Great Western Academy

General Information

Address: William Morris Way, Tadpole Garden Village, Swindon, SN25 2PP
Phone: 01793209700
Website: Visit school website
Headteacher: Mr David Clarke
Age range: 11-18 years
Sixth form: Yes
Intake: Mixed
Religious character: None
Number of pupils: 1039
School capacity: 1210
Pupils eligible for free school meals: 140
% eligible for free school meals: 17.0%
Nursery provision: No

Behaviour

Awaiting Data

About this Behaviour status

We've asked this school for real behaviour figures under Freedom of Information and haven't had a response yet.

Behaviour information for this school has not been added yet.

Attendance

Overall absence: 6.9%
Persistently absent pupils: 19.2%
Data year: 2024/25

About persistent absence

A pupil is counted as "persistently absent" if they miss 10% or more of their possible school sessions - roughly one day in every two weeks. Schools and Ofsted both pay close attention to this figure specifically, since it can highlight a pattern the overall absence rate alone might hide.

SEN

No dedicated Unit or Resourced Provision

SEN Unit and Resourced Provision

Most mainstream schools don't have a dedicated SEN Unit or Resourced Provision - it isn't a mark against a school that doesn't, just a different kind of setup than one that does.

SEN provision information for this school has not been added yet.

Pupils on SEN Support: 11.3%
Pupils with an EHC Plan: 3.6%
Data year: 2025/26

Most common needs - SEN Support

Social, emotional and mental health: 29 pupils
Moderate learning difficulty: 27 pupils
Specific learning difficulty: 19 pupils
Speech, language and communications needs: 15 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 9 pupils

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Social, emotional and mental health: 14 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 8 pupils
Moderate learning difficulty: 7 pupils
Speech, language and communications needs: 2 pupils
Hearing impairment: 2 pupils

These figures show the makeup of the school.

About these SEND figures

These figures give a sense of the makeup of the school - they aren't a judgement on the quality of support provided.

Parent score - no reviews yet –

Behaviour

–

Openness

–

Teaching Quality

–

School Ethos

–

Ability to Deal with Problems

–

Headteacher Approval

–

Would recommend –

Give this school your first review

Educational Attainment

Good 2023 report

About this Ofsted rating

Ofsted changed how it rates schools in the last couple of years, so ratings from different years aren't always on the same scale - that's why we show the year alongside every rating.

Educational attainment data for this school has not been added yet.

Attainment 8 score: 45.5
Data year: 2024/25

About the Attainment 8 score

Attainment 8 measures a pupil's average result across 8 GCSE-equivalent qualifications (English and maths count double). It shows how pupils performed, not how much progress they made getting there - a school with a higher score doesn't necessarily add more value, since pupils often arrive with different starting points. Progress 8 is the measure designed to account for that, but it currently can't be calculated for any school for the two most recent academic years, due to a nationwide gap in the data caused by COVID-19 disruption to Key Stage 2 testing.

Ranked #8 of 13 Attainment 8 schools of this type in the area

#6Abbey Park School46.2
#7Highworth Warneford School46.0
#8Great Western Academy45.5
#9The Dorcan Academy44.3
#10Kingsdown School41.4

Click to see the full ranking

Attainment 8 ranking

Illustrative MVP scores - not based on verified data yet.

#1The Ridgeway School & Sixth Form College53.5
#2Nova Hreod Academy49.1
#3Lydiard Park Academy47.0
#4The Deanery CofE Academy46.6
#5The Commonweal School46.3
#6Abbey Park School46.2
#7Highworth Warneford School46.0
#8Great Western Academy45.5
#9The Dorcan Academy44.3
#10Kingsdown School41.4
#11St Joseph's Catholic College38.0
#12Lawn Manor Academy37.5
#13UTC Swindon32.4

Leaver Destinations

In education, employment, or training a year later: 93.0%
Went into further education: 85.0%
Data year: 2024/25

About leaver destinations

This shows where a school's Year 11 leavers were recorded the following year - in a "sustained" destination means in education, an apprenticeship, or employment for at least 6 months, not just enrolled briefly. It's a different picture from exam results alone, and can highlight schools that support pupils well beyond just their GCSE grades.

GCSE Subjects Offered

Maths (General)
English Language
English Literature
Science Double Award
Business Studies
History
Geography
Art & Design
Physics (General)
Chemistry (General)
Biology
Spanish
Sports Studies
Computer Science
Speech & Drama
French Language
Religious Studies
Dance: General
Music Studies (General)
Polish
Italian
Chinese
Arabic

About this subject list

This isn't the school's own description of its curriculum - it's real DfE exam entry data, showing which GCSE subjects this school's pupils were actually entered for in 2024/25. A subject not appearing here may still be taught but had no pupils entered that year, so treat this as a helpful guide rather than a complete guarantee - it's worth confirming directly with the school for the year your child would actually study.

View full Ofsted inspection report

Ranked #2 of 13 Ofsted Rating schools of this type in the area

#1Abbey Park SchoolGood
#2Great Western AcademyGood
#3Kingsdown SchoolGood
#4Lawn Manor AcademyGood

Click to see the full ranking

Ofsted Rating ranking

Based on real Ofsted ratings (via official DfE data) for schools on the same four-word grading scale.

#1Abbey Park SchoolGood
#2Great Western AcademyGood
#3Kingsdown SchoolGood
#4Lawn Manor AcademyGood
#5Lydiard Park AcademyGood
#6Nova Hreod AcademyGood
#7St Joseph's Catholic CollegeGood
#8The Commonweal SchoolGood
#9The Dorcan AcademyGood
#10The Ridgeway School & Sixth Form CollegeGood
#11Highworth Warneford SchoolRequires improvement
#12UTC SwindonRequires improvement
#13The Deanery CofE AcademyInadequate

Financials

Financial summary information for this school has not been added yet.

Spending per pupil: £7,686 (2024-25)

About this spending figure

A higher or lower position here isn't a sign of a better or worse school - schools have different needs and circumstances - but it can help reassure you that a school has sufficient funding behind your child's education.

Ranked #8 of 13 Spending Per Pupil schools of this type in the area

#6Kingsdown School£8,129
#7Nova Hreod Academy£7,906
#8Great Western Academy£7,686
#9The Commonweal School£7,470
#10The Dorcan Academy£7,298

Click to see the full ranking

Spending Per Pupil ranking

Based on official DfE financial return data (Consistent Financial Reporting / Academies Accounts Return) - not a ranking of school quality.

#1UTC Swindon£10,764
#2The Deanery CofE Academy£8,849
#3Highworth Warneford School£8,368
#4St Joseph's Catholic College£8,341
#5Lawn Manor Academy£8,174
#6Kingsdown School£8,129
#7Nova Hreod Academy£7,906
#8Great Western Academy£7,686
#9The Commonweal School£7,470
#10The Dorcan Academy£7,298
#11Abbey Park School£7,163
#12Lydiard Park Academy£6,929
#13The Ridgeway School & Sixth Form College£6,734

View on the Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool (GOV.UK)

General Information

Behaviour

Attendance

SEN

Most common needs - SEN Support

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Educational Attainment

Attainment 8 ranking

Leaver Destinations ?

GCSE Subjects Offered ?

Ofsted Rating ranking

Financials

Spending Per Pupil ranking

Leaver Destinations

GCSE Subjects Offered