Arbour Vale School
Arbour Vale School is a sponsored special academy in Slough for boys and girls aged 2 to 19. It has 384 pupils, 9 more than it has places for. About 43 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far more than at most schools in England. Ofsted's last grade was good, back in 2023.
Farnham Road, Farnham Royal, Slough, SL2 3AE01753 515560arbourvaleschool.orgMr Neil Sykes headteacherAll details
What Ofsted found
Ofsted's last full inspection was on 10 January 2023, back when it gave schools one overall grade. Read the report on Ofsted's website.
Good overall.
Results
GCSE results, summer 2025
23 pupils sat their GCSEs. Here is how they did against every state secondary in England.
All GCSE measures, year by year
| Measure | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2019† | 2018† | Slough | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of Year 11 | 23 | 32 | 35 | 26 | 28 | 25 | – | – |
† These results are for Arbour Vale School, the school this one replaced in November 2018. Same building and the same children. It got a new registration number, usually because it joined an academy trust.
Year 6 results (SATs), summer 2025
18 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.
All Year 6 measures, year by year
| Measure | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2019† | 2018† | 2017† | Slough | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils tested | 18 | 15 | 14 | 19 | 21 | 17 | – | – |
| Reached the expected level at 11Expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 70% | 63% |
| Working above the expected levelHigher standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 12% | 8% |
| Reading scoreReading average scaled score | 85.0 | – | – | – | – | – | 106.4 | 105.6 |
| Maths scoreMaths average scaled score | 83.0 | – | – | – | – | – | 106.3 | 104.6 |
| Grammar and spelling scoreGPS average scaled score | 94.0 | – | – | – | – | – | 107.8 | 105.2 |
| Expected level: readingReading expected standard | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | – | – |
| Expected level: mathsMaths expected standard | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | – | – |
| Expected level: writingWriting expected standard (teacher assessed) | 6% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | – | – |
| Reading progressReading progress score | – | – | -5.7 | -7.4 | -2.6 | -3.8 | – | – |
| Maths progressMaths progress score | – | – | -4.7 | -8.2 | -2.9 | -3.8 | – | – |
| Expected level: low-income pupilsExpected standard, disadvantaged | 0% | – | 0% | 0% | 0% | – | – | – |
| Expected level: other pupilsExpected standard, non-disadvantaged | 0% | – | 0% | 0% | 0% | – | – | – |
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 Arbour Vale School, the school this one replaced in November 2018. Same building and the same children. It got a new registration number, usually because it joined an academy trust.
Does every child do well here?
A good school does well by every child, not just on average. Each row compares two groups of pupils here. The grey marks show the same two groups across England. Every gap at this school is smaller than the gap across England. When a group has fewer than about ten pupils, its figures jump around a lot from year to year.
At the end of primary school, 2025
Low-income means the child has had free school meals at some point in the last six years. A group's figure isn't published when it has fewer than six pupils.
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 Slough council's admissions booklet, send it to us.
What parents say
From Ofsted's Parent View survey: 75 parents answered in the year to 6 April 2026. Parents choose whether to fill it in, and many only do so when an inspection is coming, so don't read too much into small differences. The England figures are the average for all schools with enough answers to publish.
Who goes here
Who the school teaches, from the latest school census.
The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: Autistic spectrum disorder (226), Severe learning difficulty (59), Profound and multiple learning difficulty (25), language and communications needs (23), Other difficulty or disability (15), Moderate learning difficulty (11).
How the mix of pupils has changed
| Census | 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils on roll | 384 | 359 | 345 | 342 | 333 | 320 |
| Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals | 46% | 42% | 41% | 39% | 36% | 32% |
| Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language | 49% | 47% | 45% | 45% | 45% | 48% |
| Pupils getting extra supportSEN support | – | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans | – | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Attendance and behaviour
In 2024/25 pupils were in school 88.3% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.
Attendance year by year
| Measure | 2024/25 | 2023/24 | 2022/23 | 2021/22 | 2020/21 | 2018/19 | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sessions missedOverall absence | 11.8% | 13.8% | 17.1% | 17.8% | 16.3% | 11.4% | 5.2% |
| Missed with permissionAuthorised absence | 9.9% | 10.7% | 12.1% | 13.2% | 13.7% | 9.1% | – |
| Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence | 1.9% | 3.1% | 5.1% | 4.6% | 2.6% | 2.3% | – |
| Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence | 38.2% | 41.7% | 52.4% | 55.7% | 52.6% | 37.8% | 12.8% |
| SuspensionsSuspension rate | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | – | – |
| Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – |
What pupils do next
After GCSEs
Where the 35 pupils who left in 2022/23 were a year later.
