SchoolFacts.uk

Westfield Academy

Secondary · Watford · WD18 6NS

Data updated

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Good

SchoolFacts estimate: Ofsted awarded no overall grade at this inspection

We show the lowest of the four areas Ofsted did judge, listed below. Why some schools have no overall grade →

Quality of education: GoodBehaviour & attitudes: GoodPersonal development: GoodLeadership & management: GoodSafeguarding effective: Yes

Inspected 5 November 2024

Read the Ofsted report ↗

At a glance

1,331 pupils · 83% of 1,600 capacity (January 2026 census)

School type
Academy converter
Age range
11–18
Gender
Mixed
Admissions
Non-selective
Free school meals
26.9% of pupils (January 2026)
English as additional language
42% of pupils (2024/2025)
SEN support
11.3% of pupils (2024/2025)
EHC plan
1.9% of pupils (2024/2025)
Sixth form
Yes
Website
www.westfield.herts.sch.uk
URN
140049

In figures

For September 2026 entry, 118 families named it first for 231 Year 7 places, 0.51 first choices per place. We hold 12 Year 7 admissions rounds for it, 2015 to 2026; none was decided by a published distance. At its inspection on 5 November 2024 Ofsted awarded no overall grade; the lowest of the four areas it judged was Good. In the 2025/26 autumn and spring terms its pupils missed 8.5% of sessions, against 6.6% across England.

Admissions demand: Year 7 entry, September 2026

0.51 first-choice applications per place

231 places offered · 118 first-choice applications · usually has places

First-choice applications per place, by entry year

19/20
20/21
21/22
22/23
23/24
24/25
25/26
26/27

Source: DfE applications and offers on national offer day · how demand is measured

Catchment area

Catchment area: defined priority area.

Admissions cutoff distance: Year 7

Cutoff by admission criterion (2026 entry)

In Priority Area, Nearest School
2882.06 m (≈1.79 mi)
In Priority Area, Not Nearest School
7269.83 m (≈4.52 mi)

Source: the admissions authority's published figures · how cutoffs work

GCSE results (2024/2025)

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

Attainment 8 score
41.4
England 46.1
Grade 4 or above in English & maths GCSEs
54.4%
England 64.8%
Grade 5 or above in English & maths GCSEs
38.5%
England 45.4%
EBacc average point score
3.8
England 4.1

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.

A-level results (2024/2025)

A-level points per entry (England: 35 ≈ B-) C+
33.6
England 35

Source: DfE performance tables 2024/2025 · what “suppressed” means

Schools with a similar intake

Attainment 8, 2024/2025

This school41.4
Median of its 12 closest peers49
Hertfordshire average50.9
England46.1

On attainment 8, this school is behind the schools that teach a comparable intake.

They are matched on intake, not location, so most are not local: see nearby schools for those you could apply to.

SchoolOfstedAttainment 8
St Edmund's Catholic SchoolPortsmouth · 65 miles awayOutstanding58.9
Sandwell AcademyWest Bromwich · 89 miles awayGood49.1
Icknield High SchoolLuton · 18 miles awayGood49.4
The Chalk Hills AcademyLuton · 18 miles awayGood45.7
The Palmer Catholic AcademyIlford · 23 miles awayExpected standard48.8
All Saints' Catholic High SchoolSheffield · 127 miles awayExpected standard49.9
Goresbrook SchoolDagenham · 25 miles awayOutstanding55.6
Challney High School for BoysLuton · 17 miles awayOutstanding47.7
Queen Elizabeth SchoolLuton · 17 miles awayNeeds attention39.9
Batley Grammar SchoolBatley · 152 miles awayGood45.5
Northampton AcademyNorthampton · 46 miles awayOutstanding52.1
Malcolm Arnold AcademyNorthampton · 47 miles awayGood41.4

It is not a ranking. Source: DfE performance tables 2024/2025 · how the matching works

Pupils by ethnicity (January 2026)

