Sandy Hill Academy
Sandy Hill, St Austell, PL25 3AT
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 3 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- ASPIRE ACADEMY TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mr Jack Walker
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Sponsor
- ASPIRE Academy Trust
- Constituency
- St Austell and Newquay
- Setting
- Urban: Further from a major town or city
- Capacity
- 252
- Pupils on roll
- 455
- URN
- 136318
- Local authority
- Cornwall
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 0172675858
About this school
Sandy Hill Academy is a primary academy in St Austell. It teaches children aged 3 to 11 and has 455 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Sandy Hill Academy, 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
Confirmed by a short inspection, not a full one
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 18 January 2023, where inspectors confirmed the school remains Outstanding. 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 | 36 | 59 | 60 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 67% | 71% | 72% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 11% | 7% | 7% |
| Expected standard in reading | 78% | 83% | 80% |
| Expected standard in maths | 83% | 81% | 80% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 78% | 81% | 68% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 106.0 | 106.0 | 105.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 107.0 | 105.0 | 104.0 |
| Reading progress | +0.80 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +1.50 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +2.60 | - | - |
Progress measures ended nationally after the 2022/23 school year, when the key stage 1 assessments they were based on were stopped. Blank progress figures in later years are not missing school data.
Trends over time
How Sandy Hill 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 | Cornwall average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 67% | 56.6% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 71% | 56.8% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 72% | 59.4% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 5.5% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 5.2% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 3.9% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 415 |
| 2023/24 | 453 |
| 2024/25 | 459 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Sandy Hill Academy compares
Sandy Hill Academy ranked 46th of 209 primary schools in Cornwall for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 71% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 85% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 72% | 3.9% | 19.7% | 455 | — |
| Mount Charles School | 62% | 4.3% | 37.9% | 333 | 0.4 miles |
| Carclaze Community Primary School | 63% | 4.2% | 21% | 377 | 0.6 miles |
| Bishop Bronescombe CofE School | 58% | 4.6% | 21.8% | 267 | 0.6 miles |
| Charlestown Primary School | 59% | 5.6% | 10.3% | 372 | 0.8 miles |
| Pondhu Primary School | 47% | 5.1% | 50.3% | 187 | 1.4 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.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 19.71%
- English as an additional language
- 3.3%
- Overall absence
- 3.91%
- Persistent absence
- 6.08%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Mount Charles School0.4 miles
Primary · St Austell
-
Carclaze Community Primary School0.6 miles
Primary · St Austell
-
Bishop Bronescombe CofE School0.6 miles
Primary · St Austell
-
Charlestown Primary School0.8 miles
Primary · St Austell
-
Pondhu Primary School1.4 miles
Primary · St. Austell
Other schools in St Austell
Sandy Hill Academy ranks 3rd of the 14 ranked primary schools in St Austell.
- Bishop Bronescombe CofE School Primary
- Bugle School Primary
- Carclaze Community Primary School Primary
- Charlestown Primary School Primary
- Gorran School Primary
- Mevagissey Community Primary School Primary
- Mount Charles School Primary
- Nanpean Community Primary School Primary
- Roche Community Primary School Primary
- Sky Primary and Eden Project Nursery Primary
- St Dennis Primary Academy Primary
- St Mewan Community Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Sandy Hill Academy teach?
- Sandy Hill Academy teaches children aged 3 to 11. It is a primary school in St Austell.
- Who is the headteacher of Sandy Hill Academy?
- The headteacher of Sandy Hill Academy is Mr Jack Walker, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Sandy Hill Academy been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Sandy Hill 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 Sandy Hill Academy?
- Sandy Hill Academy has 455 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 11.
- Is Sandy Hill Academy full?
- Sandy Hill Academy has capacity for 252 pupils and 455 on roll (181%), 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 Sandy Hill Academy a faith school?
- No. Sandy Hill Academy has no designated religious character.
- Does Sandy Hill Academy have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records Sandy Hill Academy as having nursery classes.
- Is Sandy Hill Academy part of an academy trust?
- Sandy Hill Academy is part of ASPIRE ACADEMY TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Sandy Hill Academy's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 67% in 2022/23 and 72% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Sandy Hill Academy compare with other schools in Cornwall?
- Sandy Hill Academy ranked 46th of 209 primary schools in Cornwall for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 71% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 85% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Sandy Hill Academy's absence rate?
- Sandy Hill Academy's overall absence rate is 3.9% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Sandy Hill Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Sandy Hill 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.