School Chooser

Fiveways Special School

Special · ages 4-19MixedCouncil100 pupilsSixth formYeovilSomerset
School Chooser ScoreNot scoredWe don't score this type of school.
OfstedOutstandingLast Ofsted inspection, June 2024
Attendance86.9%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families52%Far more than most schools
PlacesFull100 pupils, 100 places
Pupils per teacher6.6School workforce census
Pupils on roll100Census January 2026

Fiveways Special School is a council special school in Yeovil for boys and girls aged 4 to 19. It has 100 pupils and every place is taken. About 52 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far more than at most schools in England. Ofsted's last grade was outstanding, back in 2024.

Victoria Road, Yeovil, BA21 5AZ01935 476227fivewaysschool.co.ukMr Swavek Nowakiewicz headteacherAll details

What Ofsted found

Ofsted's last full inspection was on 18 June 2024, back when it gave schools one overall grade. Read the report on Ofsted's website.

Outstanding overall.

TeachingOfsted calls this “quality of education”
Outstanding
BehaviourOfsted calls this “behaviour and attitudes”
Outstanding
WellbeingOfsted calls this “personal development”
Outstanding
LeadershipOfsted calls this “leadership and management”
Outstanding
Early years
Outstanding
Sixth formOfsted calls this “post-16”
Outstanding
Safeguarding
Effective
Yes
Earlier inspections (1)
DateTypeOutcome
19 April 2023UngradedSchool remains Outstanding (Concerns) - S5 Next

Results

GCSE results, summer 2025

7 pupils sat their GCSEs. Here is how they did against every state secondary in England.

The government hasn't published this school's headline results. Fewer than eleven pupils sat the exams, so the figures could identify individual children.

Year 6 results (SATs), summer 2025

3 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.

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
Trend
Reached the expected level at 11
2017 to 2024
2017: 0%0%20172019: 0%0%20192023: 0%0%20232024: 0%0%2024
Since 2017: +0%
All Year 6 measures, year by year
Measure202520242023201920182017SomersetEngland
Pupils tested3117747
Reached the expected level at 11Expected standard in reading, writing and maths0%0%0%0%60%63%
Working above the expected levelHigher standard in reading, writing and maths0%0%0%0%7%8%
Expected level: readingReading expected standard0%0%0%0%
Expected level: mathsMaths expected standard0%0%0%0%
Expected level: writingWriting expected standard (teacher assessed)0%0%0%0%
Reading progressReading progress score-1.7-2.0
Maths progressMaths progress score-1.6-2.9

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 Somerset council's admissions booklet, send it to us.

Who goes here

Who the school teaches, from the latest school census.

Pupils on roll100Census January 2026
Places100100% full
Pupils from low-income families51%52% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English10%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support0%0 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan100%100 pupils with a plan
Pupils with extra funding (pupil premium)51%£60,300 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls69 / 31
White British pupils78%

Specialist SEND provision. A special school for pupils with profound and multiple learning difficulties, severe learning difficulties.

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 Somerset with profound and multiple learning difficulties provision.

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: Severe learning difficulty (47), Autistic spectrum disorder (27), Profound and multiple learning difficulty (22), Moderate learning difficulty (1), Other difficulty or disability (1).

How the mix of pupils has changed
Census202620252024202320222021
Pupils on roll1009898949282
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals51%49%48%47%45%40%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language10%10%7%7%5%7%
Pupils getting extra supportSEN support0%0%0%0%0%
Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans100%100%100%100%100%

Attendance and behaviour

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 86.9% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance86.9%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school36.6%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Suspensions per 100 pupils0.02024/25, no permanent exclusions
Missed without permission1.6%of school time, 2024/25
Attendance year by year
Measure2024/252023/242022/232021/222020/212018/19England
Sessions missedOverall absence13.2%14.4%12.8%15.0%17.6%15.1%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence11.6%12.5%11.0%12.4%16.0%12.9%
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence1.6%1.9%1.9%2.6%1.6%2.2%
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence36.6%43.8%40.3%38.9%47.7%37.9%12.8%
SuspensionsSuspension rate0.01.00.00.00.0
Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions00000

What pupils do next

After GCSEs

Where the 6 pupils who left in 2021/22 were a year later.

Still in education, work or training100%and stayed there for at least six months

Staff and money

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

Teachers15.1full-time equivalent, 17 people
Pupils per teacher6.6Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers100%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants45.5full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£56,477
Teachers who left in the year12%2024/25, for any reason including retirement
Vacancies0
Sick days per teacher11.42024/25

Money

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

Spend per pupil£38,431England £32,258. Total £3.8m
Income per pupil£36,875England £32,367. Total £3.6m
Spent on teachers per pupil£11,726England £11,930
Money in reserve2%Very little put by: £55k, £558 per pupil. England 7%
Money in against money out-£152kit spent more than it took in this year
Where the money goes£38,431spent per pupil

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 m40112 months to June 2026, mostly violence and sexual offences
Local crime rate300 per 1,000 people230% higher than the England average
Nearest bus stop160 mPen Mill School, 38 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
Pen Mill Infant and Nursery AcademyAcademy430 m156Requires improvement 20220Compare
St. Michael's AcademyAcademy550 m264Good 201972Compare
Birchfield Community Primary SchoolCouncil730 m409Good 202446Compare
Reckleford Infant School and NurseryCouncil920 m128Good 20233Compare
Buckler's Mead SchoolAcademy0.7 miles812Good 202460Compare
St Gildas Catholic Primary SchoolAcademy0.7 miles208No overall grade 202422Compare
Primrose Lane Primary SchoolAcademy0.8 miles252Not inspected71Compare
Fairmead SchoolCouncil0.8 miles152Good 2023Compare

Questions parents ask

Is Fiveways Special School a good school?

Fiveways Special School doesn't have a score yet. Ofsted rated it outstanding at its last inspection in June 2024.

What is Fiveways Special School's Ofsted rating?

Ofsted rated Fiveways Special School outstanding at its last full inspection on 18 June 2024.

How many pupils does Fiveways Special School have?

100 pupils aged 4 to 19 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 100 places, so it is 100% full.

What is attendance like at Fiveways Special School?

Pupils were in school 86.9% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 37% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

Does Fiveways Special School have specialist SEND provision?

Yes. It is a special school for profound and multiple learning difficulties, severe learning difficulties. To get a place there, a child normally needs an education, health and care plan (EHCP) that names the school.

Does Fiveways Special 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
Victoria Road, Yeovil, BA21 5AZ
Telephone
01935 476227
Website
www.fivewaysschool.co.uk
Headteacher
Mr Swavek Nowakiewicz
Type of school
Council special school (Community special school, special schools)
Phase
Special school, ages 4-19, with sixth form
Gender
Mixed
Local authority
Somerset
Ward
Yeovil East
Constituency
Yeovil
Setting
Urban: Further from a major town or city
URN
123944 · LAESTAB 9337016 · UKPRN 10018109

Recent changes

  • New KS4 results for 2024/25

Where these figures come from