Forest Academy, Ilford Review 2026: Good-rated Redbridge secondary with a calm culture and broad Key Stage 3 offer

A calm, orderly day and an explicitly inclusive ethos sit at the centre of this 11 to 16 secondary in Hainault, within the London Borough of Redbridge. The school has been part of Beacon Multi Academy Trust for many years, and it operates as a smaller-than-average secondary with a diverse intake.

The most recent graded inspection judged the school Good across every area, with safeguarding confirmed as effective. Parents considering Forest Academy should expect a curriculum that keeps creative and practical subjects in play throughout Key Stage 3, alongside a strong emphasis on personal development through personal, social and health education (PSHE) and careers education.

For families, the headline practical advantage is straightforward, this is a state school with no tuition fees. The key question is fit: a school that positions itself as welcoming across cultures and faiths, with high expectations and a firm stance on low-level disruption, will suit students who benefit from clear routines and consistent standards.

The tone of the school is best understood through its expectations of daily conduct. Students learn in an orderly, calm environment, and the culture is described as respectful, with staff and students maintaining positive working relationships. That matters, because it sets the conditions for learning across a mixed-ability intake and a community with a wide range of backgrounds.

Inclusion is a prominent thread. The school describes itself as welcoming to pupils of many cultures and faiths, and it puts explicit emphasis on celebrating diversity. For families, the practical implication is that difference is treated as normal rather than exceptional, which can be particularly reassuring for children who are new to the area or who have not previously attended a large secondary setting.

Leadership and safeguarding roles are clearly signposted, with the acting principal also named as the designated safeguarding lead and a wider safeguarding team structured across key stages. The operational benefit of this clarity is simple, students and parents know where to go with concerns, and staff responsibilities are not ambiguous.

Forest Academy’s GCSE outcomes sit broadly in line with the middle of the pack nationally, with some indicators slightly above England averages. Ranked 1,728th in England and 16th in Redbridge for GCSE outcomes (FindMySchool ranking based on official data), the school’s performance profile is consistent with a solid, mid-range secondary rather than a highly selective outlier.

On the published measures available here, the Attainment 8 score is 44.3. Progress 8 is +0.11, which indicates students make slightly above-average progress from their starting points. For many parents, Progress 8 is the more informative signal because it speaks to learning gains rather than raw attainment, and a positive score suggests the school is adding value for its intake.

EBacc indicators are mixed but give a useful steer on curriculum breadth. The average EBacc points score is 4.22, above the England figure of 4.08. The percentage achieving grade 5 or above in the EBacc is 23.3. The practical implication is that the school is pushing participation and achievement in the academic core, but outcomes for higher EBacc thresholds remain an area where families may want to explore subject entry patterns and support during options.

The curriculum is designed with a clear intention to keep breadth alive in Key Stage 3. All Key Stage 3 students study music, design technology, food, textiles, drama, art and computing, alongside the wider national curriculum subjects. For a Year 7 family, that matters because it delays premature narrowing and gives students time to discover strengths before GCSE choices.

Subject teaching is built around strong subject knowledge and clear modelling of work, with an emphasis on subject vocabulary across the curriculum. The benefit is that students who need explicit scaffolding can access demanding content without lessons becoming slow or vague.

Where the school is still sharpening its practice is in consistency, specifically the extent to which teaching routinely checks understanding, identifies misconceptions, and then adjusts learning activities across all subjects. For parents, the best way to probe this is through subject conversations at open events: ask how teachers identify gaps in knowledge, what happens when a student falls behind mid-unit, and how revision and retrieval practice is used outside the core subjects.

Where Students Go Next

This is an 11 to 16 school, so the primary destination decision comes at the end of Year 11. The school positions careers education and PSHE as key pillars for personal development, supported by workshops and encounters designed to broaden horizons and support progression decisions.

Families should plan early for post-16 routes. In Redbridge and nearby boroughs, sixth-form and college options can be competitive, and different providers have different entry requirements by subject. The school’s emphasis on guidance and structured careers activity is useful, but parents should still treat Year 9 to Year 11 as the window to research routes, understand grade requirements for preferred subjects, and build a realistic shortlist of providers.

