School Chooser

Woodside Academy

Special · ages 4-18MixedAcademy206 pupilsSixth formErithBexley
School Chooser ScoreNot scoredWe don't score this type of school.
OfstedGoodConfirmed by Ofsted, June 2023
Reached the expected level at 110%England 63%
Attendance90.7%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families35%Far more than most schools
Pupils per teacher7.0School workforce census
Average A level gradeNE2022/23

Woodside Academy is a special academy in Erith for boys and girls aged 4 to 18. It has 206 pupils. About 35 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 2023.

Colyers Lane, Erith, DA8 3PB01322 350123woodside.bexley.sch.ukMrs Kathryn Freame executive head teacherAll details

What Ofsted found

A shorter visit on 14 June 2023 found nothing to change the school's grade. Read the report on Ofsted's website.

Good overall. A shorter follow-up visit found nothing to change that. The last full inspection was before September 2019, which is as far back as Ofsted's public records go, so we can't show its date or the grades for each area.

Results

GCSE results, summer 2025

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

Average GCSE scoreOfficial name: Attainment 8
Strong pass in English and mathsOfficial name: Grade 5+ in English and maths
Standard pass in English and mathsOfficial name: Grade 4+ in English and maths
Progress from age 11-1.55In each subject, pupils here finished well over a grade behind children across England who started secondary school at the same level. (From 2017/18, the latest year there is. The government didn't work it out for the 2025 year group.)Official name: Progress 8
All GCSE measures, year by year
Measure20252024202320222019†2018†BexleyEngland
Pupils at the end of Year 11191117312724
Average GCSE scoreAttainment 81.551.046.8
Progress from age 11Progress 8-1.55
Strong pass in English and mathsGrade 5+ in English and maths0%54%46%
Standard pass in English and mathsGrade 4+ in English and maths0%71%66%
Core subjects scoreEBacc average point score0.004.534.15
Taking the core subjectsEBacc entry0%41%41%
Average GCSE score: low-income pupilsAttainment 8, disadvantaged1.4
Average GCSE score: other pupilsAttainment 8, non-disadvantaged1.5
Average GCSE score: pupils who started behindAttainment 8, low prior attainers1.5

† These results are for Woodside School, the school this one replaced in April 2019. 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

16 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 110%
England 63%
Official name: Expected standard in reading, writing and maths
Working above the expected level0%
England 8%
Official 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 2025
2017: 0%0%20172018: 0%0%20182019: 0%0%20192023: 0%0%20232024: 0%0%20242025: 0%0%2025
Since 2017: +0%
All Year 6 measures, year by year
Measure2025202420232019†2018†2017†BexleyEngland
Pupils tested16111091426
Reached the expected level at 11Expected standard in reading, writing and maths0%0%0%0%0%0%67%63%
Working above the expected levelHigher standard in reading, writing and maths0%0%0%0%0%0%13%8%
Expected level: readingReading expected standard0%0%0%0%0%0%
Expected level: mathsMaths expected standard0%0%0%0%0%0%
Expected level: writingWriting expected standard (teacher assessed)0%0%0%0%0%0%
Reading progressReading progress score-11.6-4.9-6.1-7.5
Maths progressMaths progress score-10.0-4.4-6.2-8.3
Expected level: low-income pupilsExpected standard, disadvantaged0%0%
Expected level: other pupilsExpected standard, non-disadvantaged0%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 Woodside School, the school this one replaced in April 2019. Same building and the same children. It got a new registration number, usually because it joined an academy trust.

A level and sixth-form results, 2023

21 students finished sixth-form courses.

Average A level gradeNE
All sixth-form measures, year by year
Measure2023
Students21
Average A level gradeNE

Does every child do well here?

A good school does well by every child, not just on average. Each row compares two groups of pupils here. The grey marks show the same two groups across England. Every gap at this school is smaller than the gap across England. When a group has fewer than about ten pupils, its figures jump around a lot from year to year.

At the end of primary school, 2025

Reached the expected level at 11Low-income pupils vs other pupils
0%0%
No gapEngland 21 pts
Reached the higher level at 11Low-income pupils vs all pupils
0%0%
No gapEngland 5 pts
First groupSecond groupEngland, each group

Low-income means the child has had free school meals at some point in the last six years. A group's figure isn't published when it has fewer than six pupils.

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

Who goes here

Who the school teaches, from the latest school census.

Pupils on roll206Census January 2026
Pupils from low-income families35%35% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English18%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support0%0 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan100%206 pupils with a plan
Pupils with extra funding (pupil premium)38%£92,650 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls159 / 47
White British pupils49%

Specialist SEND provision. A special school for pupils with autism, moderate 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 Bexley with autism provision.