Earlier years
| Destination | 2022/23 leavers | 2021/22 leavers | 2020/21 leavers | 2019/20 leavers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Still in education, work or training | 94% | 96% | 100% | 85% |
| Education | 94% | 96% | 100% | 85% |
| Apprenticeship | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Work | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Not in education, work or training | 0% | 0% | 0% | 4% |
Staff and money
From the government's count of school staff in November 2025 and the school's published accounts.
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.
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
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.
| School | Type | Distance | Pupils | Ofsted | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St Anthony's Catholic Primary School | Academy | 210 m | 470 | Not inspected | 40 | Compare |
| St Mary's Farnham Royal CofE Primary School | Church of England | 240 m | 256 | No overall grade 2024 | 10 | Compare |
| Beechwood School | Academy | 350 m | 838 | No overall grade 2025 | 8 | Compare |
| Claycots School | Council | 530 m | 1,605 | Good 2024 | 48 | Compare |
| Penn Wood Primary and Nursery School | Council | 660 m | 684 | No overall grade 2025 | 95 | Compare |
| Dair House School | Independent | 1000 m | 100 | Not inspected | – | Compare |
| Baylis Court School | Academy | 0.8 miles | 921 | Report card 2026 | 75 | Compare |
| Phoenix Infant Academy | Academy | 0.8 miles | 262 | Not inspected | – | Compare |
Questions parents ask
Is Arbour Vale School a good school?
Arbour Vale School doesn't have a score yet. Ofsted rated it good at its last inspection in January 2023.
What is Arbour Vale School's Ofsted rating?
Ofsted rated Arbour Vale School good at its last full inspection on 10 January 2023.
How good are Arbour Vale School's SATs results?
In summer 2025, 0% of Year 6 children reached the expected level in reading, writing and maths. Across England it was 63%. 0% went further and reached the higher level. The year group was small, so the percentages jump around a lot from year to year.
How many pupils does Arbour Vale School have?
384 pupils aged 2 to 19 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 375 places, so it is 102% full.
What is attendance like at Arbour Vale School?
Pupils were in school 88.3% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 38% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.
What do parents say about Arbour Vale School?
100% of the 75 parents who answered Ofsted's Parent View survey would recommend it to other parents, and 93% say their child is happy there. Across England, 84% of parents would recommend their child's school.
Does Arbour Vale School 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
- Farnham Road, Farnham Royal, Slough, SL2 3AE
- Telephone
- 01753 515560
- Website
- www.arbourvaleschool.org
- Headteacher
- Mr Neil Sykes
- Type of school
- Sponsored special academy (Academy special sponsor led, academies)
- Phase
- Special school, ages 2-19, with nursery, with sixth form
- Gender
- Mixed
- Multi-academy trust
- Orchard Hill College Academy Trust (13 schools)
- Local authority
- Slough
- Ward
- Farnhams & Stoke Poges
- Constituency
- Beaconsfield
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Opened
- 1 November 2018 (new provision)
- URN
- 145741 · LAESTAB 8717000 · UKPRN 10067073
- Formerly
- Arbour Vale School
Recent changes
- New KS4 results for 2024/25
Where these figures come from
- School details: Department for Education, Get Information About Schools, refreshed daily (this page rebuilt 13 September 2026).
- Inspections: Ofsted management information, monthly; latest publication in our data 27 August 2026.
- GCSE results: DfE key stage 4 performance tables, 2024/25 final.
- Year 6 results: DfE key stage 2 tables, 2024/25.
- Attendance: DfE pupil absence in schools in England, 2024/25 full year.
- Pupil characteristics: DfE school census, January 2026.
- Staff: DfE school workforce census, November 2025.
- Pupil premium: DfE allocations and conditions of grant, 2026 to 2027.
- Money: DfE financial benchmarking and insights tool, academy accounts return 2024/25.
- Neighbourhood: police.uk street-level crime, HM Land Registry price paid data, NaPTAN bus stops, English Indices of Deprivation 2025.
- All under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Full list and update calendar.