Aspire Academy
South Gipsy Road, Welling, DA16 1JB
- Phase
- Academies
- School type
- Academy special converter
- Ages
- 5 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- LONDON SOUTH EAST ACADEMIES TRUST
- Head of School
- Mrs Heather Hopkins and Mrs Julie Arkwright
- Sponsor
- Bromley College of Further and Higher Education
- SEN provision
- SEMH - Social, Emotional and Mental Health
- Constituency
- Old Bexley and Sidcup
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 64
- Pupils on roll
- 75
- URN
- 144406
- Local authority
- Bexley
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 02083041320
About this school
Aspire Academy is a special academy in Welling. It teaches children aged 5 to 11 and has 75 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Aspire 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
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
- Outstanding
- Personal development
- Outstanding
- Leadership and management
- Good
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 11 | 20 | 16 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 5% | 0% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Expected standard in reading | 18% | 25% | 0% |
| Expected standard in maths | 18% | 10% | 0% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 18% | 5% | 0% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 95.0 | 96.0 | 90.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 89.0 | 90.0 | 87.0 |
| Reading progress | -9.00 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -11.50 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -9.30 | - | - |
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 Aspire 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 | Bexley average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 0% | 63% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 5% | 63.6% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 0% | 64% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 11% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 9.6% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 13.8% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 44 |
| 2023/24 | 55 |
| 2024/25 | 64 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
Inspection history
- 7 March 2023
-
Ungraded inspection report25 November 2021
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 81.25%
- English as an additional language
- 7.8%
- Overall absence
- 13.84%
- Persistent absence
- 41.79%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Park View Academy0.3 miles
Special schools · Welling
-
ADO River Valley School1.5 miles
Special schools · Welling
-
Break Through School1.5 miles
Independent schools
-
Willow Dene School1.6 miles
Academies · Plumstead
-
Marlborough School1.7 miles
Special schools · Sidcup
Other schools in Welling
- ADO River Valley School Special schools
- Park View Academy Special schools
- Bishop Ridley Church of England VA Primary School Primary
- Danson Primary School Primary
- East Wickham Primary Academy Primary
- Foster's Primary School Primary
- Hillsgrove Primary School Primary
- Hook Lane Primary School Primary
- Leigh Stationers' Primary Academy Primary
- St Michael's East Wickham Church of England Primary School Primary
- St Stephen's Catholic Primary School Primary
- Bexley Grammar School Secondary
Common questions
- What ages does Aspire Academy teach?
- Aspire Academy teaches children aged 5 to 11. It is a special school in Welling.
- Who is the head of school of Aspire Academy?
- The head of school of Aspire Academy is Mrs Heather Hopkins and Mrs Julie Arkwright, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Aspire Academy been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Aspire 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 Aspire Academy?
- Aspire Academy has 75 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 5 to 11.
- Is Aspire Academy full?
- Aspire Academy has capacity for 64 pupils and 75 on roll (117%), 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 Aspire Academy a faith school?
- No. Aspire Academy has no designated religious character.
- Is Aspire Academy part of an academy trust?
- Aspire Academy is part of LONDON SOUTH EAST ACADEMIES TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- What SEN provision does Aspire Academy have?
- The schools register lists Aspire Academy's special educational needs provision as: SEMH - Social, Emotional and Mental Health. Contact the school to discuss how it would support a particular child.
- How have Aspire Academy'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 Aspire Academy's absence rate?
- Aspire Academy's overall absence rate is 13.8% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Aspire Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Aspire 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 10 July 2026.