The Thetford Academy
Croxton Road, Thetford, IP24 1LH
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 11 to 19
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- INSPIRATION TRUST
- Principal
- Dr Michael Fordham
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Religious ethos
- None
- Sponsor
- Inspiration Trust
- SEN provision
- OTH - Other Difficulty/Disability, ASD - Autistic Spectrum Disorder, SEMH - Social, Emotional and Mental Health, MLD - Moderate Learning Difficulty
- Constituency
- South West Norfolk
- Setting
- Urban: Further from a major town or city
- Capacity
- 2,050
- Pupils on roll
- 1,398
- URN
- 136204
- Local authority
- Norfolk
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01842754875
About this school
The Thetford Academy is a secondary academy in Thetford. It teaches children aged 11 to 19 and has 1,398 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected The Thetford Academy, and its latest judgement is set out 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
Overall judgement at the last full inspection
This inspection took place under the previous framework, which gave a single overall grade. Ofsted now publishes report cards instead, so newer inspections of other schools will look different. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Good
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Good
- Personal development
- Good
- Leadership and management
- Good
- Sixth form
- Requires improvement
- Safeguarding
- Effective
A short monitoring inspection followed on : inspectors found that standards have been maintained.
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 207 | 190 | 238 |
| Attainment 8 score | 42.0 | 38.9 | 42.4 |
| Progress 8 score | +0.31 +0.11 to +0.50 | +0.04 -0.16 to +0.25 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 38% | 38.9% | 41.6% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 58% | 52.6% | 59.2% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 29% | 16.8% | 31.9% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 3.8 | 3.4 | 3.9 |
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 The Thetford Academy has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Norfolk average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 42 | 38.8 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 38.9 | 39.2 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 42.4 | 38.6 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 10.9% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 10.2% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 9.8% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,258 |
| 2023/24 | 1,305 |
| 2024/25 | 1,361 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How The Thetford Academy compares
The Thetford Academy ranked 36th of 53 secondary schools in Norfolk for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 47% 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 | 42.4 | 9.8% | 31.8% | 1,398 | — |
| Breckland School | 42.4 | 9.8% | 24.6% | 615 | 6.5 miles |
| Ixworth High School | 44 | 9.3% | 22.9% | 512 | 9.4 miles |
| Wayland Academy | 52 | 5.6% | 25.7% | 564 | 10.0 miles |
| Iceni Secondary Academy | 39 | 11.3% | 24.4% | 555 | 10.9 miles |
| Mildenhall College Academy | 37.4 | 8.1% | 24.7% | 1,317 | 11.4 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.
Inspection history
-
Ungraded inspection report2 April 2025
- 4 March 2020
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 31.84%
- English as an additional language
- 31.3%
- Overall absence
- 9.81%
- Persistent absence
- 25.72%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Breckland School6.5 miles
Secondary · Brandon
-
Ixworth High School9.4 miles
Secondary · Ixworth
-
Wayland Academy10.0 miles
Secondary · Thetford
-
Iceni Secondary Academy10.9 miles
Secondary · Thetford
-
Mildenhall College Academy11.4 miles
Secondary · Mildenhall
Other schools in Thetford
- Iceni Secondary Academy Secondary
- Wayland Academy Secondary
- Admirals Academy Primary
- Ashill Voluntary Controlled Primary School Primary
- Drake Primary School Primary
- Duchy of Lancaster Methwold CofE Primary School Primary
- Edmund de Moundeford VC Primary School, Feltwell Primary
- Elveden Church of England Primary Academy Primary
- Great Hockham Primary School and Nursery Primary
- Norwich Road Academy Primary
- Parker's Church of England Primary Academy Primary
- Queensway Infant Academy Primary
Common questions
- What ages does The Thetford Academy teach?
- The Thetford Academy teaches children aged 11 to 19. It is a secondary school in Thetford.
- Who is the principal of The Thetford Academy?
- The principal of The Thetford Academy is Dr Michael Fordham, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has The Thetford Academy been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected The Thetford Academy, 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 The Thetford Academy?
- The Thetford Academy has 1,398 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 19.
- Is The Thetford Academy full?
- The Thetford Academy has capacity for 2,050 pupils and 1,398 on roll (68%), 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 The Thetford Academy a faith school?
- No. The Thetford Academy has no designated religious character.
- Is The Thetford Academy a selective school?
- No. The Thetford Academy is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Is The Thetford Academy part of an academy trust?
- The Thetford Academy is part of INSPIRATION TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- What SEN provision does The Thetford Academy have?
- The schools register lists The Thetford Academy's special educational needs provision as: OTH - Other Difficulty/Disability; ASD - Autistic Spectrum Disorder; SEMH - Social, Emotional and Mental Health; MLD - Moderate Learning Difficulty. Contact the school to discuss how it would support a particular child.
- How have The Thetford Academy's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 42 in 2022/23 and 42.4 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does The Thetford Academy compare with other schools in Norfolk?
- The Thetford Academy ranked 36th of 53 secondary schools in Norfolk for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 47% 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 The Thetford Academy's absence rate?
- The Thetford Academy's overall absence rate is 9.8% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are The Thetford Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, The Thetford Academy'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.