Branthwaite Academy
Branthwaite Academy is a special free school in Workington for boys and girls aged 4 to 19. It has 74 pupils, 18 more than it has places for. About 44 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far more than at most schools in England. Ofsted's last grade was inspected 2024, no overall grade.
Branthwaite Road, Workington, CA14 4SS01900 517632branthwaiteacademy.co.ukMiss Shelley Crowe headteacherAll details
What Ofsted found
Ofsted's last full inspection was on 15 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.
Results
GCSE results, summer 2025
2 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 | Cumberland | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of Year 11 | 2 | 6 | 9 | 9 | – | – |
| Average GCSE scoreAttainment 8 | – | 1.8 | 19.9 | 22.9 | 41.0 | 46.8 |
| Progress from age 11Progress 8 | – | -3.77 | -1.65 | -2.00 | – | – |
| Strong pass in English and mathsGrade 5+ in English and maths | – | 0% | 11% | 22% | 34% | 46% |
| Standard pass in English and mathsGrade 4+ in English and maths | – | 0% | 33% | 44% | 55% | 66% |
| Core subjects scoreEBacc average point score | – | 0.11 | 1.72 | 1.85 | 3.62 | 4.15 |
| Taking the core subjectsEBacc entry | – | 0% | 0% | 0% | 30% | 41% |
| Average GCSE score: other pupilsAttainment 8, non-disadvantaged | – | 1.8 | – | – | – | – |
| Average GCSE score: pupils who started behindAttainment 8, low prior attainers | – | – | 10.0 | – | – | – |
Year 6 results (SATs), summer 2025
4 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 | Cumberland | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils tested | 4 | 7 | 9 | – | – |
| Reached the expected level at 11Expected standard in reading, writing and maths | – | 0% | 0% | 56% | 63% |
| Working above the expected levelHigher standard in reading, writing and maths | – | 0% | 0% | 6% | 8% |
| Expected level: readingReading expected standard | – | 0% | 0% | – | – |
| Expected level: mathsMaths expected standard | – | 0% | 0% | – | – |
| Expected level: writingWriting expected standard (teacher assessed) | – | 0% | 0% | – | – |
| Reading progressReading progress score | – | – | -10.6 | – | – |
| Maths progressMaths progress score | – | – | -10.1 | – | – |
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.
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 Cumberland council's admissions booklet, send it to us.
Who goes here
Who the school teaches, from the latest school census.
Specialist SEND provision. A special school for pupils with autism.
To get a place in the unit or resourced provision, a child normally needs an education, health and care plan (EHCP) that names the school. Other schools in Cumberland with autism provision.
The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: Autistic spectrum disorder (69), language and communications needs (3), Severe learning difficulty (1), emotional and mental health (1).
How the mix of pupils has changed
| Census | 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils on roll | 74 | 66 | 56 | 56 | 55 | 40 |
| Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals | 42% | 36% | 32% | 34% | 29% | 20% |
| Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language | 1% | 2% | 2% | 2% | 2% | 0% |
| 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 85.2% 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 | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sessions missedOverall absence | 14.8% | 14.9% | 13.0% | 13.8% | 8.0% | 5.2% |
| Missed with permissionAuthorised absence | 10.3% | 13.1% | 10.3% | 9.4% | 3.8% | – |
| Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence | 4.5% | 1.8% | 2.7% | 4.4% | 4.1% | – |
| Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence | 27.1% | 31.5% | 35.9% | 41.5% | 23.1% | 12.8% |
| SuspensionsSuspension rate | 1.5 | 0.0 | 3.6 | 5.5 | 0.0 | – |
| Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – |
What pupils do next
After GCSEs
Where the 9 pupils who left in 2022/23 were a year later.
Earlier years
| Destination | 2022/23 leavers | 2021/22 leavers |
|---|---|---|
| Still in education, work or training | 78% | 100% |
| Education | 67% | 100% |
| Apprenticeship | 0% | 0% |
| Work | 11% | 0% |
| Not in education, work or training | 22% | 0% |
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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Energy Coast UTC | University technical college | 730 m | 383 | Good 2023 | 4 | Compare |
| Lakes College - West Cumbria | Further education | 1.0 miles | – | Not inspected | – | Compare |
| St Gregory's Catholic Primary School, Workington | Academy | 1.1 miles | 183 | Not inspected | 12 | Compare |
| West Cumbria Learning Centre | Pupil referral unit | 1.2 miles | 50 | Requires improvement 2023 | – | Compare |
| Westfield Nursery and Primary School | Council | 1.2 miles | 160 | Good 2023 | 35 | Compare |
| Ashfield Junior School | Council | 1.3 miles | 254 | Requires improvement 2024 | 7 | Compare |
| Ashfield Infant & Nursery School | Council | 1.3 miles | 200 | Outstanding 2024 | 85 | Compare |
| St Mary's Catholic Primary School | Roman Catholic | 1.4 miles | 209 | Good 2022 | 64 | Compare |
Questions parents ask
Is Branthwaite Academy a good school?
Branthwaite Academy doesn't have a score yet. Ofsted rated it not judged at its last inspection in October 2024.
What is Branthwaite Academy's Ofsted rating?
Ofsted rated Branthwaite Academy not judged at its last full inspection on 15 October 2024.
How many pupils does Branthwaite Academy have?
74 pupils aged 4 to 19 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 56 places, so it is 132% full.
What is attendance like at Branthwaite Academy?
Pupils were in school 85.2% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 27% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.
Does Branthwaite Academy have specialist SEND provision?
Yes. It is a special school for autism. To get a place there, a child normally needs an education, health and care plan (EHCP) that names the school.
Does Branthwaite 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
- Branthwaite Road, Workington, CA14 4SS
- Telephone
- 01900 517632
- Website
- branthwaiteacademy.co.uk
- Headteacher
- Miss Shelley Crowe
- Type of school
- Special free school (Free schools special, free schools)
- Phase
- Special school, ages 4-19, with sixth form
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- None
- Multi-academy trust
- The Eden Academy (9 schools)
- Local authority
- Cumberland
- Ward
- Harrington
- Constituency
- Whitehaven and Workington
- Setting
- Smaller rural: Further from a major town or city
- Opened
- 2 September 2019
- URN
- 143723 · LAESTAB 9427003 · UKPRN 10083742
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.