Acorns School
19b Hibbert Lane, Marple, Stockport, SK6 7NN
- Phase
- Special schools
- School type
- Other independent special school
- Ages
- 5 to 17
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- None
- Headteacher
- Ms Paula Tankard
- Constituency
- Hazel Grove
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 56
- Pupils on roll
- 33
- URN
- 131551
- Local authority
- Stockport
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01614495820
About this school
Acorns School is an independent special school in Stockport. It teaches children aged 5 to 17 and has 33 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has not yet inspected Acorns School under its current framework. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Seeing a school for yourself shows what no page can, so arrange a visit before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Acorns School has not been inspected by Ofsted yet. It opened in its current form in June 1998, and new or converted schools usually wait a few years for their first inspection.
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 10 | 6 | 5 |
| Attainment 8 score | 8.7 | 16.3 | - |
| Progress 8 score | - | - | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 10% | 0% | - |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 10% | 16.7% | - |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 0% | 0% | - |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 0.9 | 1.5 | - |
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 Acorns 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 | Stockport average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 8.7 | 30.2 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 16.3 | 34.8 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | — | 34.2 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 23 |
| 2023/24 | 34 |
| 2024/25 | 41 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 0%
- Pupils with an EHC plan
- 33
- Pupils on SEN support
- 0
Location
Nearby schools
-
Brabyns Preparatory School0.6 miles
Independent schools · Stockport
-
Windlehurst School0.9 miles
Special schools · Stockport
-
Agricultural and Rural Centre2.0 miles
Special schools · Stockport
-
Castle Hill High School2.2 miles
Special schools · Stockport
-
Lisburne School2.3 miles
Academies · Stockport
Other schools in Stockport
- Agricultural and Rural Centre Special schools
- Brinksway School Special schools
- Castle Hill High School Special schools
- Heaton School Special schools
- Highfields College Local authority maintained schools
- Inscape House School Special schools
- Laurus Grace Free Schools
- Lisburne School Academies
- Moat House Local authority maintained schools
- Pear Tree Specialist Support High School Free Schools
- Pure Innovations Trading As Pure College Other types
- Reddish Hall School Special schools
Common questions
- What ages does Acorns School teach?
- Acorns School teaches children aged 5 to 17. It is a special school in Stockport.
- Who is the headteacher of Acorns School?
- The headteacher of Acorns School is Ms Paula Tankard, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Acorns School been inspected?
- Ofsted has not inspected Acorns School under its current framework, so no current judgement is shown. That is common for newer schools and is not a mark against a school.
- How many pupils are at Acorns School?
- Acorns School has 33 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 5 to 17.
- Is Acorns School full?
- Acorns School has capacity for 56 pupils and 33 on roll (59%), so it has space against 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 Acorns School a faith school?
- No. Acorns School has no designated religious character.
- How have Acorns School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 8.7 in 2022/23 and 16.3 in 2023/24. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- What are Acorns School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Acorns 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 24 July 2026.