Kemball School, Stoke-on-Trent
Kemball School is a special school for pupils aged 3 to 19 in Stoke-on-Trent, part of Orchard Community Trust. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in November 2012. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in December 2023 did not change this grade.
- Ofsted
- Good (2012)
Data last updated 26 Oct 2026
Kemball School in detail
Kemball School in its own words
From the headteacher's welcome: "Kemball School is a day special school. We meet the needs of pupils with cognition and learning difficulties aged between 3 and 16 years (19 years for PMLD pupils). Kemball School is part of the Orchard Community Trust. To maximise each pupils potential enabling her/him to achieve as much independence as possible."
Headteacher's welcome (school website)
Source: The school's own website
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other special schools to Kemball School are Strathmore College (0.4 miles, Good); Glebedale School (1.3 miles); Intuition Holistic Education (1.4 miles, Requires improvement); and The Avenue (1.8 miles).
Strathmore CollegeGlebedale SchoolIntuition Holistic EducationThe Avenue
The trust
Kemball School is one of 7 schools run by Orchard Community Trust, an academy trust.
Where pupils go next
Of the 27 pupils who finished Year 11 in 2023/24, 100% stayed in education or training for at least two terms.
Who goes there
55.5% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, and 19.4% speak English as an additional language, according to the 2026 school census.
Almost every pupil at Kemball School has an education, health and care plan (227 of 227 in 2026). The most common need among them is speech, language and communication needs.
Kemball School provides for pupils with autism, moderate learning difficulties, severe learning difficulties and profound and multiple learning difficulties.
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Platform 2, about 1.6 miles away in a straight line.
11 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Eastfield Close (opposite), 60 metres away.
The area around the school
Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood Kemball School stands in is among the 10% most deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.
In August 2026, police recorded 155 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, anti-social behaviour and public order offences. That is well below the typical figure around schools in Stoke-on-Trent (280).
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, Kemball School issued 6 suspensions, 2.7 for every 100 pupils, and no permanent exclusions.
Sources: DfE multi-academy trust performance data; DfE destination measures; DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); data.police.uk street-level crime; DfE exclusions statistics
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 3 years agoThis judgement is from November 2012, 13 years ago, longer than Ofsted's usual 4-year cycle: the school may have changed since.
Overall
Latest (ungraded) inspection: The school remains Good.
Ofsted Insights
Ofsted rated this school Good at its November 2012 inspection - unchanged since its previous inspection.
Rated Good for
Leadership & management.
At a Glance
55.5%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
Yes
Nursery
Yes
Sixth Form
Autism, MLD, SLD +1
SEN Provision
No
Special Measures
Primary Performance (KS2)
Academic year 2024/25KS2 Results (% meeting expected standard)
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby schools
Keep up with Kemball School
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Kemball School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Kemball School is in Stoke-on-Trent; for families living there:
- Stoke-on-Trent's school travel policy: School transport
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 4
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 1
- Children hurt
- 1
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 4 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 1 serious and 3 slight.
1 child aged 0 to 15 was hurt: 1 on a bicycle.
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 Stoke-on-Trent is 12.5 (the median across 116 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
119%
Over capacity
227 pupils
190 places
37 pupils over capacity
as recorded on GIAS
Area Demand Pressure - Stoke-on-Trent
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Stoke-on-Trent
Across Stoke-on-Trent council
Places available
3,140
Applications
3,223
Got 1st preference
88.5%
Got preferred school
97.0%
All secondary applications across Stoke-on-Trent council (2026/27), not just this school.
Inspection History(2)
Ungraded inspection: The school remains Good.
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
0
SEN Support
227
EHC Plans
100.0%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Kemball School provides for pupils with autism, moderate learning difficulties, severe learning difficulties and profound and multiple learning difficulties.
Source: GIAS, Department for Education.
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
227
Total Pupils
143
Boys
84
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
26
Teachers
8.7:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£50,269
Mean salary
2026 data
Pupil Absence2024/25
12.2%
Overall absence
37.1%
Persistent absence
205
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
Feeder Primary Schools
Primary schools that likely feed into this school, based on proximity
Kemball School
Showing 10 of 14 linked schools
Questions parents ask about Kemball School
What are SATs results like at Kemball School?
Of the pupils at Kemball School who took the 2025 Key Stage 2 assessments, 0% reached the expected standard in reading and 0% did so in maths.
What is Kemball School's Ofsted rating?
Kemball School's most recent Ofsted inspection, in December 2023, was ungraded, so it gave no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in November 2012, it was rated Good.
What is the catchment area for Kemball School?
No fixed boundary. When Kemball School is oversubscribed, Stoke-on-Trent allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
How many pupils go to Kemball School?
Kemball School has around 227 pupils on roll. 56% are eligible for free school meals.
Does Kemball School have specialist SEN provision?
Kemball School provides for pupils with autism, moderate learning difficulties, severe learning difficulties and profound and multiple learning difficulties.
What is attendance like at Kemball School?
12.2% of sessions were missed at Kemball School in 2024/25. 37.1% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Kemball School?
Apply through Stoke-on-Trent's coordinated admissions process, naming Kemball School on your application. The national closing date in England is 31 October for secondary places and 15 January for primary places, in the year before your child starts.
How many road collisions happen near Kemball School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 4 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 1 serious and 3 slight. 1 child aged 0 to 15 was hurt: 1 on a bicycle. 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 Stoke-on-Trent is 12.5 (the median across 116 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Kemball School?
Kemball School is at Beaconsfield Drive, Blurton, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, ST3 3JD.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)