Year 7 entry is coordinated through Redbridge, with applications made via the local authority’s admissions portal rather than directly to the school. For September 2026 entry, the application window runs from 01 September 2025 to 31 October 2025. Redbridge makes clear that late applications are treated after on-time applicants, and families are advised to list schools closest to home highly because demand for places is high across the borough.

Forest Academy’s own guidance points families to open events in September and October, with additional open mornings typically running in July. In practice, this pattern is helpful for families who want to see the school twice, first to judge culture and routines, then later to ask more detailed curriculum and support questions once GCSE options and interventions are clearer.

If you are comparing several local secondaries, FindMySchool’s Map Search can help you sense-check travel time and practical routines before you commit your preferences. That becomes especially relevant in boroughs where proximity is often decisive and travel logistics shape attendance and punctuality.

Pastoral support sits on a clear safeguarding structure, with named leaders and deputies aligned to key stages. Students are taught about online safety, protected characteristics and healthy relationships through PSHE, with the programme designed to reflect local risks and lived experiences.

Behaviour expectations are explicit. Low-level disruption is not tolerated, which matters because it protects lesson time and helps students who find distraction difficult. Bullying is described as uncommon, with issues addressed quickly when they arise, and students are expected to know who they can speak to if something is wrong.

SEND inclusion is an important dimension here. The school runs an additional resourced provision for students with autism spectrum disorder, alongside the expectation that students with SEND access the same ambitious curriculum as their peers with appropriate support. For families, that can be a strong signal of capability, but it is still worth asking how support works in practice: what adaptations are typical, how communication with home runs, and how transitions at Year 7 are structured for anxious learners.

A school’s enrichment offer is often where you see its culture in action, particularly around belonging and confidence. Forest Academy’s extracurricular timetable includes specific, named clubs that go beyond generic sport, for example Chess Club, LGBTQ+ Club, Music Club, and an ICT club that is described as student-led. Homework and Reading Club also appears as a structured option, which can be valuable for students who benefit from routine study time and quiet supervision beyond the school day.

Sport is present in both fixtures and participation. Alongside teams such as netball and football, the wider programme references activities including basketball and badminton, and the school highlights regular fixtures against local schools. The practical benefit is social, for some students, joining a club is the fastest route to friendships in Year 7.

There is also evidence of wider experience design that connects to local context. The school travel plan describes activities such as mountain biking trips to Hainault Forest and cycling lessons, plus road safety programmes. For parents, this points to an enrichment model that is not limited to reward trips, it is built around skills, safety, and confidence in moving through the local area.

The school day starts at 08:30, with an optional free breakfast club running 08:00 to 08:30. Teaching periods run through to 15:00. For working families, that breakfast provision can materially reduce morning pressure, especially for students who travel by public transport.

For transport, the school sits in the Hainault area with bus connections in the local network, and Hainault station is a common nearby Underground option on the Central line. TfL mapping around the school highlights several bus routes serving the area. Families should still trial the journey at the time your child would travel, as peak-time crowding and interchange reliability can affect punctuality and day-to-day wellbeing.

• Consistency across subjects. The school’s curriculum ambition is clear, but teaching consistency in checking understanding and addressing misconceptions is identified as a development point. Families with students who need frequent feedback should ask what day-to-day intervention looks like in key subjects.

• Post-16 planning is essential. As an 11 to 16 school, sixth-form choices come later. Families should consider how early guidance begins and how the school supports applications to local sixth forms and colleges.

• EBacc expectations. Language and EBacc participation have increased over time, and the academic core is clearly emphasised. This will suit many students, but those who prefer a more vocational weighting may want to understand the Key Stage 4 offer in detail at options time.

Forest Academy is a well-organised, inclusive Redbridge secondary with a calm culture, clear behaviour expectations, and a curriculum that keeps breadth alive through Key Stage 3. Outcomes sit broadly in line with the middle band of schools in England, with slightly positive progress and some above-average EBacc indicators.

Who it suits: families seeking a state secondary where routines are clear, students feel safe, and enrichment includes both academic clubs and sport, with structured support for a diverse intake including students with SEND.