Summerdown School
3 Broadwater Way, Eastbourne, BN22 9PZ
- Phase
- Free Schools
- School type
- Free schools special
- Ages
- 3 to 16
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- None
- Trust
- THE SOUTHFIELD TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mrs Karen Sitwell-Cook
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Constituency
- Eastbourne
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 155
- Pupils on roll
- 174
- URN
- 149138
- Local authority
- East Sussex
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01323921630
About this school
Summerdown School is a special academy in Eastbourne. It teaches children aged 3 to 16 and has 174 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Summerdown 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
Ofsted did not give an overall grade. Between September 2024 and September 2025 inspections graded each area of a school's work without a single overall judgement, ahead of the move to report cards. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Outstanding
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Outstanding
- Personal development
- Outstanding
- Leadership and management
- Outstanding
- Early years
- Outstanding
- 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 | 5 | 6 | 13 |
| 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 | - | 80.0 | 80.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | - | - | 81.0 |
Trends over time
How Summerdown 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 | — | 54.8% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 0% | 56.2% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 0% | 57.6% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 11.3% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 13.6% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 12.4% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 67 |
| 2023/24 | 132 |
| 2024/25 | 161 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 32.3%
- English as an additional language
- 6.2%
- Overall absence
- 12.43%
- Persistent absence
- 32.19%
Location
Nearby schools
-
The Lindfield School0.7 miles
Academies · Eastbourne
-
Anderida Learning Centre1.3 miles
Special schools · Eastbourne
-
The South Downs School1.4 miles
Academies · Eastbourne
-
Hazel Court School1.5 miles
Academies · Eastbourne
-
Eastbourne College2.0 miles
Independent schools · Eastbourne
Other schools in Eastbourne
- Anderida Learning Centre Special schools
- Hazel Court School Academies
- The Lindfield School Academies
- The South Downs School Academies
- Bourne Primary School Primary
- Heron Park Primary Academy Primary
- Langney Primary Academy Primary
- Motcombe Infants' School Primary
- Oakwood Primary Academy Primary
- Ocklynge Junior School Primary
- Parkland Infant School Primary
- Parkland Junior School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Summerdown School teach?
- Summerdown School teaches children aged 3 to 16. It is a special school in Eastbourne.
- Who is the headteacher of Summerdown School?
- The headteacher of Summerdown School is Mrs Karen Sitwell-Cook, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Summerdown School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Summerdown 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 Summerdown School?
- Summerdown School has 174 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 16.
- Is Summerdown School full?
- Summerdown School has capacity for 155 pupils and 174 on roll (112%), 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 Summerdown School a faith school?
- No. Summerdown School has no designated religious character.
- Is Summerdown School a selective school?
- No. Summerdown School is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Is Summerdown School part of an academy trust?
- Summerdown School is part of THE SOUTHFIELD TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Summerdown School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 0% in 2023/24 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 Summerdown School's absence rate?
- Summerdown School's overall absence rate is 12.4% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Summerdown School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Summerdown 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.