White British 25% (Hertfordshire 60%, England 59%) · Asian Pakistani 20% (Hertfordshire 2%, England 5%) · Any other White background 14% (Hertfordshire 9%, England 7%) · Any other Asian background 9% (Hertfordshire 3%, England 3%) · Black African 8% (Hertfordshire 4%, England 5%) · Asian Indian 5% (Hertfordshire 4%, England 4%) · Any other ethnic group 3% (Hertfordshire 2%, England 3%) · Any other Mixed background 3% (Hertfordshire 3%, England 3%) · Mixed White and Asian 3% (Hertfordshire 3%, England 2%) · Any other Black background 2% (Hertfordshire 1%, England 1%) · Mixed White and Black Caribbean 2% (Hertfordshire 2%, England 2%) · Black Caribbean 2% (Hertfordshire 1%, England 1%) · Mixed White and Black African 2% (Hertfordshire 1%, England 1%) · Asian Bangladeshi 1% (Hertfordshire 1%, England 2%) · Not recorded 1% (Hertfordshire 1%, England 2%) · 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)
8.5%
England 6.6%
Pupils missing 10%+ of sessions (persistent absence)
19.9%
England 17.5%

Suspensions and permanent exclusions (2024/25)

8.31 suspensions per 100 pupils and 0 permanent exclusions · England, secondary schools: 21.24 suspensions and 0.23 permanent exclusions per 100 pupils · Hertfordshire: 13.41 suspensions and 0.12 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
18.4
England 18.5

Full-time-equivalent, 2025/26.

Teacher retention (2024/25)

81% of teachers stayed at the school the following year · 6% moved to another state school · 13% left the state-funded sector

Vacancies (November 2025)

1.2% of teaching posts vacant, 0% filled temporarily · England, secondary academies: 0.45% vacant, 0.33% temporary

Teacher sickness absence (reported in the November 2024 census)

75.5% of teachers took sickness absence, 8.9 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 £53,951; 14.5% on the leadership pay range · England, secondary schools: £53,766, 11.3%

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

Spending per pupil (2024-25)

This school£8,117
Typical secondary school£7,846

Where the money went (2024-25)

Share of spending, with the median for secondary schools in brackets: Staff 74% (77%) · premises 6% (5%) · occupation (energy, rates, cleaning) 5% (6%) · supplies and services 15% (11%) · educational supplies 7% (6%) · bought-in professional services 6% (1%) · catering 1% (3%)

Reserves (2024-25)

Revenue reserve £1,622,000; in-year balance -£104,000

Spending and reserves, last three years Premium

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Higher spending is not a measure of quality. Source: academy finance return, 2024-25, DfE · how spending is compared

Where pupils go after GCSEs

In sustained education, work or training
92%
Continuing in education
88%
Apprenticeship
1%
Employment
3%

Where students go after sixth form

To university / higher education
60%
Apprenticeship
6%
Employment
13%
Any sustained destination
81%

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)
2/10among the most deprived fifth of England
Overall deprivation (IMD)
2/10among the most deprived fifth of England
Census 2021This areaEngland
Adults with a degree or higher25.9%33.9%
Adults with no qualifications23.4%18.1%
In managerial or professional work23.7%33.2%
Households deprived in two or more ways28.4%18.1%
Residents in very good health47.4%48.5%
Homes owned by the occupier32.2%62.3%
Social housing60.2%17.1%
Privately rented7.5%20.5%
Detached houses1.1%22.9%
Flats51.9%22.2%
Homes with four or more bedrooms3.1%21.1%
Households with no car or van30.6%23.5%

These figures describe the area, not the pupils. Source: Census 2021 (ONS) and English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG) for small area E01023866 · how to read area figures

What homes cost nearby

Median sale price
£383,500458 sales within 1 km, January 2024 to September 2026
Typical range
£290,000–£440,000the middle half of sales
England median
£300,000all sales over the same period
Detached (7)£660,000
Semi-detached (31)£515,000
Terraced (140)£431,500
Flat (280)£335,000

Homes around this school are dearer than most 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
5an urban school averages 5.7
All reported collisions
22an urban school averages 30.5
Of those, serious or fatal
3an 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