The Bridge School
Sprites Lane, Ipswich, IP8 3ND
- Phase
- Academies
- School type
- Academy special sponsor led
- Ages
- 4 to 19
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- UNITY SCHOOLS PARTNERSHIP
- Headteacher
- Ms Tina Sharman
- Sponsor
- Unity Schools Partnership
- SEN provision
- VI - Visual Impairment, HI - Hearing Impairment, SLCN - Speech, language and Communication, ASD - Autistic Spectrum Disorder, PD - Physical Disability, SLD - Severe Learning Difficulty, PMLD - Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulty
- Constituency
- South Suffolk
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 228
- Pupils on roll
- 257
- URN
- 147162
- Local authority
- Suffolk
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01473556200
About this school
The Bridge School is a special academy in Ipswich. It teaches children aged 4 to 19 and has 257 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. 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
- Early years
- 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 | 17 | 17 | 21 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Expected standard in reading | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Expected standard in maths | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Average scaled score in reading | - | - | - |
| Average scaled score in maths | - | - | - |
| Reading progress | -6.10 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -5.90 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -5.00 | - | - |
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 | 8 | 8 | 6 |
| Attainment 8 score | - | - | - |
| Progress 8 score | - | - | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | - | - | - |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | - | - | - |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | - | - | - |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | - | - | - |
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 The Bridge 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 | Suffolk average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 0% | 54.3% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 0% | 55.4% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 0% | 57.1% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 10.1% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 9.7% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 8.3% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 165 |
| 2023/24 | 182 |
| 2024/25 | 216 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 44.91%
- English as an additional language
- 21.8%
- Overall absence
- 8.29%
- Persistent absence
- 22.06%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Belstead House Adult Education Centre0.2 miles
Other types · Ipswich
-
Stone Lodge Academy1.2 miles
Academies · Ipswich
-
St Joseph's College1.2 miles
Independent schools · Ipswich
-
Westbridge Academy2.1 miles
Academies · Ipswich
-
Redstone Hall School2.5 miles
Special schools · Ipswich
Other schools in Ipswich
- Acorn Cottage The Lodge Special schools
- Alderwood Academy Academies
- Centre Academy East Anglia Special schools
- First Base Ipswich Academy Academies
- New Skill Centre Special schools
- Parkside Academy Academies
- Redstone Hall School Special schools
- Sir Bobby Robson School Free Schools
- St Christopher's Academy Academies
- Stone Lodge Academy Academies
- Thomas Wolsey Ormiston Academy Academies
- Westbridge Academy Academies
Common questions
- What year groups does The Bridge School teach?
- The Bridge School teaches children aged 4 to 19. It is a special school in Ipswich.
- Who is the headteacher of The Bridge School?
- The headteacher of The Bridge School is Ms Tina Sharman, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was The Bridge School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected The Bridge 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 The Bridge School?
- The Bridge School has 257 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 19.
- Is The Bridge School full?
- The Bridge School has capacity for 228 pupils and 257 on roll (113%), 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 The Bridge School a faith school?
- No. The Bridge School has no designated religious character.
- Who runs The Bridge School?
- The Bridge School is part of UNITY SCHOOLS PARTNERSHIP. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- What SEN provision does The Bridge School have?
- The schools register lists The Bridge School's special educational needs provision as: VI - Visual Impairment; HI - Hearing Impairment; SLCN - Speech, language and Communication; ASD - Autistic Spectrum Disorder; PD - Physical Disability; SLD - Severe Learning Difficulty; PMLD - Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulty. Contact the school to discuss how it would support a particular child.
- How have The Bridge 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 The Bridge School's absence rate?
- The Bridge School's overall absence rate is 8.3% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are The Bridge School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, The Bridge 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 10 July 2026.