The Oxford Academy
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The Oxford Academy is a sponsored academy in Oxford for boys and girls aged 11 to 19. It has 1,062 pupils and room for 1,400. About 50 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far more than at most schools in England. We give it 4 out of 100. That puts it well below schools like it, ahead of 8% of the 50 schools most like it. Ofsted visited in March 2026 and gave it a report card, which is below.
Sandy Lane West, Littlemore, Oxford, OX4 6JZ01865 774311theoxfordacademy.org.ukMrs Nora Ward headteacherAll details
What Ofsted found
Ofsted visited on 10 March 2026. Instead of one overall word, it now gives a grade for each part of school life. Read the full report on Ofsted's website.
Ofsted says these new grades can't be lined up against the old one-word grades.
Earlier inspections (1)
| Date | Type | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| 18 October 2023 | Academy First Section 5 | Requires improvement |
Results
GCSE results, summer 2025
200 pupils sat their GCSEs. Here is how they did against every state secondary in England.
All GCSE measures, year by year
| Measure | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2019† | 2018† | Oxfordshire | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of Year 11 | 200 | 209 | 198 | 185 | 148 | 130 | – | – |
| Average GCSE scoreAttainment 8 | 33.6 | 33.0 | 32.6 | 39.1 | 31.4 | 40.5 | 45.4 | 46.8 |
| Progress from age 11Progress 8 | – | -0.72 | -0.87 | -0.25 | -0.60 | -0.06 | – | – |
| Strong pass in English and mathsGrade 5+ in English and maths | 21% | 25% | 27% | 31% | 17% | 22% | 47% | 46% |
| Standard pass in English and mathsGrade 4+ in English and maths | 42% | 45% | 42% | 50% | 34% | 49% | 65% | 66% |
| Core subjects scoreEBacc average point score | 2.71 | 2.76 | 2.75 | 3.18 | 2.42 | 3.39 | 4.05 | 4.15 |
| Taking the core subjectsEBacc entry | 8% | 10% | 14% | 13% | 3% | 22% | 36% | 41% |
| Average GCSE score: low-income pupilsAttainment 8, disadvantaged | 29.2 | 26.7 | 25.7 | 32.6 | 29.7 | 35.2 | – | – |
| Average GCSE score: other pupilsAttainment 8, non-disadvantaged | 38.5 | 38.9 | 37.1 | 46.2 | 32.9 | 45.2 | – | – |
| Average GCSE score: pupils who started behindAttainment 8, low prior attainers | – | 18.4 | 19.6 | 30.5 | 17.0 | 26.9 | – | – |
| Average GCSE score: pupils who started aheadAttainment 8, high prior attainers | – | 55.1 | 53.3 | 62.3 | 49.0 | 57.2 | – | – |
† These results are for The Oxford Academy, the school this one replaced in November 2020. Same building and the same children. It got a new registration number, usually because it joined an academy trust.
Subjects
Results came out for 19 GCSE subjects in 2025. Each figure is the share of pupils who got a grade 5 or better, next to the average for state secondaries in England.
Subjects that did worse than the England average: Biology (38% here, 82% across England), Food Preparation & Nutrition (12% here, 52% across England), Computer Science (20% here, 56% across England), Geography (18% here, 51% across England).
The small number is how many pupils sat each subject. Subjects with fewer than six pupils aren't published.
Every subject against England, 2025
| Subject | Entries | Grades 9 to 7 | Grades 9 to 5 | Grades 9 to 4 | England 9 to 5 | Rank in England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mathematics | 188 | 5% | 25% | 48% | 53% | 3,095 of 3,211 |
| English Language | 188 | 12% | 39% | 54% | 54% | 2,635 of 3,210 |
| English Literature | 172 | 18% | 49% | 63% | 58% | 2,074 of 3,202 |
| Combined Science | 145 | 3% | 18% | 40% | 36% | 2,722 of 3,084 |
| Geography | 73 | 8% | 18% | 34% | 51% | 3,018 of 3,116 |
| History | 68 | 12% | 25% | 35% | 52% | 2,937 of 3,126 |
| Social Studies | 59 | 15% | 39% | 44% | 54% | 816 of 1,043 |
| Food Preparation & Nutrition | 58 | 2% | 12% | 26% | 52% | 1,065 of 1,098 |
| Art and Design | 39 | 10% | 44% | 54% | 58% | 2,107 of 2,818 |
| Biology | 37 | 16% | 38% | 49% | 82% | 2,506 of 2,570 |
| Design & Technology | 37 | 3% | 22% | 27% | 50% | 1,300 of 1,478 |
| Chemistry | 28 | 25% | 57% | 71% | 81% | 2,236 of 2,537 |
| Physics | 28 | 25% | 54% | 75% | 82% | 2,317 of 2,546 |
| Computer Science | 25 | 4% | 20% | 32% | 56% | 1,761 of 1,861 |
| Drama | 15 | 13% | 33% | 33% | 60% | – |
| Spanish | 14 | 29% | 43% | 57% | 54% | – |
| French | 10 | 20% | 70% | 90% | 60% | – |
| Other Modern Languages | 8 | 0% | 0% | 0% | 49% | – |
| Religious Studies | 6 | 0% | 0% | 67% | 60% | – |
In combined science each pupil gets two grades and we count the lower one. Rankings only include state secondaries where 20 or more pupils sat the subject.
