Northern House Academy
Northern House Academy is a special academy in Oxford for boys and girls aged 5 to 11. It has 93 pupils, 7 more than it has places for. About 47 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.
South Parade, Oxford, OX2 7JN01865 557004northernhouseacademy.co.ukHeadteacher Rebecca Holmes headteacherAll details
What Ofsted found
Ofsted's last full inspection was on 25 June 2024, back when it gave schools one overall grade. Read the report on Ofsted's website.
Outstanding overall.
Results
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† | Oxfordshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils tested | 18 | 22 | 22 | 25 | 20 | 24 | – | – |
| Reached the expected level at 11Expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 0% | 0% | 12% | 15% | 0% | 63% | 63% |
| Working above the expected levelHigher standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 10% | 8% |
| Reading scoreReading average scaled score | 99.0 | 95.0 | 98.0 | 95.0 | 109.0 | 105.0 | 106.1 | 105.6 |
| Maths scoreMaths average scaled score | 92.0 | 90.0 | 88.0 | 96.0 | 103.0 | 99.0 | 104.4 | 104.6 |
| Grammar and spelling scoreGPS average scaled score | 96.0 | – | 92.0 | 95.0 | 105.0 | 102.0 | 104.8 | 105.2 |
| Expected level: readingReading expected standard | 6% | 9% | 27% | 24% | 60% | 33% | – | – |
| Expected level: mathsMaths expected standard | 0% | 0% | 0% | 28% | 50% | 21% | – | – |
| Expected level: writingWriting expected standard (teacher assessed) | 0% | 0% | 0% | 12% | 15% | 0% | – | – |
| Reading progressReading progress score | – | – | -1.8 | +3.7 | -0.3 | -5.1 | – | – |
| Maths progressMaths progress score | – | – | -5.8 | +2.1 | -2.8 | -9.4 | – | – |
| Expected level: low-income pupilsExpected standard, disadvantaged | – | 0% | 0% | 17% | 18% | 0% | – | – |
| Expected level: other pupilsExpected standard, non-disadvantaged | – | 0% | 0% | 0% | 11% | 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 Northern House School, the school this one replaced in February 2020. 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 Oxfordshire 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, social, emotional and mental health.
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 Oxfordshire with autism provision.
The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: emotional and mental health (58), Autistic spectrum disorder (19), language and communications needs (15), Specific learning difficulty (1).
How the mix of pupils has changed
| Census | 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils on roll | 93 | 85 | 87 | 82 | 82 | 88 |
| Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals | 47% | 52% | 55% | 61% | 63% | 57% |
| Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language | 2% | 4% | 3% | 0% | 0% | 1% |
| 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 90.9% 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 | 9.1% | 11.6% | 13.6% | 13.8% | 17.1% | 8.5% | 5.2% |
| Missed with permissionAuthorised absence | 5.6% | 6.7% | 8.8% | 11.7% | 14.7% | 5.2% | – |
| Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence | 3.6% | 4.9% | 4.8% | 2.1% | 2.4% | 3.3% | – |
| Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence | 23.3% | 35.9% | 37.1% | 56.5% | 68.1% | 22.2% | 12.8% |
| SuspensionsSuspension rate | 0.0 | 4.6 | 1.2 | 1.2 | 17.1 | – | – |
| Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – |
† These attendance figures are for Northern House School, the school this one replaced in February 2020. 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.
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 Edward's School | Independent (grammar) | 130 m | 809 | Not inspected | – | Compare |
| Summer Fields School | Independent (grammar) | 450 m | 305 | Not inspected | – | Compare |
| d'Overbroeck's | Independent (grammar) | 560 m | 615 | Not inspected | – | Compare |
| St Clare's, Oxford | Independent (grammar) | 630 m | 262 | Not inspected | – | Compare |
| The Cherwell School | Academy | 810 m | 2,023 | Outstanding 2022 | 91 | Compare |
| Oxford High School GDST | Independent | 850 m | 756 | Not inspected | – | Compare |
| St Philip and James' Church of England Aided Primary School Oxford | Church of England | 0.7 miles | 391 | Good 2023 | 91 | Compare |
| Wolvercote Primary School | Academy | 0.7 miles | 338 | Good 2024 | 80 | Compare |
Questions parents ask
Is Northern House Academy a good school?
Northern House Academy doesn't have a score yet. Ofsted rated it outstanding at its last inspection in June 2024.
What is Northern House Academy's Ofsted rating?
Ofsted rated Northern House Academy outstanding at its last full inspection on 25 June 2024.
How good are Northern House Academy'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 Northern House Academy have?
93 pupils aged 5 to 11 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 86 places, so it is 108% full.
What is attendance like at Northern House Academy?
Pupils were in school 90.9% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 23% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.
Does Northern House Academy have specialist SEND provision?
Yes. It is a special school for autism, social, emotional and mental health. To get a place there, a child normally needs an education, health and care plan (EHCP) that names the school.
These answers come straight from the figures on this page and update when new data comes out.
Contact and details
- Address
- South Parade, Oxford, OX2 7JN
- Telephone
- 01865 557004
- Website
- www.northernhouseacademy.co.uk
- Headteacher
- Headteacher Rebecca Holmes
- Type of school
- Special academy (Academy special converter, academies)
- Phase
- Special school, ages 5-11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Multi-academy trust
- The Gallery Trust (7 schools)
- Local authority
- Oxfordshire
- Ward
- Summertown
- Constituency
- Oxford West and Abingdon
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Opened
- 1 February 2020 (fresh start)
- URN
- 147784 · LAESTAB 9315950 · UKPRN 10085443
- Formerly
- Northern House School
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.
- 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.