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: Autistic spectrum disorder (196), language and communications needs (5), Moderate learning difficulty (2), Severe learning difficulty (2), emotional and mental health (1).

How the mix of pupils has changed
Census202620252024202320222021
Pupils on roll206207199199195175
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals35%33%30%31%32%34%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language18%15%13%11%11%12%
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 90.7% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance90.7%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school25.7%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Suspensions per 100 pupils7.72024/25, no permanent exclusions
Missed without permission1.5%of school time, 2024/25
Attendance year by year
Measure2024/252023/242022/232021/222020/212018/19†England
Sessions missedOverall absence9.3%8.8%9.4%9.5%20.9%6.5%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence7.8%7.5%8.9%9.0%20.5%5.6%
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence1.5%1.3%0.6%0.5%0.4%0.9%
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence25.7%28.3%28.1%38.6%77.1%17.9%12.8%
SuspensionsSuspension rate7.722.67.05.110.9
Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions00000

† These attendance figures are for Woodside School, the school this one replaced in April 2019. Same building and the same children. It got a new registration number, usually because it joined an academy trust.

What pupils do next

After GCSEs

Where the 17 pupils who left in 2022/23 were a year later.

Still in education, work or training100%and stayed there for at least six months
Earlier years
Destination2022/23 leavers2021/22 leavers2020/21 leavers2019/20 leavers
Still in education, work or training100%94%95%100%
Education100%94%95%100%
Apprenticeship0%0%0%0%
Work0%0%0%0%
Not in education, work or training0%7%5%0%

Staff and money

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

Teachers29.5full-time equivalent, 34 people
Pupils per teacher7.0Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers77%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants48.5full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£59,198
Teachers who left in the year12%2024/25, for any reason including retirement
Vacancies0
Sick days per teacher7.02024/25

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.

Spend per pupil£25,585England £30,720. Total £5.3m
Income per pupil£28,768England £33,526. Total £6.0m
Spent on teachers per pupil£11,367England £11,966
Money in reserve12%A healthy amount put by: £725k, £3,503 per pupil. England 16%
Money in against money out+£659kit took in more than it spent this year
Where the money goes£25,585spent 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 m33412 months to June 2026, mostly violence and sexual offences
Local crime rate44 per 1,000 people52% lower than the England average
Typical house price£425,000Bexley
Nearest bus stop90 mColyers Walk, 6 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
Fairford Academy BarnehurstAcademy210 m452Good 202347Compare
Leigh Academy BexleyAcademy560 m873Report card 20269Compare
Peareswood Primary SchoolAcademy690 m418Not inspected89Compare
Barnehurst Infant SchoolAcademy710 m218Outstanding 202395Compare
Barnehurst Junior SchoolAcademy760 m240Outstanding 202387Compare
Christ Church (Erith) CofE Primary SchoolAcademy810 m498No overall grade 202569Compare
St Fidelis Catholic Primary SchoolRoman Catholic1000 m459Outstanding 202496Compare
Northumberland Heath Primary SchoolAcademy0.7 miles442No overall grade 202519Compare

Questions parents ask

Is Woodside Academy a good school?

Woodside Academy doesn't have a score yet. Ofsted rated it good at its last inspection in June 2023.

What is Woodside Academy's Ofsted rating?

Ofsted rated Woodside Academy good at its last full inspection on 14 June 2023.

How good are Woodside 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 Woodside Academy have?

206 pupils aged 4 to 18 were on the roll in January 2026.

What is attendance like at Woodside Academy?

Pupils were in school 90.7% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 26% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

Does Woodside Academy have specialist SEND provision?

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

Does Woodside Academy have a sixth form?

Yes. The average A level grade in 2023 was NE.

These answers come straight from the figures on this page and update when new data comes out.

Contact and details

Address
Colyers Lane, Erith, DA8 3PB
Telephone
01322 350123
Website
www.woodside.bexley.sch.uk
Executive Head Teacher
Mrs Kathryn Freame
Type of school
Special academy (Academy special converter, academies)
Phase
Special school, ages 4-18, with sixth form
Gender
Mixed
Multi-academy trust
London South East Academies Trust (19 schools)
Local authority
Bexley
Ward
Barnehurst
Constituency
Bexleyheath and Crayford
Setting
Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
Opened
1 April 2019 (academy converter)
URN
146885 · LAESTAB 3037000 · UKPRN 10082972
Formerly
Woodside School

Recent changes

  • New KS4 results for 2024/25

Where these figures come from