A level and sixth-form results, 2025
57 students finished sixth-form courses.
All sixth-form measures, year by year
| Measure | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students | 57 | 71 | 51 | 30 |
| Average A level points per entryA level APS per entry | 25.60 | 25.51 | 16.40 | 19.60 |
| Average A level grade | C- | C- | D- | D |
| Best three A levelsBest 3 A levels APS | 28.15 | 27.50 | 19.00 | – |
| AAB or better in subjects universities likeAAB+ in two facilitating subjects | 11% | 6% | 0% | – |
| A level progressA level value added | -0.44 | -0.15 | – | – |
| Applied general courses: points per entry | 26.26 | 22.46 | 22.47 | 23.08 |
| T levels: points per entry | 21.15 | – | 19.23 | – |
| Stayed and finishedRetained and assessed | 86% | 100% | 90% | 100% |
A level subjects
6 A level subjects had results in 2025. Each figure is the share of students who got an A* to B, next to the average for state sixth forms in England. When only a handful of students take a subject, its figures jump around from year to year.
Every A level subject against England, 2025
A levels only. BTECs, T levels and other courses are in the table above. Subjects with fewer than five students aren't published.
Does every child do well here?
A good school does well by every child, not just on average. Each row compares two groups of pupils here. The grey marks show the same two groups across England. Every gap at this school is smaller than the gap across England. When a group has fewer than about ten pupils, its figures jump around a lot from year to year.
At GCSE, 2025
Low-income means the child has had free school meals at some point in the last six years. A group's figure isn't published when it has fewer than six pupils.
Getting a place
Admissions policy not published. As a Church of England school it may put families of that faith first. Check the school's own admissions rules.
295 places were empty (21% of the total), so almost everyone who applies gets in. Pupil numbers have stayed about the same since 2021/22.
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 (145 offers for 180 places). 99 families put it down as their first choice and 99 of them got in (100%).
| Entry | Places | Put it first | Applied at all | Got a place | First choices who got in | How far the last child lived | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 Secondary | 180 | 99 | 177 | 145 | 100% | – all offered | LA |
| 2025 Secondary | 210 | 120 | 223 | 190 | 100% | – all offered | LA |
| 2024 Secondary | 210 | 117 | 239 | 185 | 100% | – all offered | LA |
| 2023 Secondary | 210 | 144 | 258 | 210 | 100% | 0.8 miles | LA |
| 2022 Secondary | 210 | 180 | 254 | 210 | 100% | 480 m | LA |
| 2021 Secondary | 210 | 161 | 235 | 210 | 100% | 1.4 miles | LA |
| 2020 Secondary | 210 | 196 | 349 | 210 | 92% | 0.9 miles | LA |
| 2019 Secondary | 210 | 227 | 367 | 284 | 81% | 1.2 miles (catchment area) | LA |
The distances are the council's own, usually measured in a straight line from home to the school gate. If the distance is getting shorter each year, the school is getting harder to get into. See which councils we have this data for.
What parents say
From Ofsted's Parent View survey: 64 parents answered in the year to 6 April 2026. Parents choose whether to fill it in, and many only do so when an inspection is coming, so don't read too much into small differences. The England figures are the average for secondary schools with enough answers to publish.
Who goes here
Who a school teaches matters. That is why our score compares it with schools that take in a similar mix of children, not with every school in the country.
The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: emotional and mental health (144), Moderate learning difficulty (71), language and communications needs (63), Specific learning difficulty (38), Autistic spectrum disorder (33), Other difficulty or disability (14).
