OFSTED
13 December 2023
Latest graded inspection
Latest published outcome
Good
OEIF
Quality of education
Good
Behaviour & attitudes
Good
Personal development
Good
Leadership & management
Good
INSPECTION HISTORY
Previous Ofsted activity
20 October 2022
Ungraded inspection
School remains Good (Concerns) - S5 Next
Published
8 December 2022
SCHOOL DETAILS
About this school
School type
Academy converter
Phase
Secondary
Gender
Boys
Religious character
—
Local authority
Kent
Trust
THE NORTON KNATCHBULL SCHOOL
Census date
15 January 2026
PUPIL PROFILE
2025/26
School community
Latest published pupil characteristics for 2025/26.
Total pupils
1,348
1,348 full-time ·
0 part-time
Female pupils
51
3.8% of pupils
Male pupils
1,297
96.2% of pupils
Free school meals
Pupils eligible for free school meals.
17.1 pts
below England
School
7.7%
Ashford
24.1%
South East
19.0%
England
24.8%
English as an additional language
Pupils whose first language is not English.
2.8 pts
below England
School
17.5%
Ashford
14.6%
South East
15.6%
England
20.3%
Young carers
Pupils recorded as young carers.
0.9 pts
below England
School
0.1%
Ashford
3.2%
South East
1.7%
England
1.0%
Ethnicity
Largest recorded pupil groups.
White British
59.8%
806
Any other Asian background
9.1%
123
Any other White background
7.1%
96
African
6.7%
90
Indian
5.3%
72
Any other Mixed background
3.1%
42
Council, regional and national comparisons
are pupil-weighted using published school
census counts.
ADDITIONAL NEEDS
2025/26
Special educational needs
Pupils receiving SEN support or with an education, health and care plan.
Pupils with SEN
1.7%
23 of
1,348 pupils
19.1 pts
below England
England:
20.8%
England
14.8%
13.7 pts
below
England
6.0%
5.4 pts
below
PRIMARY NEEDS
Pupils
Most common identified needs
SEN comparisons are pupil-weighted using published 2025/26 Department for Education school-level data. Primary needs combine pupils receiving SEN support and pupils with EHC plans.
ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE
2024/25
Key stage 4 outcomes
Published Department for Education results for 2024/25.
ATTAINMENT 8
Average attainment score
67.3
28.1 pts
above England
Latest published: 0.32 · 2023/24
Comparisons are averages of published school-level results for open schools. They are not pupil-weighted official local authority attainment rates.
ATTENDANCE & ABSENCE
2024/25
Attendance profile
Published Department for Education absence data for 2024/25. Lower absence rates are generally better.
ABSENCE RATE
4.04%
Overall absence
Percentage of possible sessions missed.
2.18 pts
lower than
England
School
4.04%
Ashford
6.65%
South East
6.30%
England
6.22%
ABSENCE RATE
6.66%
Persistent absence
Pupils missing 10% or more of sessions.
9.16 pts
lower than
England
School
6.66%
Ashford
17.11%
South East
15.75%
England
15.82%
ABSENCE RATE
0.68%
Severe absence
Pupils missing 50% or more of sessions.
1.13 pts
lower than
England
School
0.68%
Ashford
2.35%
South East
1.93%
England
1.80%
Council, regional and national
comparisons are averages of published
school-level percentages rather than
pupil-weighted official absence rates.
HOW DOES IT COMPARE?
School context
Comparison with open secondary schools.
CAPACITY
Capacity utilisation
102.4%
10.1 pts
above England
The Norton Knatchbull School
102.4%
Ashford
96.8%
South East
95.0%
England
92.3%
Benchmarks use open schools in the
same phase. Capacity utilisation is
calculated from published pupil and
capacity figures.