Neale-Wade Academy, March

Requires Improvement
Secondary
Academy sponsor led
Mixed
Ages 1118

Data last updated 11 Sept 2026

Location

Key Information

DfE GIAS
Head:Mr Graham Horn
Pupils:1,130 / 1,758 capacity
LA:Cambridgeshire
Phone:01354606000
Address:Wimblington Road, March, PE15 9PX
Trust:THE ACTIVE LEARNING TRUST LIMITED
Admissions:Non-selective
Status:open
Opened:1 April 2013

Ofsted Rating

Requires Improvement

Overall

URN:139272
UKPRN:10040591
Diocese:Not applicable
Constituency:North East Cambridgeshire
Urban/Rural:Urban: Further from a major town or city

Ofsted Insights

What This School Does Well

Neale-Wade Academy has made real progress in creating a calm, supportive environment where pupils behave well and attendance is improving. The pastoral team is a genuine strength, providing caring support that helps vulnerable pupils stay engaged. The school is also developing pupils' character well through teaching about online safety, healthy relationships and careers, with sixth-form students achieving results broadly in line with national averages.

Key Strengths

  • Strong improvements in pupil attendance and behaviour with clear, consistently followed policies
  • Effective pastoral support system that helps vulnerable and disadvantaged pupils feel confident and supported
  • Well-structured personal development programme covering life skills, online safety, relationships and careers guidance
  • Sixth-form students achieve better outcomes with improving A-level results and strong support for next steps

Areas for Improvement

  • Pupil achievement remains significantly below expectations, particularly in national tests at key stage 4
  • Teaching quality is inconsistent - teachers lack secure understanding of what pupils know and don't consistently check understanding
  • Support for disadvantaged pupils and those with special needs is variable and not consistently effective in the classroom
  • Gaps in reading and writing support are in early stages and not yet embedded across the school

Safeguarding

Safeguarding standards are met - the school has an open and positive culture of safeguarding, all legal requirements are met, and pupils feel safe.

Extracurricular Activities

Finance and budgeting sessions, cooking, road safety, county lines awareness, mental health and wellbeing workshops, work experience placements in education, care, retail and engineering sectors

Neale-Wade Academy requires significant improvement and is performing less well than expected. The school has made progress in attendance, behaviour and personal development, but faces urgent challenges in pupil achievement and the quality of teaching.

At a Glance

38.0%

Free School Meals

No

Boarding

No

Nursery

Yes

Sixth Form

No

Special Measures

What Parents Think

10 responses
Would recommend20%
Child is happy30%
Well taught40%
Good progress10%
Feels safe50%
Well behaved10%
Bullying dealt with30%
Kept informed20%
Handles concerns20%
Wider development20%

Source: Ofsted Parent View - % who strongly agree or agree

Class Sizes

20.6

Avg class size

53

Total classes

3 classes with more than 30 pupils

2024/25 academic year

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Capacity & Demand

School Occupancy

64%

Available places

1,130 pupils

1,758 capacity

628 spare places available

Area Demand Pressure - March

Low pressure
New homes approved:596
Projected new pupils:107

Based on MHCLG housing supply data for March

Admissions Demand - Cambridgeshire

Low demand0.95x oversubscription

Places available

7,188

Applications

6,820

Got 1st preference

88.2%

Got preferred school

96.3%

Secondary admissions across Cambridgeshire (2025/26)

Inspection History(12)

Date not published by Ofsted
Requires Improvement
Date not published by Ofsted
Requires Improvement
Date not published by Ofsted
Requires Improvement

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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

9.98039%

Overall absence

27.58621%

Persistent absence

1,218

Enrolments

Authorised5.90326%
Unauthorised4.07713%
Persistent (10%+)27.58621%
Severe (50%+)5.91133%

Absence trend

6.48433%
18/19
6.69736%
20/21
13.06974%
21/22
13.32226%
22/23
11.83501%
23/24
9.98039%
24/25
Overall absence rate

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

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