How the mix of pupils has changed
| Census | 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils on roll | 1,062 | 1,113 | 1,159 | 1,154 | 1,088 | 1,036 |
| Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals | 44% | 41% | 43% | 38% | 38% | 34% |
| Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language | 30% | 28% | 27% | 26% | 25% | 24% |
| Pupils getting extra supportSEN support | – | 30% | 25% | 25% | 24% | 24% |
| Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans | – | 4% | 4% | 3% | 3% | 2% |
Attendance and behaviour
In 2024/25 pupils were in school 86.3% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 91.4%.
Attendance year by year
| Measure | 2024/25 | 2023/24 | 2022/23 | 2021/22 | 2020/21 | 2018/19† | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sessions missedOverall absence | 13.7% | 16.8% | 16.5% | 12.9% | 7.7% | 10.0% | 8.6% |
| Missed with permissionAuthorised absence | 7.6% | 8.1% | 6.4% | 6.9% | 4.1% | 5.8% | – |
| Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence | 6.1% | 8.7% | 10.1% | 5.9% | 3.6% | 4.2% | – |
| Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence | 36.6% | 45.2% | 45.6% | 41.3% | 21.4% | 29.8% | 23.9% |
| SuspensionsSuspension rate | 27.5 | 91.0 | 55.5 | 44.1 | 16.9 | – | – |
| Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | – | – |
† These attendance figures are for The Oxford Academy, the school this one replaced in November 2020. Same building and the same children. It got a new registration number, usually because it joined an academy trust.
What pupils do next
After GCSEs
Where the 198 pupils who left in 2022/23 were a year later.
Among pupils from low-income families it was 78%, compared with 92% for everyone else.
Earlier years
| Destination | 2022/23 leavers | 2021/22 leavers |
|---|---|---|
| Still in education, work or training | 86% | 88% |
| Education | 75% | 76% |
| Apprenticeship | 6% | 3% |
| Work | 6% | 9% |
| Not in education, work or training | 8% | 9% |
After sixth form
Where the 49 pupils who left in 2022/23 were a year later.
Among pupils from low-income families it was 81%, compared with 82% for everyone else.
Where the ones heading for university went
Among students from low-income families, 60% went on to degree-level study or training and 0% to a top-third university.
Earlier years
| Destination | 2022/23 leavers | 2021/22 leavers |
|---|---|---|
| Still in education, work or training | 82% | 83% |
| Education | 41% | 40% |
| Apprenticeship | 8% | 13% |
| Work | 33% | 30% |
| Not in education, work or training | 16% | 13% |
Staff and money
From the government's count of school staff in November 2025 and the school's published accounts.
Money
From the academy accounts return, year to August 2025. The per-pupil figures are compared with other secondary schools in England that report their accounts the same way.
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
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 secondary schools, nearest first. Hover over a row to see it on the map.
| School | Type | Distance | Pupils | Ofsted | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Greyfriars Catholic School | Academy | 1.1 miles | 669 | Good 2023 | 23 | Compare |
| Oxford Spires Academy | Academy | 1.4 miles | 1,351 | Good 2023 | 59 | Compare |
| Cheney School | Academy | 2.1 miles | 1,706 | Good 2023 | 46 | Compare |
| The Swan School | Free school | 3.6 miles | 1,057 | Good 2023 | 75 | Compare |
| Matthew Arnold School | Academy | 4.0 miles | 1,255 | No overall grade 2025 | 75 | Compare |
| Fitzharrys School | Academy | 4.0 miles | 906 | Good 2023 | 54 | Compare |
| Wheatley Park School | Academy | 4.1 miles | 1,146 | Good 2022 | 75 | Compare |
| The Cherwell School | Academy | 4.1 miles | 2,023 | Outstanding 2022 | 91 | Compare |
Compared with schools like it
Our score compares The Oxford Academy with the 50 schools in England whose pupils are most like its own. We match on family income, how many children are learning English, special needs, the neighbourhood, the size of the school and how it admits pupils. Those 50 schools are dotted all over the country, so we don't list them. What matters is where this school sits among them.
