UK Schools
The Castle School
The Castle School is a mixed special school in Newbury, West Berkshire Council, teaching 228 pupils aged 3 to 19. Its last Ofsted inspection in April 2024 found the school remains Outstanding. In 2024–2025, 0% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (England 62%). The 2025–2026 school year runs from 1 September 2025 to 21 July 2026.
Ofsted inspection
The latest published Ofsted judgement for The Castle School.
Term dates & holidays 2025–2026
Autumn, spring and summer terms, half-terms, INSET days and bank holidays for The Castle School.
- 1 Autumn Term Starts
- 2 Inset Day
- 24 Autumn Term Ends (First Half)
- 27–31 Autumn Half Term Holiday
- 3 Autumn Term Continues (Second Half)
- 19 Autumn Term Ends
- 22–31 Christmas Holiday
- 25 Christmas Day (Bank Holiday)
- 26 Boxing Day (Bank Holiday)
- 1–2 Christmas Holiday
- 1 New Year's Day (Bank Holiday)
- 5 Spring Term Starts
- 13 Spring Term Ends (First Half)
- 16–20 Spring Half Term Holiday
- 23 Spring Term Continues (Second Half)
- 2 Spring Term Ends
- 3–17 Easter Holiday
- 3 Good Friday (Bank Holiday)
- 6 Easter Monday (Bank Holiday)
- 20 Summer Term Starts
- 4 Early May Bank Holiday
- 22 Summer Term Ends (First Half)
- 25–29 Summer Half Term Holiday
- 25 Spring Bank Holiday
- 1 Summer Term Continues (Second Half)
- 3 Inset Day
- 21 Summer Term Ends
- 22–31 Summer Holiday
- 1–31 Summer Holiday
- 31 Summer Bank Holiday
Key dates (2025–2026)
- Autumn Term Starts 01 September 2025 Term
- Inset Day 02 September 2025 Inset Day
- Autumn Term Ends (First Half) 24 October 2025 Term
- Autumn Half Term Holiday 27 October 2025 - 31 October 2025 Holiday
- Autumn Term Continues (Second Half) 03 November 2025 Term
- Autumn Term Ends 19 December 2025 Term
- Christmas Holiday 22 December 2025 - 02 January 2026 Holiday
- Spring Term Starts 05 January 2026 Term
- Spring Term Ends (First Half) 13 February 2026 Term
- Spring Half Term Holiday 16 February 2026 - 20 February 2026 Holiday
- Spring Term Continues (Second Half) 23 February 2026 Term
- Spring Term Ends 02 April 2026 Term
- Easter Holiday 03 April 2026 - 17 April 2026 Holiday
- Summer Term Starts 20 April 2026 Term
- Summer Term Ends (First Half) 22 May 2026 Term
- Summer Half Term Holiday 25 May 2026 - 29 May 2026 Holiday
- Summer Term Continues (Second Half) 01 June 2026 Term
- Inset Day 03 July 2026 Inset Day
- Summer Term Ends 21 July 2026 Term
- Summer Holiday 22 July 2026 - 31 August 2026 Holiday
- Christmas Day (Bank Holiday) 25 December 2025 Holiday
- Boxing Day (Bank Holiday) 26 December 2025 Holiday
- New Year's Day (Bank Holiday) 01 January 2026 Holiday
- Good Friday (Bank Holiday) 03 April 2026 Holiday
- Easter Monday (Bank Holiday) 06 April 2026 Holiday
- Early May Bank Holiday 04 May 2026 Holiday
- Spring Bank Holiday 25 May 2026 Holiday
- Summer Bank Holiday 31 August 2026 Holiday
Exam results & performance
The measures that carry the most signal. Open a section to compare The Castle School with West Berkshire Council and England.
Key stage 2 (end of primary) 0% Expected standard in reading, writing & maths
How Year 6 pupils did in the national tests.
This school West Berkshire Council England
Key stage 4 (GCSE) 66.7% Disadvantaged pupils in the year group
Year 11 results across eight qualifications, including English and maths.
This school West Berkshire Council England
Attendance 42% Persistently absent pupils
Absence across the whole school year.
This school West Berkshire Council England
What pupils do after GCSEs 100% In education, apprenticeship or work
Still in education, an apprenticeship or work a year after key stage 4.
This school West Berkshire 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 The Castle School. 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 The Castle School than to any other 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.