Hera House, Appleby
Hera House is a special school for pupils aged 5 to 14 in Appleby. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in April 2025.
- Ofsted
- Good (2025)
Data last updated 27 Oct 2026
Hera House in detail
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other special schools to Hera House are St Luke's Primary School (3.4 miles, Good); Tle Independent School (3.5 miles); St Hugh's Special School (3.9 miles, Outstanding); and Rowan Education (4.2 miles, Requires improvement).
St Luke's Primary SchoolTle Independent SchoolSt Hugh's Special SchoolRowan Education
What parents say
16 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about Hera House (as of September 2025): 100% would recommend the school, 100% say their child is happy there and 100% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.
The strongest agreement was that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (100%); the weakest, that the school has high expectations for their child (94%).
Who goes there
Almost every pupil at Hera House has an education, health and care plan (33 of 33 in 2026).
Getting there
There is no railway, tram or Underground station within about three miles of Hera House.
3 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Rail Station (adjacent), 30 metres away.
Sources: Ofsted Parent View; DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; NaPTAN (Department for Transport)
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
Hera House excels at supporting pupils with special educational needs and disabilities, with staff who deeply understand individual needs and adapt teaching accordingly. The school creates a caring environment where pupils feel happy and supported, with each family having a dedicated key worker. Pupils develop important life skills and have strong relationships with staff, who help them prepare confidently for adulthood.
Key Strengths
- Values pupils' individuality and has high expectations for behaviour and achievement
- Strong support for families with key workers providing a point of contact for communication and emotional support
- Effective teaching of phonics with pupils showing resilient attitudes to reading
- Well-designed curriculum adapted to meet the changing needs of pupils joining throughout the year
- Excellent preparation for adulthood with careers events and visits from local employers
Areas for Improvement
- Writing tasks sometimes do not match pupils' phonics knowledge, preventing them from consolidating skills
- Checking pupils' understanding is inconsistent across the school, meaning some misconceptions are not addressed
- Persistent absence remains high for some pupils, causing them to miss essential learning
Safeguarding
The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
Extracurricular Activities
Sensory garden, break room for regulation, annual careers event with visits from local employers and businesses
Hera House is a special school for pupils aged 5-14 with cognitive, learning, speech and language, autism, and social-emotional needs. It was rated Good overall and meets all independent school standards.
At a Glance
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
16 responsesSource: Ofsted Parent View, responses as at September 2025 - % who strongly agree or agree
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby schools
Keep up with Hera House
Getting There
Bus Stops
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 3
- Fatal
- 1
- Serious
- 1
- Children hurt
- 0
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 3 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: 1 fatal, 1 serious and 1 slight.
No children aged 0 to 15 were among the people hurt.
0 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 North Lincolnshire is 7.5 (the median across 94 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
66%
Available places
33 pupils
50 places
17 spare places
as recorded on GIAS
Area Demand Pressure - Appleby
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Appleby
Across North Lincolnshire council
Places available
2,201
Applications
1,717
Got 1st preference
96.2%
Got preferred school
98.8%
All secondary applications across North Lincolnshire council (2026/27), not just this school.
Inspection History(2)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
0
SEN Support
33
EHC Plans
100.0%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Hera House 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
33
Total Pupils
32
Boys
1
Girls
2026 academic year
Questions parents ask about Hera House
What is Hera House's Ofsted rating?
Hera House was rated Good at its most recent Ofsted inspection in April 2025.
Does Hera House meet the independent school standards?
At its most recent standard inspection, in April 2025, Hera House met all the independent school standards.
How many pupils go to Hera House?
Hera House has around 33 pupils on roll.
Does Hera House have specialist SEN provision?
Hera House is not approved under Section 41 of the Children and Families Act 2014.
How do I apply to Hera House?
Hera House 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 Hera House?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 3 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: 1 fatal, 1 serious and 1 slight. No children aged 0 to 15 were among the people hurt. 0 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 North Lincolnshire is 7.5 (the median across 94 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Hera House?
Hera House is at Broughton Road, Appleby, DN15 0DA.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)