Springwell Special Academy
Springwell Special Academy is a special academy in Barnsley for boys and girls aged 5 to 16. It has 136 pupils, 4 more than it has places for. About 76 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 2022.
St Helen's Boulevard, Carlton Road, Barnsley, S71 2AY01226 291133springwelllearningcommunity.co.ukLydia Harrison executive principalAll details
What Ofsted found
Ofsted's last full inspection was on 8 March 2022, back when it gave schools one overall grade. Read the report on Ofsted's website.
Good overall.
This inspection is more than 4 years old. When Ofsted next visits, the school will get a report card instead of one grade.
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 | Barnsley | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of Year 11 | 23 | 20 | 12 | 15 | 13 | 15 | – | – |
| Average GCSE scoreAttainment 8 | 5.8 | 6.4 | 9.3 | 13.3 | 10.9 | 12.1 | 41.5 | 46.8 |
| Progress from age 11Progress 8 | – | -1.42 | -1.99 | -1.84 | -2.08 | -1.42 | – | – |
| Strong pass in English and mathsGrade 5+ in English and maths | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 42% | 46% |
| Standard pass in English and mathsGrade 4+ in English and maths | 0% | 0% | 8% | 0% | 8% | 13% | 60% | 66% |
| Core subjects scoreEBacc average point score | 0.32 | 0.40 | 0.53 | 0.62 | 0.49 | 0.27 | 3.66 | 4.15 |
| Taking the core subjectsEBacc entry | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 32% | 41% |
| Average GCSE score: low-income pupilsAttainment 8, disadvantaged | – | 7.1 | – | – | – | 16.0 | – | – |
| Average GCSE score: other pupilsAttainment 8, non-disadvantaged | – | 4.8 | – | – | – | 6.2 | – | – |
| Average GCSE score: pupils who started behindAttainment 8, low prior attainers | – | 6.4 | 6.8 | 11.5 | 9.2 | 11.4 | – | – |
Subjects
Results came out for 5 GCSE subjects in 2025. Each figure is the share of pupils who got a grade 5 or better, next to the average for state secondaries in England.
Subjects that did worse than the England average: English Literature (0% here, 58% across England), English Language (0% here, 54% across England), Social Studies (0% here, 54% across England), Mathematics (0% here, 53% across England).
The small number is how many pupils sat each subject. Subjects with fewer than six pupils aren't published.
Every subject against England, 2025
| Subject | Entries | Grades 9 to 7 | Grades 9 to 5 | Grades 9 to 4 | England 9 to 5 | Rank in England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mathematics | 29 | 0% | 0% | 0% | 53% | – |
| English Language | 26 | 0% | 0% | 0% | 54% | – |
| Social Studies | 25 | 0% | 0% | 0% | 54% | – |
| Statistics | 22 | 0% | 0% | 0% | 51% | – |
| English Literature | 21 | 0% | 0% | 0% | 58% | – |
In combined science each pupil gets two grades and we count the lower one. Rankings only include state secondaries where 20 or more pupils sat the subject.
Year 6 results (SATs), summer 2025
15 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 | Barnsley | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils tested | 15 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 9 | 8 | – | – |
| Reached the expected level at 11Expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 11% | 0% | 66% | 63% |
| Working above the expected levelHigher standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 8% | 8% |
| Reading scoreReading average scaled score | 89.0 | 95.0 | 89.0 | 88.0 | 98.0 | 94.0 | 105.6 | 105.6 |
| Maths scoreMaths average scaled score | 86.0 | 87.0 | 85.0 | 94.0 | 95.0 | 93.0 | 104.8 | 104.6 |
| Grammar and spelling scoreGPS average scaled score | 87.0 | 91.0 | 85.0 | 95.0 | 95.0 | 94.0 | 105.0 | 105.2 |
| Expected level: readingReading expected standard | 0% | 10% | 0% | 0% | 33% | 25% | – | – |
| Expected level: mathsMaths expected standard | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 11% | 0% | – | – |
| Expected level: writingWriting expected standard (teacher assessed) | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 22% | 13% | – | – |
| Reading progressReading progress score | – | – | -1.1 | -12.9 | +0.3 | – | – | – |
| Maths progressMaths progress score | – | – | -1.7 | -11.6 | -2.8 | – | – | – |
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.
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 Barnsley 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 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 Barnsley with social, emotional and mental health provision.
