School Chooser

Sunshine Academy

Primary · ages 3-7MixedAcademy150 pupilsNursery Free breakfast clubWalsall
School Chooser ScoreNot scoredThere isn't enough published data yet. To get a score, a school needs results or an inspection plus at least one other figure.
OfstedGoodLast Ofsted inspection, December 2021
Attendance93.6%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families65%Far more than most schools
Places30 spare150 pupils, 180 places
Pupils per teacher17.5School workforce census
Pupils on roll150Census January 2026

Sunshine Academy is a converter academy in Walsall for boys and girls aged 3 to 7. It has 150 pupils and room for 180. About 65 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far more than at most schools in England. Ofsted's last grade was good, back in 2021.

Blakenall Lane, Leamore, Walsall, WS3 1HF01922 710174sunshine.lhmat.comMiss S Corkindale headteacherAll details

What Ofsted found

Ofsted's last full inspection was on 7 December 2021, back when it gave schools one overall grade. Read the report on Ofsted's website.

Good overall.

TeachingOfsted calls this “quality of education”
Good
BehaviourOfsted calls this “behaviour and attitudes”
Good
WellbeingOfsted calls this “personal development”
Good
LeadershipOfsted calls this “leadership and management”
Good
Early years
Good
Safeguarding
Effective
Yes

This inspection is more than 4 years old. When Ofsted next visits, the school will get a report card instead of one grade.

Results

No published results yet for this school.

Getting a place

Admissions policy not published.

Will my child get a place?

In 2026 every child who applied got a place, so how far away you live didn't matter. That could change if the school gets more popular.

We measure in a straight line from the middle of your postcode to the school. The council measures its own way, and the cut-off changes every year. Use this as a rough guide, and read the council's admissions booklet before you apply.

How places were given out for September 2026. Every child who applied got a place (40 offers for 60 places). 36 families put it down as their first choice and 36 of them got in (100%).

EntryPlacesPut it firstApplied at allGot a placeFirst choices who got inHow far the last child livedSource
2026 Primary60365140100%all offeredLA

Who goes here

Who the school teaches, from the latest school census.

Pupils on roll150Census January 2026
Places18083% full
Pupils from low-income families57%65% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English23%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support18%27 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan5%8 pupils with a plan
Average class size20.67 classes, January 2026; England 25.4
Classes with more than 30 pupils0%Infant classes are capped at 30 by law; England 10%
Pupils with extra funding (pupil premium)68%£131,750 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls76 / 74
White British pupils61%

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: language and communications needs (16), Moderate learning difficulty (11), emotional and mental health (6), Hearing impairment (1), Multi-sensory impairment (1).

Attendance and behaviour

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 93.6% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance93.6%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school16.4%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Missed without permission1.6%of school time, 2024/25
Attendance year by year
Measure2024/25†2023/24†2022/23†2021/22†2020/21†2018/19†England
Sessions missedOverall absence6.4%4.5%5.6%7.4%5.2%5.0%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence4.9%2.8%4.2%5.8%4.1%3.2%
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence1.6%1.7%1.4%1.6%1.1%1.9%
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence16.4%11.5%16.4%25.7%18.4%16.7%12.8%

† These attendance figures are for Sunshine Infant and Nursery School, the school this one replaced in September 2025. Same building and the same children. It got a new registration number, usually because it joined an academy trust.

Staff and money

From the government's count of school staff in November 2025 and the school's published accounts.

Teachers8.0full-time equivalent, 8 people
Pupils per teacher17.5Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers100%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants4.4full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£56,464
Vacancies0

Money

From the council school accounts, year to March 2025. The per-pupil figures are compared with other primary schools in England that report their accounts the same way.

Spend per pupil£10,420England £7,738. Total £1.6m
Income per pupil£10,243England £7,697. Total £1.5m
Spent on teachers per pupil£3,979England £3,480
Money in reserve11%A healthy amount put by: £165k, £1,093 per pupil. England 6%
Money in against money out-£27kit spent more than it took in this year
Where the money goes£10,420spent per pupil

Reserves are the money left over at the end of the year, kept back for emergencies and big projects. Being in the red year after year is a warning sign. Very large reserves can mean money sitting in the bank instead of being spent on today's pupils. Academy figures are rounded to the nearest £1,000 and include a share of any money the trust holds centrally.

The area around the school

Crimes within 500 m57912 months to June 2026, mostly violence and sexual offences
Local crime rate132 per 1,000 people45% higher than the England average
Typical house price£221,288Walsall

Crime figures come from police.uk. The police record each crime at the nearest of a fixed set of map points rather than the exact spot, so “within 500 m” is only rough. House prices are from HM Land Registry sales nearby over the last two years.

Nearby schools

The closest primary schools, nearest first. Hover over a row to see it on the map.

Well aboveAboveIn lineBelowWell belowNot scored
SchoolTypeDistancePupilsOfstedScore
Leamore Primary SchoolCouncil280 m236Report card 202545Compare
Field Road AcademyAcademy300 m214Good 2022Compare
Christ Church Church of England Primary SchoolAcademy460 m459Good 202346Compare
Goldsmith Primary AcademyAcademy670 m482Report card 202592Compare
Rivers Primary AcademyAcademy1000 m463Report card 202637Compare
All Saints National AcademyAcademy0.7 miles208Good 20244Compare
Elmore Green Primary SchoolCouncil0.7 miles314Good 202419Compare
St Peter's Catholic Primary School, BloxwichRoman Catholic0.7 miles214Good 202444Compare

Questions parents ask

Is Sunshine Academy a good school?

Sunshine Academy doesn't have a score yet. Ofsted rated it good at its last inspection in December 2021.

What is Sunshine Academy's Ofsted rating?

Ofsted rated Sunshine Academy good at its last full inspection on 7 December 2021. That was more than four years ago. When Ofsted next visits, the school will get a report card instead of a single grade.

How many pupils does Sunshine Academy have?

150 pupils aged 3 to 7 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 180 places, so it is 83% full.

What is attendance like at Sunshine Academy?

Pupils were in school 93.6% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 16% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

How big are the classes at Sunshine Academy?

The average class had 20.6 pupils in January 2026. Across England it was 25.4. No class had more than 30 pupils.

Does Sunshine Academy have a breakfast club?

Yes. It is on the government's free breakfast club programme, so every pupil can have a free half-hour breakfast club before school.

These answers come straight from the figures on this page and update when new data comes out.

Contact and details

Address
Blakenall Lane, Leamore, Walsall, WS3 1HF
Telephone
01922 710174
Website
www.sunshine.lhmat.com
Headteacher
Miss S Corkindale
Free breakfast club
Yes: on the government's programme, so every pupil can have a free half-hour breakfast club before school (listed since September 2026).
Type of school
Converter academy (Academy converter, academies)
Phase
Primary school, ages 3-7, with nursery
Gender
Mixed
Multi-academy trust
Lighthouse Multi Academy Trust (9 schools)
Local authority
Walsall
Ward
Blakenall
Constituency
Walsall and Bloxwich
Setting
Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
Opened
1 September 2025 (academy converter)
URN
152000 · LAESTAB 3352003 · UKPRN 10098539
Formerly
Sunshine Infant and Nursery School

Where these figures come from