St Mary's School
Horam, Heathfield, TN21 0BT
- Phase
- Academies
- School type
- Academy special converter
- Ages
- 9 to 16
- Gender
- Boys
- Trust
- THE SABDEN MULTI ACADEMY TRUST
- Executive Headteacher
- Principal Paul Murphy
- Religious ethos
- None
- Boarding
- Boarding school
- Sponsor
- The Sabden Multi Academy Trust
- SEN provision
- SpLD - Specific Learning Difficulty, SLCN - Speech, language and Communication, ASD - Autistic Spectrum Disorder, SEMH - Social, Emotional and Mental Health, MLD - Moderate Learning Difficulty
- Constituency
- Sussex Weald
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 81
- Pupils on roll
- 78
- URN
- 142163
- Local authority
- East Sussex
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01323691000
About this school
St Mary's School is a boys' special academy in Heathfield. It teaches children aged 9 to 16 and has 78 pupils on roll.
You can read Ofsted's latest judgement for the school 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 28 September 2023, where inspectors confirmed the school remains Good. 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 | 9 | 5 | 8 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | - | 0% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | - | 0% |
| Expected standard in reading | 0% | - | 0% |
| Expected standard in maths | 0% | - | 0% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 0% | - | 0% |
| Average scaled score in reading | - | - | - |
| Average scaled score in maths | - | - | - |
| Reading progress | -13.50 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -9.20 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -12.40 | - | - |
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.
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 13 | 10 | 24 |
| Attainment 8 score | 10.7 | 10.4 | 6.8 |
| Progress 8 score | -1.40 -2.28 to -0.52 | -1.12 -2.10 to -0.14 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 8% | 0% | 4.2% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 0.7 | 0.3 | 0.2 |
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 St Mary's School has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | East Sussex average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 0% | 54.8% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | — | 56.2% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 0% | 57.6% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | East Sussex average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 10.7 | 36.7 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 10.4 | 35 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 6.8 | 33.1 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 23.7% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 30.9% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 30.9% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 82 |
| 2023/24 | 88 |
| 2024/25 | 84 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 63.1%
- English as an additional language
- 0%
- Overall absence
- 30.91%
- Persistent absence
- 70.41%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Annan School4.6 miles
Independent schools · Uckfield
-
Skippers Hill Manor Preparatory School4.8 miles
Independent schools · Mayfield
-
The Ropemakers' Academy5.2 miles
Free Schools · Hailsham
-
Bede's Senior School5.5 miles
Independent schools · Hailsham
-
Mayfield School5.6 miles
Independent schools · Mayfield
Other schools in Heathfield
- All Saints' and St Richard's Church of England Primary School Primary
- Cross-in-Hand Church of England Primary School Primary
- Dallington Church of England Primary School Primary
- Maynards Green Community Primary School Primary
- Parkside Community Primary School Primary
- Punnetts Town Community Primary and Nursery School Primary
- Heathfield Community College Secondary
Common questions
- What year groups does St Mary's School teach?
- St Mary's School teaches children aged 9 to 16. It is a special school in Heathfield.
- Who is the executive headteacher of St Mary's School?
- The executive headteacher of St Mary's School is Principal Paul Murphy, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was St Mary's School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St Mary's School, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How big is St Mary's School?
- St Mary's School has 78 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 9 to 16.
- Is St Mary's School full?
- St Mary's School has capacity for 81 pupils and 78 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 St Mary's School a faith school?
- No. St Mary's School has no designated religious character.
- Who runs St Mary's School?
- St Mary's School is part of THE SABDEN MULTI ACADEMY TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- What SEN provision does St Mary's School have?
- The schools register lists St Mary's School's special educational needs provision as: SpLD - Specific Learning Difficulty; SLCN - Speech, language and Communication; 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 St Mary's School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 0% in 2022/23 and 0% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- What is St Mary's School's absence rate?
- St Mary's School's overall absence rate is 30.9% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St Mary's School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St Mary's School'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 2 July 2026.