The Maple School
The Maple School is a special free school in Blackpool for boys and girls aged 10 to 16. It has 49 pupils, 1 more than it has places for. About 78 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far more than at most schools in England. Ofsted's last grade was inadequate, back in 2022.
Langdale Road, Blackpool, FY4 4RR01253 531415themapleschool.co.ukMr Stephen Cooke headteacherAll details
What Ofsted found
Ofsted's last full inspection was on 30 November 2022, back when it gave schools one overall grade. Read the report on Ofsted's website.
Inadequate overall.
Ofsted has serious worries about this school. It is in special measures.
Results
GCSE results, summer 2025
9 pupils sat their GCSEs. Here is how they did against every state secondary in England.
All GCSE measures, year by year
| Measure | 2025 | 2024† | Blackpool | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of Year 11 | 9 | 8 | – | – |
| Average GCSE scoreAttainment 8 | 1.1 | – | 38.4 | 46.8 |
| Strong pass in English and mathsGrade 5+ in English and maths | 0% | – | 31% | 46% |
| Standard pass in English and mathsGrade 4+ in English and maths | 0% | – | 53% | 66% |
| Core subjects scoreEBacc average point score | 0.15 | – | 3.31 | 4.15 |
| Taking the core subjectsEBacc entry | 0% | – | 21% | 41% |
| Average GCSE score: low-income pupilsAttainment 8, disadvantaged | 1.1 | – | – | – |
† These results are for Lotus School, the school this one replaced in September 2024. 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
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 | Blackpool | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils tested | 4 | – | – |
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 Blackpool council's admissions booklet, send it to us.
Who goes here
Who the school teaches, from the latest school census.
The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: emotional and mental health (44), Moderate learning difficulty (2), language and communications needs (2), Other difficulty or disability (1).
How the mix of pupils has changed
| Census | 2026 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Pupils on roll | 49 | 40 |
| Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals | 78% | 90% |
| Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language | 4% | 3% |
| Pupils getting extra supportSEN support | – | 0% |
| Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans | – | 100% |
Attendance and behaviour
In 2024/25 pupils were in school 64.1% 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 | 35.9% | 42.8% | 37.0% | 30.1% | 14.6% | 5.2% |
| Missed with permissionAuthorised absence | 18.4% | 18.5% | 15.9% | 17.9% | 11.0% | – |
| Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence | 17.5% | 24.3% | 21.2% | 12.2% | 3.6% | – |
| Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence | 80.0% | 76.1% | 77.3% | 83.3% | 48.0% | 12.8% |
| SuspensionsSuspension rate | 807.5 | – | – | – | – | – |
| Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions | 2 | – | – | – | – | – |
† These attendance figures are for Lotus School, the school this one replaced in September 2024. 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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mereside Primary Academy | Academy | 280 m | 266 | Good 2024 | 5 | Compare |
| Stanley Primary School | Academy | 460 m | 605 | Good 2023 | 28 | Compare |
| St George's School A Church of England Academy | Academy | 530 m | 1,038 | Not inspected | 91 | Compare |
| Baines' Endowed Church of England Primary Academy | Academy | 0.7 miles | 499 | No overall grade 2024 | 13 | Compare |
| Marton Primary Academy and Nursery | Academy | 0.8 miles | 312 | Good 2023 | 57 | Compare |
| St John Vianney's Catholic Primary School, Blackpool | Academy | 0.9 miles | 451 | Good 2023 | 79 | Compare |
| Educational Diversity | Academy alternative provision converter | 1.0 miles | 137 | Good 2023 | – | Compare |
| Spen Brook School | Independent | 1.0 miles | 14 | Not inspected | – | Compare |
Questions parents ask
Is The Maple School a good school?
The Maple School doesn't have a score yet. Ofsted rated it inadequate at its last inspection in November 2022.
What is The Maple School's Ofsted rating?
Ofsted rated The Maple School inadequate at its last full inspection on 30 November 2022.
How good are The Maple School'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 1.1, against 46.8 for England.
How many pupils does The Maple School have?
49 pupils aged 10 to 16 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 48 places, so it is 102% full.
What is attendance like at The Maple School?
Pupils were in school 64.1% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 80% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.
Does The Maple School 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
- Langdale Road, Blackpool, FY4 4RR
- Telephone
- 01253 531415
- Website
- www.themapleschool.co.uk
- Headteacher
- Mr Stephen Cooke
- 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 free school (Free schools special, free schools)
- Phase
- Special school, ages 10-16
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- None
- Multi-academy trust
- Synergy Education Trust Limited (7 schools)
- Local authority
- Blackpool
- Ward
- Clifton
- Constituency
- Blackpool South
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Opened
- 1 September 2024 (change in status)
- URN
- 151301 · LAESTAB 8907001 · UKPRN 10096231
- Formerly
- Lotus 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.