Cedar Hall School is a foundation special school in Benfleet, Essex, for children and young people aged 4 to 16. It supports moderate learning.
- Ages 4–16
- 189 pupils
School details
- Type
- Foundation special school
- Ages
- 4 to 16
- Boys and girls
- Boys and girls
- Pupils
- 189 (places for 156)
- Headteacher
- Mr Nicholas Maxwell (Headteacher)
- Free school meals
- 30.7% of pupils eligible
- Council
- Essex
- School reference (URN)
- 115457
Needs it supports
1 need: moderate learning
As listed by the Department for Education, grouped the way EHC plans describe needs.
Cognition and learning
- Moderate learning difficulty Other schools for this in Essex (9)
How to get a place
4 steps, starting with an EHC plan
- An EHC plan
Places at schools like this usually come through an Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan. If your child doesn’t have one yet, you can ask the council for an assessment yourself.
- Visit and ask questions
See whether the school feels right and whether it can meet your child’s needs. Our list of questions below can help.
- Ask for the school to be named
Tell the council that looks after the plan (often Essex council) that this is the school you want, and ask them to consult it.
- Named in the plan
If the school is named in your child’s plan, it must admit your child. Free home-to-school transport is often part of the arrangement.
Questions to ask when you visit
8 questions to tick off as you go
Ticks stay on this device, so you can use them on the day.
Ofsted
Graded by area, January 2025; school remains Good (Concerns) - S5 Next (November 2023)
Inspected in January 2025. Inspections from September 2024 to November 2025 graded each area but gave no overall grade.
- Quality of educationRequires improvement
- Behaviour and attitudesGood
- Personal developmentGood
- Leadership and managementRequires improvement
- Early yearsInsufficient evidence
- SafeguardingEffective
Since then: School remains Good (Concerns) - S5 Next (ungraded inspection, November 2023).
Contact and getting there
Hart Road, Thundersley, Benfleet, SS7 3UQ
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Directions: Walk Public transport Drive
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The school’s details, how to get a place and the questions to ask, in your inbox.
Other SEND schools nearby
- Glebe Primary School Mainstream + base · Ages 2–11 1.7 miles
- Omnia Foundation Independent · Ages 12–17 · Ofsted: Good 1.9 miles
- The Sweyne Park School Mainstream + base · Ages 11–19 1.9 miles
By need in Essex: Autism (18) · Severe learning (13) · Moderate learning (10) · Hearing (10) · Speech and language (9) · PMLD (8) · SEMH (7) · Dyslexia and SpLD (3) · Vision (3) · Multi-sensory (2)
Questions about Cedar Hall School
How do I get a place at Cedar Hall School?
There’s no catchment area or application round. Places usually come through an Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan: ask the council that looks after the plan to consult Cedar Hall School. If it is named in the plan, the school must admit your child.
What needs does Cedar Hall School support?
Moderate learning difficulty. Every child is different, so ask the school how it would meet your child’s needs.
What ages does Cedar Hall School take?
Aged 4 to 16, boys and girls.
What is Cedar Hall School’s Ofsted rating?
There’s no overall grade to show. Read the school’s latest inspection report on the Ofsted website.
Where is Cedar Hall School?
Hart Road, Thundersley, Benfleet, SS7 3UQ, in Essex.
School data: DfE Get Information About Schools, under the Open Government Licence. Postcode lookups by postcodes.io: contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right, Royal Mail data © Royal Mail copyright and database right, and National Statistics data © Crown copyright and database right. Distances are as the crow flies. Always check details and admissions with the school and your council.