Poplar Adolescent Unit, Rochford
Poplar Adolescent Unit is a pru school for pupils aged 11 to 18 in Rochford. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in October 2012. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in June 2025 did not change this grade.
- Ofsted
- Good (2012)
Data last updated 26 Oct 2026
Poplar Adolescent Unit in detail
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Rochford Rail Station, about 220 metres away (roughly a 3-minute walk).
5 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is North Street (n-bound), 150 metres away.
The area around the school
Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood Poplar Adolescent Unit stands in is among the 20% most deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.
Sources: NaPTAN (Department for Transport); English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); data.police.uk street-level crime
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 1 year agoThis judgement is from October 2012, 14 years ago, longer than Ofsted's usual 4-year cycle: the school may have changed since.
Overall
Quality of Education
Behaviour & Attitudes
Personal Development
Leadership & Management
Sixth Form
Ofsted Insights
From Ofsted's June 2025 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
Poplar Adolescent Unit creates a caring, homely environment where vulnerable pupils feel safe and valued while receiving hospital care. Staff build strong, trusting relationships and manage behaviour with quiet expertise, helping pupils rebuild trust and engage in learning. The school works collaboratively with external agencies to identify and meet pupils' specific needs, and communicates openly with parents and partners about progress.
Key Strengths
- Warm, trusting relationships where staff respond to pupils with calm confidence and know each pupil well
- Outstanding behaviour management with respectful, calm learning environment
- Strong communication with parents, carers and external partners
- Effective identification and support of special educational needs with collaboration across agencies
- Growing careers programme including career advisers and professional visits
Areas for Improvement
- Teachers do not always adapt their teaching or change explanations when pupils make repeated errors, causing some knowledge gaps to persist
- Reading programme is not well developed - pupils do not consistently receive guidance to suitable books and many lack a love of reading
- Ongoing checks of pupils' reading skills are less effective than initial assessments
Safeguarding
The arrangements for safeguarding are effective, with strong safeguarding culture and systems in place.
Extracurricular Activities
The One badminton game, artist in residence collaboration, school newspaper The Poplar Press, career adviser visits, professional visits from banking and healthcare sectors
Poplar Adolescent Unit is a hospital-based school where kindness shapes daily life and pupils learn in a safe, homely setting. The school has achieved Good ratings for quality of education, personal development, leadership and management, and sixth-form provision, with Outstanding behaviour and attitudes.
At a Glance
0.0%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
Keep up with Poplar Adolescent Unit
Getting There
Train Stations
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Poplar Adolescent Unit from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Poplar Adolescent Unit is in Essex; for families living there:
- Essex's school travel policy: Education Transport Policy
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 16
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 7
- Children hurt
- 1
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 16 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 7 serious and 9 slight.
1 child aged 0 to 15 was hurt: 1 on foot.
1 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 Essex is 9 (the median across 614 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
Area Demand Pressure - Rochford
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Rochford
Across Essex council
Places available
17,590
Applications
16,568
Got 1st preference
83.4%
Got preferred school
97.0%
All secondary applications across Essex council (2026/27), not just this school.
Inspection History(5)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
0
SEN Support
0
EHC Plans
-%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
No need-level breakdown available
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
0
Total Pupils
0
Boys
0
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
4
Teachers
£62,124
Mean salary
2026 data
Feeder Primary Schools
Primary schools that likely feed into this school, based on proximity
Questions parents ask about Poplar Adolescent Unit
What is Poplar Adolescent Unit's Ofsted rating?
Poplar Adolescent Unit's most recent Ofsted inspection, in June 2025, was ungraded, so it gave no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in October 2012, it was rated Good.
What is the catchment area for Poplar Adolescent Unit?
No fixed boundary. When Poplar Adolescent Unit is oversubscribed, Essex allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
How do I apply to Poplar Adolescent Unit?
Apply through Essex's coordinated admissions process, naming Poplar Adolescent Unit 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 Poplar Adolescent Unit?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 16 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 7 serious and 9 slight. 1 child aged 0 to 15 was hurt: 1 on foot. 1 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 Essex is 9 (the median across 614 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Poplar Adolescent Unit?
Poplar Adolescent Unit is at Rochford Community Hospital, Union Lane, Rochford, Essex, SS4 1RB.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)