School Chooser

Acre Wood Academy

Special · ages 4-19MixedAcademy144 pupilsSixth formCrowboroughEast Sussex
School Chooser ScoreNot scoredWe don't score this type of school.
OfstedNo overall gradeLast Ofsted inspection, October 2024
Attendance88.5%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families30%A bit more than most schools
Places2 spare144 pupils, 146 places
Pupils per teacher5.8School workforce census
Pupils on roll144Census January 2026

Acre Wood Academy is a sponsored special academy in Crowborough for boys and girls aged 4 to 19. It has 144 pupils and room for 146. About 30 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, a bit more than at most schools. Ofsted's last grade was inspected 2024, no overall grade.

Church Road, Crowborough, TN6 1BN01892 663018acrewood.lseat.org.ukMs Ali Causton headteacherAll details

What Ofsted found

Ofsted's last full inspection was on 1 October 2024, back when it gave schools one overall grade. Read the report on Ofsted's website.

Not judged Between September 2024 and November 2025, Ofsted graded each area but stopped giving one overall word.

TeachingOfsted calls this “quality of education”
Inadequate
BehaviourOfsted calls this “behaviour and attitudes”
Inadequate
WellbeingOfsted calls this “personal development”
Inadequate
LeadershipOfsted calls this “leadership and management”
Inadequate
Early years
Inadequate
Sixth formOfsted calls this “post-16”
Inadequate
Safeguarding
Effective
Yes

Ofsted has serious worries about this school. It is in special measures.

Earlier inspections (1)
DateTypeOutcome
14 March 2023UngradedSchool remains Good (Concerns) - S5 Next

Results

GCSE results, summer 2025

14 pupils sat their GCSEs. Here is how they did against every state secondary in England. These are the results of Grove Park School, the school this one replaced.

The government hasn't published this school's headline results. That usually means the year group was too small to publish without identifying children.

Year 6 results (SATs), summer 2025

5 children took the tests. Here is how they did against every state primary in England. With a year group this small, a couple of children can move the percentages a long way. These are the results of Grove Park School, the school this one replaced.

Reached the expected level at 11Official name: Expected standard in reading, writing and maths
Working above the expected levelOfficial name: Higher standard in reading, writing and maths
Reading scoreOfficial name: Reading average scaled score
Maths scoreOfficial name: Maths average scaled score
All Year 6 measures, year by year
Measure2025†2024†2023†2019†2018†2017†East SussexEngland
Pupils tested54141224
Reached the expected level at 11Expected standard in reading, writing and maths0%0%61%63%
Working above the expected levelHigher standard in reading, writing and maths0%0%6%8%
Expected level: readingReading expected standard0%0%
Expected level: mathsMaths expected standard0%0%
Expected level: writingWriting expected standard (teacher assessed)0%0%
Reading progressReading progress score-10.1-6.2
Maths progressMaths progress score-10.3-5.8

There are no progress figures for 2025. That year group missed their Year 2 tests during Covid, so there was no starting point to measure from. Progress figures come back with the December 2026 results. Tests were cancelled altogether in 2020 and 2021.

† These results are for Grove Park School, the school this one replaced in July 2025. Same building and the same children. It got a new registration number, usually because it joined an academy trust.

Getting a place

Admissions policy not published.

Each council publishes its own figures on how many families applied and how far away the last child to get a place lived. We are adding councils one at a time. If you have a link to East Sussex council's admissions booklet, send it to us.

Who goes here

Who the school teaches, from the latest school census.

Pupils on roll144Census January 2026
Places14699% full
Pupils from low-income families30%30% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English7%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support0%0 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan100%144 pupils with a plan
Pupils with extra funding (pupil premium)26%£39,300 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls98 / 46
White British pupils80%

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: Severe learning difficulty (54), Autistic spectrum disorder (28), language and communications needs (28), Moderate learning difficulty (24), Profound and multiple learning difficulty (7), Other difficulty or disability (1).

