Aurora Fairway School
High Leys, St Ives, PE27 6AL
- Phase
- Special schools
- School type
- Other independent special school
- Ages
- 11 to 16
- Gender
- Mixed
- Headteacher
- Mrs Lois Downton
- Religious ethos
- None
- Constituency
- Huntingdon
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 49
- Pupils on roll
- 48
- URN
- 149186
- Local authority
- Cambridgeshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01480772930
About this school
Aurora Fairway School is an independent special school in St Ives. It teaches children aged 11 to 16 and has 48 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has not yet inspected Aurora Fairway School under its current framework. 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
Aurora Fairway School has not been inspected by Ofsted yet. It opened in its current form in September 2022, and new or converted schools usually wait a few years for their first inspection.
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 7 | 6 |
| Attainment 8 score | 5.9 | 2.2 |
| Progress 8 score | - | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 14.3% | 0% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 14.3% | 0% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 0% | 0% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 0.3 | 0.0 |
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 Aurora Fairway 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 | — | 38.8 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 5.9 | 38 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 2.2 | 36.7 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 20 |
| 2023/24 | 43 |
| 2024/25 | 48 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 0%
- Pupils with an EHC plan
- 48
Location
Nearby schools
-
Spring Common Academy3.7 miles
Academies · Huntingdon
-
Whitehall School5.1 miles
Independent schools · Huntingdon
-
Papworth Hall School5.8 miles
Special schools · Cambridge
-
Prestley Wood Academy6.4 miles
Free Schools · Alconbury Weald
-
The Martin Bacon Academy7.4 miles
Free Schools · Northstowe
Other schools in St Ives
- Eastfield Infant and Nursery School Primary
- Holywell CofE Primary School Primary
- Thorndown Primary School Primary
- Westfield Junior School Primary
- Wheatfields Primary School Primary
- St Ivo Academy Secondary
Common questions
- What ages does Aurora Fairway School teach?
- Aurora Fairway School teaches children aged 11 to 16. It is a special school in St Ives.
- Who is the headteacher of Aurora Fairway School?
- The headteacher of Aurora Fairway School is Mrs Lois Downton, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Aurora Fairway School been inspected?
- Ofsted has not inspected Aurora Fairway School under its current framework, so no current judgement is shown. That is common for newer schools and is not a mark against a school.
- How many pupils are at Aurora Fairway School?
- Aurora Fairway School has 48 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 16.
- Is Aurora Fairway School full?
- Aurora Fairway School has capacity for 49 pupils and 48 on roll (98%), so it is close to full. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Aurora Fairway School a faith school?
- No. Aurora Fairway School has no designated religious character.
- How have Aurora Fairway School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 5.9 in 2023/24 and 2.2 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- What are Aurora Fairway School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Aurora Fairway 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 24 July 2026.