The Harbour School
Station Road, Wilburton, Ely, CB6 3RR
- Phase
- Academies
- School type
- Academy special sponsor led
- Ages
- 5 to 16
- Gender
- Boys
- Trust
- MERIDIAN TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mrs Mary Abeyasekera
- Sponsor
- Meridian Trust
- Constituency
- Ely and East Cambridgeshire
- Setting
- Smaller rural: Further from a major town or city
- Capacity
- 104
- Pupils on roll
- 95
- URN
- 148236
- Local authority
- Cambridgeshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01353740229
About this school
The Harbour School is a boys' special academy in Ely. It teaches children aged 5 to 16 and has 95 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected The Harbour School, 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
- Requires improvement
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Good
- Personal development
- Good
- 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 | 14 | 9 | 13 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 0% | 8% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Expected standard in reading | 7% | 0% | 8% |
| Expected standard in maths | 0% | 0% | 8% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 0% | 0% | 8% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 97.0 | 89.0 | 117.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 89.0 | 89.0 | 103.0 |
| Reading progress | -14.60 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -14.50 | - | - |
| Maths progress | - | - | - |
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 | 7 | 6 | 12 |
| Attainment 8 score | 1.4 | 8.0 | 6.1 |
| Progress 8 score | -1.97 -3.01 to -0.92 | -1.92 -3.05 to -0.79 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 0% | 16.7% | 0% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 0.2 | 0.8 | 0.6 |
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 The Harbour 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 | Cambridgeshire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 0% | 56.8% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 0% | 55.7% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 8% | 57.4% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | Cambridgeshire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1.4 | 38.8 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 8 | 38 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 6.1 | 36.7 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 26.7% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 24.8% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 23.6% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 103 |
| 2023/24 | 101 |
| 2024/25 | 95 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 74.74%
- English as an additional language
- 1.1%
- Overall absence
- 23.64%
- Persistent absence
- 62.86%
Location
Nearby schools
-
King's Ely4.4 miles
Independent schools · Ely
-
Active Learning Trust Linc 19 - 254.7 miles
Other types · Ely
-
Highfield Ely Academy4.7 miles
Academies · Ely
-
The Centre School5.6 miles
Academies · Cambridge
-
The Martin Bacon Academy7.0 miles
Free Schools · Northstowe
Other schools in Ely
- Active Learning Trust Linc 19 - 25 Other types
- Highfield Ely Academy Academies
- Highfield Littleport Academy Academies
- Downham Feoffees Primary Academy Primary
- Ely St John's Community Primary School Primary
- Ely St Mary's CofE Junior School Primary
- Fordham CofE Primary School Primary
- Isle of Ely Primary School Primary
- Isleham Church of England Primary School Primary
- Lantern Community Primary School Primary
- Little Thetford CofE Primary School Primary
- Littleport Community Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does The Harbour School teach?
- The Harbour School teaches children aged 5 to 16. It is a special school in Ely.
- Who is the headteacher of The Harbour School?
- The headteacher of The Harbour School is Mrs Mary Abeyasekera, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has The Harbour School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected The Harbour 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 The Harbour School?
- The Harbour School has 95 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 5 to 16.
- Is The Harbour School full?
- The Harbour School has capacity for 104 pupils and 95 on roll (91%), 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 The Harbour School a faith school?
- No. The Harbour School has no designated religious character.
- Is The Harbour School part of an academy trust?
- The Harbour School is part of MERIDIAN TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have The Harbour 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 8% 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 Harbour School's absence rate?
- The Harbour School's overall absence rate is 23.6% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are The Harbour School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, The Harbour 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.