Attendance and behaviour

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 88.5% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance88.5%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school21.9%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Missed without permission4.5%of school time, 2024/25
Attendance year by year
Measure2024/25†2023/24†2022/23†2021/22†2020/21†2018/19†England
Sessions missedOverall absence11.5%10.9%8.6%8.9%5.4%7.5%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence7.1%6.3%5.7%7.1%4.2%5.0%
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence4.5%4.6%2.9%1.8%1.1%2.5%
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence21.9%29.2%20.2%24.3%10.5%15.9%12.8%

† These attendance figures are for Grove Park School, the school this one replaced in July 2025. Same building and the same children. It got a new registration number, usually because it joined an academy trust.

Staff and money

From the government's count of school staff in November 2025 and the school's published accounts.

Teachers24.9full-time equivalent, 28 people
Pupils per teacher5.8Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers82%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants38.2full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£55,067
Vacancies0

Money

From the academy accounts return, year to August 2025. The per-pupil figures are compared with other special schools in England that report their accounts the same way.

Money in reserve6%Not much put by: £49k, £339 per pupil
Money in against money out+£166kit took in more than it spent this year

Reserves are the money left over at the end of the year, kept back for emergencies and big projects. Being in the red year after year is a warning sign. Very large reserves can mean money sitting in the bank instead of being spent on today's pupils. Academy figures are rounded to the nearest £1,000 and include a share of any money the trust holds centrally.

The area around the school

Crimes within 500 m4112 months to June 2026, mostly violence and sexual offences
Local crime rate44 per 1,000 people52% lower than the England average
Typical house price£380,000Wealden
Nearest bus stop70 mRowan House, 10 stops within 500 m

Crime figures come from police.uk. The police record each crime at the nearest of a fixed set of map points rather than the exact spot, so “within 500 m” is only rough. House prices are from HM Land Registry sales nearby over the last two years.

Nearby schools

The closest schools, nearest first. Hover over a row to see it on the map.

Well aboveAboveIn lineBelowWell belowNot scored
SchoolTypeDistancePupilsOfstedScore
St Marys Catholic Primary SchoolRoman Catholic910 m214Good 202230Compare
Sir Henry Fermor Church of England Primary SchoolAcademy0.7 miles403Good 202423Compare
Beacon AcademyAcademy0.8 miles1,642Outstanding 202484Compare
Ashdown Primary SchoolCouncil0.9 miles407Good 202360Compare
St John's Church of England Primary SchoolChurch of England1.0 miles210No overall grade 202565Compare
Jarvis Brook Primary SchoolAcademy1.5 miles96Not inspected16Compare
High Hurstwood Church of England Primary SchoolChurch of England2.8 miles101Good 202475Compare
Rotherfield Primary SchoolCouncil2.9 miles209Good 202336Compare

Questions parents ask

Is Acre Wood Academy a good school?

Acre Wood Academy doesn't have a score yet. Ofsted rated it not judged at its last inspection in October 2024.

What is Acre Wood Academy's Ofsted rating?

Ofsted rated Acre Wood Academy not judged at its last full inspection on 1 October 2024.

How many pupils does Acre Wood Academy have?

144 pupils aged 4 to 19 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 146 places, so it is 99% full.

What is attendance like at Acre Wood Academy?

Pupils were in school 88.5% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 22% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

Does Acre Wood Academy have a sixth form?

Yes.

These answers come straight from the figures on this page and update when new data comes out.

Contact and details

Address
Church Road, Crowborough, TN6 1BN
Telephone
01892 663018
Website
acrewood.lseat.org.uk
Headteacher
Ms Ali Causton
Type of school
Sponsored special academy (Academy special sponsor led, academies)
Phase
Special school, ages 4-19, with sixth form
Gender
Mixed
Multi-academy trust
London South East Academies Trust (19 schools)
Local authority
East Sussex
Ward
Crowborough Central
Constituency
Sussex Weald
Setting
Urban: Further from a major town or city
Opened
1 July 2025 (new provision)
URN
151783 · LAESTAB 8457007 · UKPRN 10097839
Formerly
Grove Park School

Where these figures come from