Hertswood Academy
Cowley Hill, Borehamwood, WD6 5LG
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- HERTSWOOD ACADEMY
- Headteacher
- Wanda Gill
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Constituency
- Hertsmere
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,861
- Pupils on roll
- 1,144
- URN
- 138747
- Local authority
- Hertfordshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 02082387200
About this school
Hertswood Academy is a secondary academy in Borehamwood. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 1,144 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Hertswood 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
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
- Good
- Leadership and management
- Good
- 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 | 218 | 201 | 223 |
| Attainment 8 score | 39.5 | 38.9 | 38.3 |
| Progress 8 score | -0.34 -0.55 to -0.14 | -0.19 -0.39 to +0.02 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 36% | 28.4% | 27.4% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 48% | 52.7% | 49.8% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 21% | 46.8% | 52% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 3.3 | 3.5 | 3.5 |
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 Hertswood 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 | Hertfordshire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 39.5 | 44.6 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 38.9 | 44.2 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 38.3 | 44.1 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 11.1% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 11.6% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 11.9% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,216 |
| 2023/24 | 1,151 |
| 2024/25 | 1,173 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Hertswood Academy compares
Hertswood Academy ranked 73rd of 78 secondary schools in Hertfordshire for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 33% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 4% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 38.3 | 11.9% | 36.4% | 1,144 | — |
| Elstree Screen Arts Academy | 39.1 | 13.1% | 24% | 524 | 0.5 miles |
| Yavneh College | 61.6 | 5.9% | 6.5% | 1,085 | 0.9 miles |
| Queen Elizabeth's School, Barnet | 85.6 | 3.3% | 4.2% | 1,321 | 2.4 miles |
| Mill Hill County High School | 61.2 | 5.9% | 25.5% | 1,628 | 2.7 miles |
| Dame Alice Owen's School | 72.9 | 4% | 4.9% | 1,467 | 3.0 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)
- 36.4%
- English as an additional language
- 30.5%
- Overall absence
- 11.86%
- Persistent absence
- 36.34%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Elstree Screen Arts Academy0.5 miles
Secondary · Borehamwood
-
Yavneh College0.9 miles
Secondary · Borehamwood
-
Queen Elizabeth's School, Barnet2.4 miles
Secondary · Barnet
-
Mill Hill County High School2.7 miles
Secondary · London
-
Dame Alice Owen's School3.0 miles
Secondary · Potters Bar
Other schools in Borehamwood
- Elstree Screen Arts Academy Secondary
- Yavneh College Secondary
- Cowley Hill School Primary
- Kenilworth Primary School Primary
- Meryfield Primary School Primary
- Monksmead School Primary
- Parkside Community Primary School Primary
- Saffron Green Primary School Primary
- St Teresa Catholic Primary School Primary
- Summerswood Primary School Primary
- Woodlands Primary School Primary
- Yavneh Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Hertswood Academy teach?
- Hertswood Academy teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in Borehamwood.
- Who is the headteacher of Hertswood Academy?
- The headteacher of Hertswood Academy is Wanda Gill, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Hertswood Academy been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Hertswood 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 Hertswood Academy?
- Hertswood Academy has 1,144 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is Hertswood Academy full?
- Hertswood Academy has capacity for 1,861 pupils and 1,144 on roll (61%), 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 Hertswood Academy a faith school?
- No. Hertswood Academy has no designated religious character.
- Is Hertswood Academy a selective school?
- No. Hertswood Academy is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Is Hertswood Academy part of an academy trust?
- Hertswood Academy is part of HERTSWOOD ACADEMY. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Hertswood Academy's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 39.5 in 2022/23 and 38.3 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Hertswood Academy compare with other schools in Hertfordshire?
- Hertswood Academy ranked 73rd of 78 secondary schools in Hertfordshire for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 33% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 4% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Hertswood Academy's absence rate?
- Hertswood Academy's overall absence rate is 11.9% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Hertswood Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Hertswood 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.