Birch Wood (Melton Area Special School)
Special / other · Melton Mowbray · LE13 1HA
Data updated
Earlier grade, confirmed by a later ungraded inspection
Ofsted's most recent (ungraded) visit confirmed the school remains Good. Ungraded inspections do not award a new grade.
Inspected 17 April 2024
Read the Ofsted report ↗At a glance
246 pupils · 102% of 240 capacity (over capacity) (January 2026 census)
- School type
- Academy special converter
- Age range
- 4–19
- Gender
- Mixed
- Free school meals
- 41.5% of pupils (January 2026)
- Sixth form
- Yes
- Website
- www.birchwoodschool.co.uk
- URN
- 152239
In figures
An ungraded Ofsted inspection on 17 April 2024 confirmed its earlier grade, Good. In the 2025/26 autumn and spring terms its pupils missed 10.3% of sessions, against 6.6% across England.
Special educational needs
Needs this school records that it caters for, in the order it lists them.
- Specific Learning Difficulty
- Visual Impairment
- Other Difficulty/Disability
- Hearing Impairment
- Speech, Language and Communication Needs
- Autistic Spectrum Disorder
- Social, Emotional and Mental Health
- Multi-Sensory Impairment
- Physical Disability
- Moderate Learning Difficulty
- Severe Learning Difficulty
- Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulty
Pupils by ethnicity (January 2026)
White British 89% (Leicestershire 80%, England 66%) · Mixed White and Asian 2% (Leicestershire 1%, England 1%) · Asian Indian 2% (Leicestershire 3%, England 2%) · Mixed White and Black Caribbean 2% (Leicestershire 2%, England 2%) · Any other White background 2% (Leicestershire 3%, England 4%) · Any other Asian background 1% (Leicestershire 1%, England 2%) · Any other Mixed background 1% (Leicestershire 2%, England 3%) · Mixed White and Black African 1% (Leicestershire 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)
Source: DfE pupil absence data, autumn and spring terms · how absence is measured
The area around the school
- Child poverty (IDACI)
- 7/10less deprived than most of England
- Overall deprivation (IMD)
- 9/10among the least deprived fifth of England
| Census 2021 | This area | England |
|---|---|---|
| Adults with a degree or higher | 23.2% | 33.9% |
| Adults with no qualifications | 17% | 18.1% |
| In managerial or professional work | 28.9% | 33.2% |
| Households deprived in two or more ways | 11.5% | 18.1% |
| Residents in very good health | 42.3% | 48.5% |
| Homes owned by the occupier | 84.1% | 62.3% |
| Social housing | 1.5% | 17.1% |
| Privately rented | 14.3% | 20.5% |
| Detached houses | 15.3% | 22.9% |
| Flats | 1.3% | 22.2% |
| Homes with four or more bedrooms | 12.4% | 21.1% |
| Households with no car or van | 10.6% | 23.5% |
These figures describe the area, not the pupils. Source: Census 2021 (ONS) and English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG) for small area E01025893 · how to read area figures
What homes cost nearby
- Median sale price
- £231,000193 sales within 1 km, January 2024 to September 2026
- Typical range
- £198,000–£272,000the middle half of sales
- England median
- £300,000all sales over the same period
Homes around this school are cheaper 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
- 1an urban school averages 2.0
- Collisions at school-run times
- 1an urban school averages 5.7
- All reported collisions
- 1an urban school averages 30.5
- Of those, serious or fatal
- 0an 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
See all schools run by Discovery Schools Academies Trust Ltd →