Great Arley School
Holly Road, Thornton-Cleveleys, FY5 4HH
- Phase
- Special schools
- School type
- Community special school
- Ages
- 4 to 16
- Gender
- Mixed
- Headteacher
- Mrs Alicia Gibbons
- SEN provision
- MLD - Moderate Learning Difficulty
- Constituency
- Blackpool North and Fleetwood
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 99
- Pupils on roll
- 99
- URN
- 119878
- Local authority
- Lancashire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01253821072
About this school
Great Arley School is a community special school in Thornton-Cleveleys. It teaches children aged 4 to 16 and has 99 pupils on roll.
You can read Ofsted's latest judgement for the school below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Numbers and a report only go so far, so visit in person before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Confirmed by a short inspection, not a full one
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 17 April 2024, where inspectors confirmed the school remains Good. The school's last full inspection took place before September 2019, so its area grades are not part of Ofsted's current published data. Older reports are on the school's Ofsted page.
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 3 | 15 | 5 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | - | 0% | - |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | - | 0% | - |
| Expected standard in reading | - | 0% | - |
| Expected standard in maths | - | 0% | - |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | - | 0% | - |
| Average scaled score in reading | - | - | - |
| Average scaled score in maths | - | - | - |
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 16 | 14 | 15 |
| Attainment 8 score | - | - | - |
| Progress 8 score | - | - | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | - | - | - |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | - | - | - |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | - | - | - |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | - | - | - |
Progress 8 is paused nationally for the 2024/25 and 2025/26 school years. Those pupils sat no key stage 2 tests during the Covid pandemic, so there is no starting point to measure progress from. A blank figure here is not missing school data.
Trends over time
How Great Arley School has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 8.5% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 6.1% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5.4% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 107 |
| 2023/24 | 102 |
| 2024/25 | 107 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 57.01%
- English as an additional language
- 0%
- Overall absence
- 5.43%
- Persistent absence
- 12.26%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Thornton-Cleveleys Red Marsh School0.0 miles
Special schools · Blackpool
-
Rossall School1.9 miles
Independent schools · Fleetwood
-
Brookfield School2.1 miles
Special schools · Poulton-le-Fylde
-
McKee College House2.2 miles
Academies · Poulton
-
Norman House Independent School2.9 miles
Special schools · Blackpool
Other schools in Thornton-Cleveleys
- Anchorsholme Primary Academy Primary
- Norbreck Primary Academy Primary
- Northfold Community Primary School Primary
- Sacred Heart Catholic Primary School, Thornton Cleveleys Primary
- St Teresa's Catholic Primary School Primary
- Stanah Primary School Primary
- Thornton Cleveleys Baines Endowed Voluntary Controlled Primary School Primary
- Thornton Cleveleys Manor Beach Primary School Primary
- Thornton Cleveleys Royles Brook Primary School Primary
- Thornton Primary School Primary
- Millfield Science & Performing Arts College Secondary
Common questions
- What year groups does Great Arley School teach?
- Great Arley School teaches children aged 4 to 16. It is a special school in Thornton-Cleveleys.
- Who is the headteacher of Great Arley School?
- The headteacher of Great Arley School is Mrs Alicia Gibbons, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Great Arley School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Great Arley School, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How big is Great Arley School?
- Great Arley School has 99 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 16.
- Is Great Arley School full?
- Great Arley School has capacity for 99 pupils and 99 on roll (100%), so it is at or above its published capacity. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Great Arley School a faith school?
- No. Great Arley School has no designated religious character.
- What SEN provision does Great Arley School have?
- The schools register lists Great Arley School's special educational needs provision as: MLD - Moderate Learning Difficulty. Contact the school to discuss how it would support a particular child.
- What is Great Arley School's absence rate?
- Great Arley School's overall absence rate is 5.4% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Great Arley School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Great Arley School's key stage results are shown in the results section on this page, with the last three years so you can see the trend rather than a single year.
School details come from the Department for Education's Get Information About Schools register. Inspection outcomes come from Ofsted, and exam results from the Department for Education's school performance service. This page was last updated on 30 June 2026.