Fakenham Academy
Field Lane, Fakenham, NR21 9QT
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- SAPIENTIA EDUCATION TRUST
- Principal
- Mr Gavin Green
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Religious ethos
- None
- Sponsor
- Sapientia Education Trust
- Constituency
- Broadland and Fakenham
- Setting
- Larger rural: Further from a major town or city
- Capacity
- 750
- Pupils on roll
- 723
- URN
- 139572
- Local authority
- Norfolk
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01328862545
About this school
Fakenham Academy is a secondary academy in Fakenham. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 723 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Fakenham 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's most recent visit was a short inspection on 9 October 2024, where inspectors found that standards have been maintained. 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 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 109 | 135 | 128 |
| Attainment 8 score | 38.2 | 38.4 | 40.9 |
| Progress 8 score | -0.29 -0.56 to -0.02 | -0.12 -0.36 to +0.13 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 23% | 31.1% | 35.2% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 52% | 49.6% | 55.5% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 27% | 57.8% | 61.7% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 3.3 | 3.5 | 3.6 |
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 Fakenham 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 | 38.2 | 38.8 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 38.4 | 39.2 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 40.9 | 38.6 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 10.4% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 9.5% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 8.5% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 777 |
| 2023/24 | 767 |
| 2024/25 | 743 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Fakenham Academy compares
Fakenham Academy ranked 41st of 53 secondary schools in Norfolk for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 41% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 13% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 40.9 | 8.5% | 25.7% | 723 | — |
| Alderman Peel High School | 45.4 | 9.5% | 25.8% | 606 | 7.5 miles |
| Duke of Lancaster School | 7.1 | 20.8% | 40% | 107 | 0.3 miles |
| Fakenham Junior School | — | 4.5% | 20.9% | 257 | 0.7 miles |
| Fakenham Infant and Nursery School | — | 5.2% | 19.1% | 207 | 1.0 miles |
| Sculthorpe Church of England Primary Academy | — | 5.8% | 25.9% | 61 | 1.1 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)
- 25.67%
- English as an additional language
- 5.4%
- Overall absence
- 8.54%
- Persistent absence
- 25.23%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Alderman Peel High School7.5 miles
Secondary · Wells-next-the-Sea
-
Duke of Lancaster School0.3 miles
Free Schools · Fakenham
-
Fakenham Junior School0.7 miles
Primary · Fakenham
-
Fakenham Infant and Nursery School1.0 miles
Primary · Fakenham
-
Sculthorpe Church of England Primary Academy1.1 miles
Primary · Fakenham
Other schools in Fakenham
- All Saints Stibbard Church of England Primary Academy and Nursery Primary
- Blenheim Park Academy Primary
- Colkirk Church of England Primary Academy Primary
- Fakenham Infant and Nursery School Primary
- Fakenham Junior School Primary
- Hindringham Church of England Primary School Primary
- Little Snoring Community Primary Academy Primary
- Sculthorpe Church of England Primary Academy Primary
- Duke of Lancaster School Free Schools
- Ortus Education Ltd - West Raynham School Special schools
Common questions
- What ages does Fakenham Academy teach?
- Fakenham Academy teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in Fakenham.
- Who is the principal of Fakenham Academy?
- The principal of Fakenham Academy is Mr Gavin Green, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Fakenham Academy been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Fakenham 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 Fakenham Academy?
- Fakenham Academy has 723 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is Fakenham Academy full?
- Fakenham Academy has capacity for 750 pupils and 723 on roll (96%), so it is close to full. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Fakenham Academy a faith school?
- No. Fakenham Academy has no designated religious character.
- Is Fakenham Academy a selective school?
- No. Fakenham Academy is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Is Fakenham Academy part of an academy trust?
- Fakenham Academy is part of SAPIENTIA EDUCATION TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Fakenham Academy's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 38.2 in 2022/23 and 40.9 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Fakenham Academy compare with other schools in Norfolk?
- Fakenham Academy ranked 41st of 53 secondary schools in Norfolk for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 41% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 13% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Fakenham Academy's absence rate?
- Fakenham Academy's overall absence rate is 8.5% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Fakenham Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Fakenham 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.