How the score was worked out
The score is out of 100. A 4 means that once everything below is added up, this school comes out ahead of 4% of secondary schools in England. Results bounce around from year to year, especially in small schools, so we also show a likely range: 3 to 5. Every part is judged against schools with a similar mix of pupils. For small schools we pull each part towards the group average, so one unusual year can't swing the score too far.
| What we looked at | How much it counts | Against schools like it | Effect on the score | Based on |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Results over three years | 20% | well below | -0.26 | 2025, 2024 and 2023 results; 200 pupils |
| Ofsted inspection | 20% | well below | -0.26 | Ofsted report card, 0.5 years old |
| Progress pupils make | 20% | well below | -0.25 | DfE progress measure; 200 pupils |
| Direction of travel over five years | 10% | well below | -0.13 | results and attendance falling year on year |
| Attendance and behaviour | 10% | well below | -0.14 | 2024/25; 1,016 pupils |
| Results, allowing for the mix of pupils | 10% | well below | -0.11 | Attainment relative to schools with a similar intake; 200 pupils |
| What pupils do next | 5% | well below | -0.05 | 198 pupils |
| What parents say | 5% | well below | -0.09 | Ofsted's Parent View survey, allowing for how many parents replied; 64 responses |
Worked out on 13 September 2026 (method v1). Read how the score works, including every weight and the checks we run. Think a number is wrong? Tell us.
Questions parents ask
Is The Oxford Academy a good school?
The figures are weak. The Oxford Academy scores 4 out of 100. That is well below schools that take in a similar mix of pupils, and ahead of 8% of the 50 schools most like it in England. The score could fairly be anywhere from 3 to 5, so a few points either way between schools doesn't mean much. Its results have been slipping over the last five years.
What is The Oxford Academy's Ofsted rating?
Ofsted no longer gives schools one overall grade. When it visited on 10 March 2026 it rated teaching as needs attention, achievement as needs attention, behaviour and attendance as needs attention, leadership as as expected.
How good are The Oxford Academy's GCSE results?
In summer 2025, 21% of pupils got a grade 5 or better in both English and maths. Across England it was 46%. Its Attainment 8 score, which is the average grade across a pupil's best eight subjects times ten, was 33.6, against 46.8 for England. In each subject, pupils here finished most of a grade behind children across England who started secondary school at the same level.
How many pupils does The Oxford Academy have?
1,062 pupils aged 11 to 19 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 1,400 places, so it is 76% full.
Is The Oxford Academy oversubscribed?
Probably not. 295 places were empty in 2024/25 (21% of the total), so most families who apply get a place.
What is attendance like at The Oxford Academy?
Pupils were in school 86.3% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 91.4%. 37% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.
What do parents say about The Oxford Academy?
47% of the 64 parents who answered Ofsted's Parent View survey would recommend it to other parents, and 45% say their child is happy there. Across England, 77% of parents would recommend their child's school.
How big are the classes at The Oxford Academy?
The average class had 21.1 pupils in January 2026. Across England it was 22.8. 4% of classes had more than 30 pupils.
Does The Oxford Academy have a sixth form?
Yes. The average A level grade in 2025 was C-. 6 A level subjects had results in 2025; the full list is in the results section.
These answers come straight from the figures on this page and update when new data comes out.
Contact and details
- Address
- Sandy Lane West, Littlemore, Oxford, OX4 6JZ
- Telephone
- 01865 774311
- Website
- www.theoxfordacademy.org.uk
- Headteacher
- Mrs Nora Ward
- Type of school
- Sponsored academy (Academy sponsor led, academies)
- Phase
- Secondary school, ages 11-19, with sixth form
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England, Diocese of Oxford
- Multi-academy trust
- River Learning Trust (31 schools)
- Local authority
- Oxfordshire
- Ward
- Littlemore
- Constituency
- Oxford East
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Opened
- 1 November 2020 (fresh start)
- URN
- 148354 · LAESTAB 9314019 · UKPRN 10087356
- Formerly
- The Oxford Academy
Recent changes
- New KS4 results for 2024/25
Where these figures come from
- School details: Department for Education, Get Information About Schools, refreshed daily (this page rebuilt 13 September 2026).
- Inspections: Ofsted management information, monthly; latest publication in our data 27 August 2026.
- GCSE results: DfE key stage 4 performance tables, 2024/25 final.
- Attendance: DfE pupil absence in schools in England, 2024/25 full year.
- Pupil characteristics: DfE school census, January 2026.
- Staff: DfE school workforce census, November 2025.
- Class sizes: DfE schools, pupils and their characteristics, January 2026.
- Pupil premium: DfE allocations and conditions of grant, 2026 to 2027.
- Money: DfE financial benchmarking and insights tool, academy accounts return 2024/25.
- A level subjects: DfE A level and other 16 to 18 results, subject entries and grades, 2024/25.
- Admissions outcomes: Oxfordshire council's published allocation statistics (source), entry years 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025, 2026.
- Neighbourhood: police.uk street-level crime, HM Land Registry price paid data, NaPTAN bus stops, English Indices of Deprivation 2025.
- All under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Full list and update calendar.