Banks House School, Norwich
Banks House School is a special school for pupils aged 13 to 19 in Norwich. It was rated Outstanding at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in June 2024. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in April 2025 did not change this grade.
- Ofsted
- Outstanding (2024)
Data last updated 26 Oct 2026
Banks House School in detail
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other special schools to Banks House School are Future Education (0.6 miles); The Parkside School, Norwich (1.9 miles, Outstanding); Red Balloon Educational Trust-Norfolk (2 miles, Good, selective); and The Clare School (2.1 miles, Outstanding).
Future EducationThe Parkside School, NorwichRed Balloon Educational Trust-NorfolkThe Clare School
Who goes there
Almost every pupil at Banks House School has an education, health and care plan (10 of 10 in 2026).
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Norwich Rail Station, about 3.3 miles away in a straight line.
8 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Sunny Grove (opposite), 40 metres away.
The area around the school
In August 2026, police recorded 161 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, anti-social behaviour and other theft. That is well above the typical figure around schools in Norfolk (28), as is usual near a town centre.
Sources: DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); data.police.uk street-level crime
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 2 years agoOverall
Quality of Education
Behaviour & Attitudes
Personal Development
Leadership & Management
Safeguarding: effective
Independent school standards
Met all the independent school standards.
- Part 1: quality of educationMet
- Part 2: pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural developmentMet
- Part 3: welfare, health and safetyMet
- Part 4: suitability of staff and proprietorsMet
- Part 5: premises and accommodationMet
- Part 6: information for parentsMet
- Part 7: handling of complaintsMet
- Part 8: leadership and managementMet
Source: Ofsted, non-association independent schools inspections and outcomes (Open Government Licence)
Ofsted Insights
From Ofsted's April 2025 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
Banks House School excels at supporting young people with complex special educational needs and disabilities. The school has invested significantly in creating well-maintained, purpose-built facilities including new learning areas and outdoor sensory spaces. Staff are highly trained and attentive to pupils' individual needs, with safeguarding at the heart of everything the school does.
Key Strengths
- Strong safeguarding culture with high staff training levels, daily oversight and clear systems for recording concerns - safeguarding embedded into everyday practice
- Well-developed health and safety policies that are effectively implemented with regular checks and swift action on identified issues
- High adult-to-child staffing ratio model with careful timetabling and rotas to ensure appropriate pupil support
- Excellent premises with recent expansion including new learning areas and outdoor sensory spaces, well-maintained and secure
- Robust procedures for safer recruitment of staff with accurate single central record monitoring
Safeguarding
Safeguarding is effective with leaders demonstrating strong understanding of pupils' complex needs, fostering a vigilant culture through high staff training levels, daily oversight and clear systems for responding to concerns.
Banks House School is an independent special school for pupils aged 13-19 with autism, learning disabilities, mental health conditions and complex needs. The inspection found the school is likely to meet all relevant independent school standards if its proposed material change to increase pupil numbers from 9 to 12 is approved.
At a Glance
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby schools
Social & online
Keep up with Banks House School
Getting There
Bus Stops
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 21
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 7
- Children hurt
- 2
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 21 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 7 serious and 14 slight.
2 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt.
3 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included.
The typical figure for schools in Norfolk is 4 (the median across 462 schools, same distance and years).
Serious and slight counts use the Department for Transport's severity adjustment, which allows for changes in how police forces record injuries; they are estimates, rounded to whole numbers. Distances are in a straight line. Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19), Open Government Licence v3.0.
Commute and house prices
Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
83%
Available places
10 pupils
12 places
2 spare places
as recorded on GIAS
Area Demand Pressure - Norwich
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Norwich
Across Norfolk council
Places available
9,559
Applications
8,625
Got 1st preference
94.1%
Got preferred school
98.3%
All secondary applications across Norfolk council (2026/27), not just this school.
Inspection History(5)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
0
SEN Support
10
EHC Plans
100.0%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Banks House School is not approved under Section 41 of the Children and Families Act 2014.
Source: GIAS, Department for Education.
Pupils by Need Type
No need-level breakdown available
Pupil Demographics
Key Indicators
10
Total Pupils
10
Boys
0
Girls
2026 academic year
Questions parents ask about Banks House School
What is Banks House School's Ofsted rating?
Banks House School's most recent Ofsted inspection, in April 2025, was ungraded, so it gave no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in June 2024, it was rated Outstanding.
Does Banks House School meet the independent school standards?
At its most recent standard inspection, in June 2024, Banks House School met all the independent school standards.
How many pupils go to Banks House School?
Banks House School has around 10 pupils on roll.
Does Banks House School have specialist SEN provision?
Banks House School is not approved under Section 41 of the Children and Families Act 2014.
How do I apply to Banks House School?
Banks House School is an independent school and runs its own admissions rather than going through the local authority. Contact the school directly for entry requirements, assessment dates, fees and any bursaries.
How many road collisions happen near Banks House School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 21 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 7 serious and 14 slight. 2 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt. 3 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included. The typical figure for schools in Norfolk is 4 (the median across 462 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Banks House School?
Banks House School is at Bright House, 51 Wendene, Norwich, NR5 9HA.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)