Future Academies Watford
Horseshoe Lane, Garston, Watford, WD25 7HW
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- FUTURE ACADEMIES
- Principal
- Mr Sam Fox
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Religious ethos
- None
- Sponsor
- Future Academies
- Constituency
- Watford
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,350
- Pupils on roll
- 1,060
- URN
- 135876
- Local authority
- Hertfordshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01923672964
About this school
Future Academies Watford is a secondary academy in Watford. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 1,060 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Future Academies Watford, and its latest judgement is set out below. 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
Ofsted did not give an overall grade. Between September 2024 and September 2025 inspections graded each area of a school's work without a single overall judgement, ahead of the move to report cards. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Good
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Good
- Personal development
- Outstanding
- Leadership and management
- Outstanding
- Sixth form
- Good
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 189 | 197 | 184 |
| Attainment 8 score | 38.7 | 39.4 | 39.8 |
| Progress 8 score | -0.44 -0.64 to -0.23 | -0.16 -0.36 to +0.04 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 34% | 38.6% | 32.1% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 57% | 58.4% | 55.4% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 57% | 55.8% | 65.2% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 3.5 | 3.6 | 3.7 |
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 Future Academies Watford has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Hertfordshire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 38.7 | 44.6 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 39.4 | 44.2 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 39.8 | 44.1 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 11.5% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 12.2% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 9.9% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,123 |
| 2023/24 | 1,080 |
| 2024/25 | 1,018 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Future Academies Watford compares
Future Academies Watford ranked 70th of 78 secondary schools in Hertfordshire for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 38% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 8% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 39.8 | 9.9% | 35.1% | 1,060 | — |
| Saint Michael's Catholic High School | 50.9 | 6.9% | 15.7% | 1,130 | 0.3 miles |
| Parmiter's School | 66.5 | 5.7% | 9.2% | 1,496 | 0.4 miles |
| Queens' School | 57.5 | 5.6% | 11.4% | 1,697 | 2.9 miles |
| Watford Grammar School for Boys | 68.9 | 7.1% | 7.3% | 1,590 | 3.1 miles |
| Watford Grammar School for Girls | 68.2 | 6.7% | 7.2% | 1,427 | 3.2 miles |
Results reflect each school's cohort as much as its teaching, and free school meals share is context, not a judgement. Small gaps between neighbouring schools are rarely meaningful on their own.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 35.08%
- English as an additional language
- 18.8%
- Overall absence
- 9.86%
- Persistent absence
- 24.87%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Saint Michael's Catholic High School0.3 miles
Secondary · Watford
-
Parmiter's School0.4 miles
Secondary · Watford
-
Queens' School2.9 miles
Secondary · Bushey
-
Watford Grammar School for Boys3.1 miles
Secondary · Watford
-
Watford Grammar School for Girls3.2 miles
Secondary · Watford
Other schools in Watford
Future Academies Watford ranks 6th of the 6 ranked secondary schools in Watford.
- Parmiter's School Secondary
- Saint Michael's Catholic High School Secondary
- Watford Grammar School for Boys Secondary
- Watford Grammar School for Girls Secondary
- Westfield Academy Secondary
- Kingswood Nursery School Nursery
- Oxhey Nursery School Nursery
- Alban Wood Primary School and Nursery Primary
- Ascot Road Primary School Primary
- Beechfield School Primary
- Bromet Primary School Primary
- Cassiobury Infant and Nursery School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Future Academies Watford teach?
- Future Academies Watford teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in Watford.
- Who is the principal of Future Academies Watford?
- The principal of Future Academies Watford is Mr Sam Fox, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Future Academies Watford been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Future Academies Watford, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How many pupils are at Future Academies Watford?
- Future Academies Watford has 1,060 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is Future Academies Watford full?
- Future Academies Watford has capacity for 1,350 pupils and 1,060 on roll (79%), 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 Future Academies Watford a faith school?
- No. Future Academies Watford has no designated religious character.
- Is Future Academies Watford a selective school?
- No. Future Academies Watford is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Is Future Academies Watford part of an academy trust?
- Future Academies Watford is part of FUTURE ACADEMIES. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Future Academies Watford's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 38.7 in 2022/23 and 39.8 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Future Academies Watford compare with other schools in Hertfordshire?
- Future Academies Watford ranked 70th of 78 secondary schools in Hertfordshire for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 38% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 8% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Future Academies Watford's absence rate?
- Future Academies Watford's overall absence rate is 9.9% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Future Academies Watford's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Future Academies Watford'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 1 July 2026.