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Phoenix School

Special / other · London · E3 2AD

Data updated

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Outstanding

Earlier grade, confirmed by a later ungraded inspection

Ofsted's most recent (ungraded) visit confirmed the school remains Outstanding. Ungraded inspections do not award a new grade.

Inspected 18 April 2024

Read the Ofsted report ↗

At a glance

533 pupils · 107% of 500 capacity (over capacity) (January 2026 census)

School type
Community special school
Age range
3–19
Gender
Mixed
Free school meals
60.9% of pupils (January 2026)
English as additional language
59.8% of pupils (2024/2025)
SEN support
0% of pupils (2024/2025)
EHC plan
100% of pupils (2024/2025)
Sixth form
Yes
Nursery
Yes
Website
www.phoenix.towerhamlets.sch.uk
URN
100987

In figures

An ungraded Ofsted inspection on 18 April 2024 confirmed its earlier grade, Outstanding. In the 2025/26 autumn and spring terms its pupils missed 9.3% of sessions, against 6.6% across England.

Key stage 2 results (2024/2025)

50 pupils at the end of key stage 2 in 2024/2025

No pupils reached the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (0%). Key stage 2 tests measure the age-11 curriculum; most pupils at special schools are assessed under other frameworks, so 97% of special schools publish 0% here.

GCSE results (2024/2025)

28 pupils at the end of key stage 4 in 2024/2025

Attainment 8 score

no pupils entered

Grade 4 or above in English & maths GCSEs

no pupils entered

Grade 5 or above in English & maths GCSEs

no pupils entered

EBacc average point score

no pupils entered

Progress 8 is suspended nationally for 2024/25 and 2025/26. These cohorts sat no key stage 2 tests (COVID), so there is no baseline to measure progress from.

Source: DfE performance tables 2024/2025 · what “suppressed” means National averages are not shown here. The England figures are dominated by mainstream schools, and pupils at a special school are working towards outcomes those measures were not designed to capture, so the comparison would mislead more than it tells you.

Special educational needs

Needs this school records that it caters for, in the order it lists them.

Pupils by ethnicity (January 2026)

Asian Bangladeshi 63% (Tower Hamlets 56%, England 2%) · Black African 11% (Tower Hamlets 10%, England 5%) · White British 7% (Tower Hamlets 11%, England 66%) · Any other Mixed background 6% (Tower Hamlets 7%, England 3%) · Not recorded 3% (Tower Hamlets 2%, England 2%) · Any other ethnic group 2% (Tower Hamlets 3%, England 2%) · Any other Black background 2% (Tower Hamlets 2%, England 1%) · Mixed White and Black Caribbean 1% (Tower Hamlets 2%, England 2%) · Any other White background 1% (Tower Hamlets 2%, England 4%) · Asian Chinese 1% (Tower Hamlets 1%, England 0%) · Black Caribbean 1% (Tower Hamlets 1%, England 1%) · Asian Pakistani 1% (Tower Hamlets 1%, England 4%) · Mixed White and Black African 1% (Tower Hamlets 1%, England 1%) · other groups together 1%

Source: DfE schools, pupils and their characteristics, January 2026 census · how to read these figures

Attendance (2025/26 autumn and spring terms)

Sessions missed (overall absence)
9.3%
England 6.6%
Pupils missing 10%+ of sessions (persistent absence)
32.5%
England 17.5%

Suspensions and permanent exclusions (2024/25)

1.20 suspensions per 100 pupils and 0 permanent exclusions · England, special schools: 12.32 suspensions and 0.08 permanent exclusions per 100 pupils · Tower Hamlets: 5.77 suspensions and 0.00 permanent exclusions per 100 pupils

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Source: DfE pupil absence data, autumn and spring terms, and DfE suspensions and permanent exclusions, school-level file · how absence is measured · how to read exclusions

Staffing

Pupils per qualified teacher
7.1
England 18.5

Full-time-equivalent, 2025/26.

Teacher retention (2024/25)

87% of teachers stayed at the school the following year · 7% moved to another state school · 6% left the state-funded sector

Vacancies (November 2025)

0% of teaching posts vacant, 0% filled temporarily · England, special schools and PRUs: 0.68% vacant, 1.02% temporary

Teacher sickness absence (reported in the November 2024 census)

83.1% of teachers took sickness absence, 9.5 days each on average · England, all state-funded schools: 61.8%, 8.1 days

Teacher pay (November 2025)

Mean salary of full-time qualified teachers £57,173; 12.5% on the leadership pay range · England, special schools and PRUs: £53,604, 18.3%

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Source: DfE School Workforce Census · how these figures are counted

Spending per pupil (2025-26)

This school£38,458
Typical special / other school£30,084

Where the money went (2025-26)

Share of spending, with the median for special schools in brackets: Staff 74% (81%) · premises 8% (5%) · occupation (energy, rates, cleaning) 6% (4%) · supplies and services 19% (9%) · educational supplies 2% (3%) · bought-in professional services 9% (4%) · catering 3% (2%)

Reserves (2025-26)

Revenue reserve £2,963,289; in-year balance -£696,254

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Higher spending is not a measure of quality. Source: council-maintained school finance return, 2025-26, DfE · how spending is compared

Where pupils go after GCSEs

In sustained education, work or training
100%
Continuing in education
100%
Apprenticeship
0%
Employment
0%

Destinations measured the year after leaving, DfE destination measures in the 2024/2025 performance tables.

Inspection history since 2015

Source: Ofsted management information · ungraded visits and the two inspection systems

The area around the school

Child poverty (IDACI)
1/10among the most deprived tenth of England
Overall deprivation (IMD)
2/10among the most deprived fifth of England
Census 2021This areaEngland
Adults with a degree or higher40%33.9%
Adults with no qualifications19.9%18.1%
In managerial or professional work25.8%33.2%
Households deprived in two or more ways30.6%18.1%
Residents in very good health49.4%48.5%
Homes owned by the occupier22.8%62.3%
Social housing44.8%17.1%
Privately rented31.4%20.5%
Detached houses0.2%22.9%
Flats90%22.2%
Homes with four or more bedrooms12.7%21.1%
Households with no car or van60.6%23.5%

These figures describe the area, not the pupils. Source: Census 2021 (ONS) and English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG) for small area E01004231 · how to read area figures

What homes cost nearby

Median sale price
£435,0001,037 sales within 1 km, January 2024 to September 2026
Typical range
£350,000–£555,000the middle half of sales
England median
£300,000all sales over the same period
Semi-detached (6)£804,000
Terraced (187)£885,000
Flat (843)£401,500

Homes around this school are dearer than three quarters of school neighbourhoods in England, comparing the median within 1 km across every state school.

Source: HM Land Registry sales within 1 km since January 2024 · how sales are counted. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. This data is licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Postcodes located with OS Code-Point Open: contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026; contains Royal Mail data © Royal Mail copyright and database right 2026; contains National Statistics data © Crown copyright and database right 2026.

Roads around the school

Child pedestrian casualties
3an urban school averages 2.0
Collisions at school-run times
43an urban school averages 5.7
All reported collisions
232an urban school averages 30.5
Of those, serious or fatal
38an urban school averages 6.1

A high count usually reflects traffic, not an unsafe school. Source: DfT road casualty statistics (STATS19), collisions within 500 m, 2021–2025 · what is counted

Nearby schools