- What did Ofsted judge Samuel Ward Academy's overall effectiveness to be?
- Ofsted judged Samuel Ward Academy's overall effectiveness as Good at its inspection in November 2022, on Ofsted's own scale.
- How many pupils attend Samuel Ward Academy?
- Samuel Ward Academy has 1,076 pupils on roll.
- What are Samuel Ward Academy’s exam results?
- In 2025-26 (DfE’s provisional figures), its average Attainment 8 score was 38.2: DfE’s measure of pupils’ results across eight GCSE-level subjects. In 2024-25, A-level students averaged 21.07 points per A-level entry. Trends and the detail behind each figure are on the Results tab.
- What ages does Samuel Ward Academy take?
- Samuel Ward Academy admits pupils aged 11 to 18.
- Where is Samuel Ward Academy located?
- Samuel Ward Academy is located in Haverhill, CB9 0LD, Suffolk.
- How do I apply to Samuel Ward Academy?
- Samuel Ward Academy is a state school. In England you apply through the council where you live, using its common application form, even if the school is in another council area. The national closing date for secondary places is 31 October.
- How close do you need to live to get into Samuel Ward Academy?
- Distance did not decide places at Samuel Ward Academy for 2026-27 (Year 7): every applicant who applied on time was offered a place, so there was no cut-off distance. This changes year to year; check the current year's figures before relying on it.
- How are Year 7 places decided at Samuel Ward Academy?
- When Samuel Ward Academy has more applications than places for 2027-28, they are offered in a published order of priority: 1. Looked after and previously looked after children — Looked after Children or previously looked after children will then be admitted as the top priority. Looked after children (children in care) and previously looked after children (children who were looked after, but ceased to be so because they were adopted or become subject to a children arrangements order or special guardianship order, immediately following having been looked after). Oversubscription within our Priority Admission Area; 2. Children attending a feeder school — In the event of oversubscription children within the priority admission area (from the named feeder partner schools) will be considered next and determined using the following criteria in descending order: a) Children with a brother or sister (sibling) attending Samuel Ward at the time of application with a reasonable expectation they will be attending at the start of the new school year. Attendance at Samuel Ward will include attendance at the Sixth Form. b) Children attending one of the named partner schools who do not have a brother or sister (sibling) attending Samuel Ward. c) Distance - as outlined in the section labelled ‘Tie Breaker’ below Applications from outside of our Priority Admission Area; 3. Sibling link — Applications from children who do not attend a named partner school that have not been admitted will be considered and will be determined by the following criteria: a) Children with a brother or sister (sibling) attending Samuel Ward at the time of application with a reasonable expectation they will be attending at the start of the new school year. b) The proximity criteria described below in ‘Tie-Breaker’. The academy reserves the right to refuse entry to applicants who have been permanently excluded from two or more schools. This applies within two years of the second exclusion. The school offers 230 places at this entry point.
- What is the largest ethnic background at Samuel Ward Academy?
- According to the DfE School Census 2025-26, 71.4% of pupils at Samuel Ward Academy are recorded as White British. The full ethnic breakdown across all groups is available on the Pupils tab.