Samuel Ward Academy
Samuel Ward Academy is a mixed secondary academy in Haverhill, Suffolk County Council, teaching 1,076 pupils aged 11 to 18. Ofsted rated it Good at its last graded inspection in November 2022. In 2024–2025, GCSE Attainment 8 was 43.8 (England 46.1). The 2025–2026 school year runs from 3 September 2025 to 20 July 2026.
Ofsted inspection
The latest published Ofsted judgement for Samuel Ward Academy.
Scale: Outstanding Good Requires improvement Inadequate
Term dates & holidays 2025–2026
Autumn, spring and summer terms, half-terms, INSET days and bank holidays for Samuel Ward Academy.
- 1 PD Day
- 2 PD Day (Sixth Form Enrolment Day)
- 3 Term Begins (Year 7, Year 11 and Year 12 only)
- 4 Term Begins (All students)
- 26 PD Day
- 27–31 Autumn Half Term
- 1–7 Autumn Half Term
- 19 Autumn Term Ends
- 20–31 Christmas Holiday
- 25 Christmas Day (Bank Holiday)
- 26 Boxing Day (Bank Holiday)
- 1–4 Christmas Holiday
- 1 New Year's Day (Bank Holiday)
- 5 PD Day
- 6 Spring Term Begins
- 16–20 Spring Half Term
- 27 Spring Term Ends
- 30–31 Easter Holiday
- 1–13 Easter Holiday
- 3 Good Friday (Bank Holiday)
- 6 Easter Monday (Bank Holiday)
- 13 Summer Term Begins
- 4 Early May Bank Holiday
- 25–29 Summer Half Term
- 25 Spring Bank Holiday
- 26 PD Day
- 20 PD Day
- 20 Summer Term Ends
- 21–31 Summer Holiday
- 1–31 Summer Holiday
- 31 Summer Bank Holiday
- 1 Summer Holiday
Key dates (2025–2026)
- PD Day Sep 1, 2025 Event
- PD Day (Sixth Form Enrolment Day) Sep 2, 2025 Event
- Term Begins (Year 7, Year 11 and Year 12 only) Sep 3, 2025 Term
- Term Begins (All students) Sep 4, 2025 Term
- PD Day Sep 26, 2025 Event
- Autumn Half Term Oct 27 - Nov 7, 2025 Holiday
- Autumn Term Ends Dec 19, 2025 Term
- Christmas Holiday Dec 20, 2025 - Jan 4, 2026 Holiday
- PD Day Jan 5, 2026 Event
- Spring Term Begins Jan 6, 2026 Term
- Spring Half Term Feb 16 - Feb 20, 2026 Holiday
- Spring Term Ends Mar 27, 2026 Term
- Easter Holiday Mar 30 - Apr 13, 2026 Holiday
- Summer Term Begins Apr 13, 2026 Term
- Summer Half Term May 25 - May 29, 2026 Holiday
- PD Day Jun 26, 2026 Event
- PD Day Jul 20, 2026 Event
- Summer Term Ends Jul 20, 2026 Term
- Summer Holiday Jul 21 - Sep 1, 2026 Holiday
- New Year's Day (Bank Holiday) Jan 1, 2026 Holiday
- Good Friday (Bank Holiday) Apr 3, 2026 Holiday
- Easter Monday (Bank Holiday) Apr 6, 2026 Holiday
- Early May Bank Holiday May 4, 2026 Holiday
- Spring Bank Holiday May 25, 2026 Holiday
- Summer Bank Holiday Aug 31, 2026 Holiday
- Christmas Day (Bank Holiday) Dec 25, 2025 Holiday
- Boxing Day (Bank Holiday) Dec 26, 2025 Holiday
Exam results & performance
The measures that carry the most signal. Open a section to compare Samuel Ward Academy with Suffolk County Council and England.
Key stage 4 (GCSE) 43.8 Attainment 8 score
Year 11 results across eight qualifications, including English and maths.
This school Suffolk County Council England
16 to 18 (A level & sixth form) 21.07 A level average point score
Results for students finishing post-16 study.
This school Suffolk County Council England
Attendance 26.3% Persistently absent pupils
Absence across the whole school year.
This school Suffolk County Council England
What pupils do after GCSEs 95% In education, apprenticeship or work
Still in education, an apprenticeship or work a year after key stage 4.
This school Suffolk County Council England
What students do after 16 to 18 study 81% In education, apprenticeship or work
Destinations the year after finishing post-16 study.
This school Suffolk County Council England
About this data source & caveats
Progress 8 is not published for 2024–2025. This year group missed their key stage 2 tests in 2020, so there is no baseline to measure progress from.
Attendance comparisons are pupil-weighted averages we calculate from every school’s published absence figure — the DfE absence file has no local authority or England rows of its own.
We show the headline measures only. Threshold and curriculum-policy figures — grade 4+ in English and maths, EBacc entry and points, the per-subject key stage 2 breakdown, academic and applied splits at 16 to 18 — reflect admissions and curriculum choices more than school quality, so they are left to GOV.UK. Progress measures matter most because they compare pupils with others who started at the same level; attainment on its own largely tracks a school’s intake.
Figures are the Department for Education’s official published results for Samuel Ward Academy. Results are suppressed where too few pupils were entered. England figures are the average for state-funded schools. “Top x%” is this school’s position among all schools in England with a published figure for that measure — the DfE does not publish league table rankings.
Source: Compare school and college performance, Department for Education. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Location & catchment area
Indicative only. This is a nearest-school (Voronoi) estimate — the area closer to Samuel Ward Academy than to any other secondary school. Real admissions depend on the school’s own policy (straight-line distance, siblings, faith, feeder schools and available places) and change each year. Always confirm with the school and local authority admissions team.