Bradon Forest School
The Peak, Purton, Swindon, SN5 4AT
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 11 to 16
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- None
- Trust
- THE ATHELSTAN TRUST
- Headteacher
- Sarah Haines
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Sponsor
- The Athelstan Trust
- Constituency
- South Cotswolds
- Setting
- Larger rural: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,260
- Pupils on roll
- 987
- URN
- 142316
- Local authority
- Wiltshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01793770570
About this school
Bradon Forest School is a secondary academy in Swindon. It teaches children aged 11 to 16 and has 987 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Bradon Forest School, 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
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 204 | 185 | 134 |
| Attainment 8 score | 49.6 | 46.0 | 48.1 |
| Progress 8 score | +0.24 +0.04 to +0.44 | -0.08 -0.29 to +0.12 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 54% | 49.7% | 44.8% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 76% | 70.8% | 69.4% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 43% | 31.9% | 47% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 4.4 | 4.0 | 4.4 |
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 Bradon Forest 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 | Wiltshire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 49.6 | 38.8 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 46 | 37.1 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 48.1 | 36.5 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 9% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 8.5% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 8.8% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 909 |
| 2023/24 | 916 |
| 2024/25 | 931 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Bradon Forest School compares
Bradon Forest School ranked 9th of 26 secondary schools in Wiltshire for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 69% 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 | 48.1 | 8.8% | 18.6% | 987 | — |
| Lydiard Park Academy | 47 | 7.9% | 26.5% | 1,302 | 2.2 miles |
| Abbey Park School | 46.2 | 7.4% | 17.1% | 1,193 | 2.6 miles |
| Nova Hreod Academy | 49.1 | 11.8% | 26.9% | 1,044 | 2.8 miles |
| Royal Wootton Bassett Academy | 51 | 7% | 14.5% | 1,714 | 2.9 miles |
| Great Western Academy | 45.5 | 6.9% | 16.3% | 1,039 | 3.2 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
- 28 February 2023
-
Ungraded inspection report11 November 2021
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 18.58%
- English as an additional language
- 6.3%
- Overall absence
- 8.79%
- Persistent absence
- 20.5%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Lydiard Park Academy2.2 miles
Secondary · Swindon
-
Abbey Park School2.6 miles
Secondary · Swindon
-
Nova Hreod Academy2.8 miles
Secondary · Swindon
-
Royal Wootton Bassett Academy2.9 miles
Secondary · Swindon
-
Great Western Academy3.2 miles
Secondary · Swindon
Other schools in Swindon
Bradon Forest School ranks 5th of the 16 ranked secondary schools in Swindon.
- Abbey Park School Secondary
- Great Western Academy Secondary
- Highworth Warneford School Secondary
- Kingsdown School Secondary
- Lawn Manor Academy Secondary
- Lydiard Park Academy Secondary
- Nova Hreod Academy Secondary
- Royal Wootton Bassett Academy Secondary
- St Joseph's Catholic College Secondary
- The Commonweal School Secondary
- The Deanery CofE Academy Secondary
- The Dorcan Academy Secondary
Common questions
- What ages does Bradon Forest School teach?
- Bradon Forest School teaches children aged 11 to 16. It is a secondary school in Swindon.
- Who is the headteacher of Bradon Forest School?
- The headteacher of Bradon Forest School is Sarah Haines, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Bradon Forest School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Bradon Forest 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 many pupils are at Bradon Forest School?
- Bradon Forest School has 987 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 16.
- Is Bradon Forest School full?
- Bradon Forest School has capacity for 1,260 pupils and 987 on roll (78%), 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 Bradon Forest School a faith school?
- No. Bradon Forest School has no designated religious character.
- Is Bradon Forest School a selective school?
- No. Bradon Forest School is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Is Bradon Forest School part of an academy trust?
- Bradon Forest School is part of THE ATHELSTAN TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Bradon Forest School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 49.6 in 2022/23 and 48.1 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Bradon Forest School compare with other schools in Wiltshire?
- Bradon Forest School ranked 9th of 26 secondary schools in Wiltshire for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 69% 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 Bradon Forest School's absence rate?
- Bradon Forest School's overall absence rate is 8.8% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Bradon Forest School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Bradon Forest 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.