Green, Horsham, West Sussex, RH13 0NJ |
4.25 miles |
|
Manor House School
Stane Street, Slinfold, Horsham, West Sussex, RH13 0QX |
4.8 miles |
|
Brighton College Prep Handcross
London Road, Haywards Heath, RH17 6HF |
4.81 miles |
All schools in Horsham · West Sussex local authority: places and applications
The Forest School is part of Horsham Learning Alliance, which runs 2 schools. The nearest others:
What is The Forest School's Ofsted rating?
The latest Ofsted rating for The Forest School is Good, from an inspection in January 2022 of its predecessor, The Forest School.
When was The Forest School last inspected by Ofsted?
The Forest School was last inspected in September 2025.
How many pupils does The Forest School have?
The Forest School has 1,115 pupils on roll.
What age range does The Forest School cover?
The Forest School for pupils aged 11 to 16.
What are The Forest School's GCSE results?
In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 43.1, and 42% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.
Where is The Forest School?
The Forest School is at Comptons Lane, Horsham, West Sussex, RH13 5NT.