King Alfred's, Wantage

Good
Secondary
Academy converter
Mixed
Ages 1118

Data last updated 11 Sept 2026

Location

Key Information

DfE GIAS
Head:Mr Jonathan Smart
Pupils:1,708 / 2,205 capacity
LA:Oxfordshire
Phone:01235225700
Address:Portway, Wantage, OX12 9BY
Trust:CAMBRIAN LEARNING TRUST
Admissions:Non-selective
Status:open
Opened:1 August 2011

Ofsted Rating

Good

Overall

URN:137140
UKPRN:10034623
Diocese:Not applicable
Constituency:Didcot and Wantage
Urban/Rural:Urban: Further from a major town or city

Ofsted Insights

What This School Does Well

King Alfred's provides a warm, welcoming environment where pupils feel safe and staff build respectful relationships with students. The school offers an ambitious sixth-form curriculum and ensures all pupils can access a broad range of enrichment activities including clubs, trips and performances. Sixth-form students are well-prepared for their next steps with strong careers guidance and leadership development opportunities.

Key Strengths

  • Strong safeguarding culture with clear procedures and pupil safety prioritized
  • Effective sixth-form provision with ambitious curriculum and good student outcomes in examinations
  • Good pastoral care and enrichment activities including clubs, trips, competitions and performances
  • Well-developed reading and mathematics support with early intervention for struggling learners
  • Positive staff morale and support for early-career teachers

Areas for Improvement

  • Writing skills development not consistently secure across pupil groups
  • Disadvantaged pupils underperforming in national examinations and not sufficiently prepared for next steps
  • Attendance rates too low, particularly among disadvantaged pupils
  • Inconsistent curriculum design in some subjects affecting knowledge progression
  • Incomplete pupil understanding of relationships education, British values and equality concepts

Safeguarding

Safeguarding standards are met with leaders establishing an open culture where safeguarding is everyone's responsibility and concerns are actively identified, acted upon and managed.

Extracurricular Activities

Clubs, trips, competitions, performances, leadership positions

King Alfred's is a secondary school in Wantage, Oxfordshire that provides a broad curriculum with a well-considered sixth-form offer. While the school has established a safe environment and positive staff culture, there are inconsistencies in pupil achievement and areas requiring improvement in curriculum delivery and pupil outcomes.

At a Glance

18.8%

Free School Meals

No

Boarding

No

Nursery

Yes

Sixth Form

No

Special Measures

Class Sizes

23.1

Avg class size

69

Total classes

6 classes with more than 30 pupils

2024/25 academic year

Getting There

Bus Stops

King Alfreds School (nr)
40m · 1 min walk
Market Place (Stop A)
278m · 5 min walk
Sainsbury's (on)
421m · 7 min walk
Ham Road (S-bound)
437m · 7 min walk
Seesen Way (NW-bound)
522m · 8 min walk
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Capacity & Demand

School Occupancy

77%

Available places

1,708 pupils

2,205 capacity

497 spare places available

Area Demand Pressure - Wantage

Low pressure
New homes approved:807
Projected new pupils:145

Based on MHCLG housing supply data for Wantage

Admissions Demand - Oxfordshire

Low demand0.91x oversubscription

Places available

7,684

Applications

6,969

Got 1st preference

87.5%

Got preferred school

96.5%

Secondary admissions across Oxfordshire (2025/26)

Inspection History(106)

Date not published by Ofsted
Good
Date not published by Ofsted
Good
Date not published by Ofsted
Good

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SEN Provision

How many pupils have special educational needs, what types of support the school provides, and how it compares to similar schools.

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Pupil Demographics

The school's pupil mix - ethnicity breakdown, free school meals eligibility, and English as an additional language. Useful context when evaluating school fit.

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Teachers & Staff

Teacher qualification rates, pupil-to-teacher ratio, staff turnover, and salary data. Shows how well-resourced and stable the school's workforce is.

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School Funding

Annual funding per pupil, total budget, pupil premium grants, and how the school's resources compare to similar schools nationally.

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Pupil Absence
2024/25

11.93317%

Overall absence

29.45431%

Persistent absence

1,521

Enrolments

Authorised7.58624%
Unauthorised4.34693%
Persistent (10%+)29.45431%
Severe (50%+)7.10059%

Absence trend

6.14168%
18/19
4.35831%
20/21
9.49629%
21/22
9.81615%
22/23
11.53591%
23/24
11.93317%
24/25
Overall absence rate

Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.

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