The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: emotional and mental health (115), language and communications needs (14), Autistic spectrum disorder (5), Other difficulty or disability (1), Severe learning difficulty (1).
How the mix of pupils has changed
| Census | 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils on roll | 136 | 122 | 117 | 108 | 115 | 111 |
| Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals | 76% | 69% | 68% | 65% | 62% | 62% |
| Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language | 2% | 2% | 2% | 1% | 3% | 3% |
| 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 70.7% 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 | 29.3% | 23.3% | 22.2% | 17.1% | 12.2% | 9.5% | 5.2% |
| Missed with permissionAuthorised absence | 5.9% | 5.4% | 5.0% | 5.8% | 7.2% | 4.9% | – |
| Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence | 23.4% | 17.9% | 17.3% | 11.3% | 5.0% | 4.6% | – |
| Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence | 57.3% | 56.5% | 53.0% | 42.5% | 37.9% | 29.5% | 12.8% |
| SuspensionsSuspension rate | 3.3 | 22.2 | 25.0 | 9.6 | 0.9 | – | – |
| Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – |
What pupils do next
After GCSEs
Where the 12 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 | 67% | 87% | 43% | 46% |
| Education | 67% | 80% | 36% | 46% |
| Apprenticeship | 0% | 0% | 7% | 0% |
| Work | 0% | 7% | 0% | 0% |
| Not in education, work or training | 33% | 13% | 14% | 54% |
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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Springwell Alternative Academy | Academy alternative provision converter | 40 m | 57 | Good 2023 | – | Compare |
| Holy Trinity Catholic and Church of England School | Academy | 580 m | 1,108 | No overall grade 2025 | 6 | Compare |
| Lift St Helen's | Academy | 880 m | 183 | Good 2024 | 24 | Compare |
| Athersley South Primary School | Academy | 0.6 miles | 306 | Not inspected | 74 | Compare |
| Laithes Primary School | Academy | 0.8 miles | 308 | Report card 2026 | 64 | Compare |
| Burton Road Primary School | Council | 0.8 miles | 331 | Good 2023 | 71 | Compare |
| Carlton Primary Academy | Academy | 1.0 miles | 317 | Good 2023 | 59 | Compare |
| Outwood Primary Academy Littleworth Grange | Academy | 1.1 miles | 394 | Good 2024 | 73 | Compare |
Questions parents ask
Is Springwell Special Academy a good school?
Springwell Special Academy doesn't have a score yet. Ofsted rated it good at its last inspection in March 2022.
What is Springwell Special Academy's Ofsted rating?
Ofsted rated Springwell Special Academy good at its last full inspection on 8 March 2022. That was more than four years ago. When Ofsted next visits, the school will get a report card instead of a single grade.
How good are Springwell Special Academy's GCSE results?
In summer 2025, 0% of pupils got a grade 5 or better in both English and maths. Across England it was 46%. Its Attainment 8 score, which is the average grade across a pupil's best eight subjects times ten, was 5.8, against 46.8 for England. In each subject, pupils here finished about a grade behind children across England who started secondary school at the same level.
How good are Springwell Special 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 Springwell Special Academy have?
136 pupils aged 5 to 16 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 132 places, so it is 103% full.
What is attendance like at Springwell Special Academy?
Pupils were in school 70.7% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 57% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.
Does Springwell Special Academy have specialist SEND provision?
Yes. It is a special school for 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.
Does Springwell Special Academy have a breakfast club?
Yes. It is on the government's free breakfast club programme, so every pupil can have a free half-hour breakfast club before school.
These answers come straight from the figures on this page and update when new data comes out.
Contact and details
- Address
- St Helen's Boulevard, Carlton Road, Barnsley, S71 2AY
- Telephone
- 01226 291133
- Website
- www.springwelllearningcommunity.co.uk
- Executive Principal
- Lydia Harrison
- Free breakfast club
- Yes: on the government's programme, so every pupil can have a free half-hour breakfast club before school (listed since September 2026).
- Type of school
- Special academy (Academy special converter, academies)
- Phase
- Special school, ages 5-16
- Gender
- Mixed
- Multi-academy trust
- Wellspring Academy Trust (33 schools)
- Local authority
- Barnsley
- Ward
- St Helens
- Constituency
- Barnsley North
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Opened
- 1 December 2014 (academy converter)
- URN
- 141563 · LAESTAB 3707010 · UKPRN 10048068
- Formerly
- Springwell Community Special 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.
- Breakfast club: DfE list of schools on the free breakfast club programme.
- 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.