Applemore College

Applemore College is a secondary school that has improved since its previous inspection and is now judged good across quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, and leadership and management. Pupils are happy and safe, relationships are supportive, and recent changes to behaviour, attendance and the life skills programme are having a positive effect. The school’s values are embedded, pupils have a wide range of leadership opportunities, and disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND are encouraged to aim high through careers and extra-curricular provision. The curriculum is largely broad, balanced and ambitious, and teachers’ subject knowledge is a key strength. Staff training has improved consistency, behaviour has calmed, suspensions have fallen and attendance has improved. Literacy and reading initiatives are making a difference, and the life skills and careers programmes prepare pupils well for life in modern Britain. Leadership has an accurate understanding of strengths and weaknesses, and staff feel supported. However, the school still has important areas to address. Teaching is not consistently adapted to meet the needs of disadvantaged pupils, and too many pupils, including disadvantaged pupils, do not attend often enough. School improvement planning is not sharp enough, and leaders do not consistently use data to evaluate the impact of their actions. The school also recognises that further work is needed to embed the curriculum and improve examination outcomes, especially for disadvantaged pupils.

Strengths

• The curriculum is carefully planned and sequenced in most subjects, with broad, balanced and ambitious content.
• Teachers have strong subject knowledge, and non-specialists are well supported to develop expertise.
• Whole-staff training has created greater consistency in practice and shared best practice.
• Behaviour has improved, classrooms are calmer, and suspensions have significantly decreased.
• Attendance has improved, including for disadvantaged pupils, through productive work with families.
• The life skills programme is a strength and prepares pupils well for life in modern Britain.
• Pupils are happy and safe, with supportive relationships and trusted adults available.
• Pupils have a wide range of leadership opportunities, including prefects, ambassadors, librarians and sports leaders.
• Literacy and reading initiatives are having a positive impact, especially for disadvantaged and older pupils.
• The careers programme and extensive extra-curricular offer support disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND to aim high.
• Leaders and governors have an accurate understanding of the school’s strengths and weaknesses.
• Staff feel leaders are considerate of workload and well-being and are proud to work at the school.

Areas for Improvement

• Staff do not adapt teaching sufficiently well to meet the learning needs of disadvantaged pupils, so these pupils are not achieving well enough.
• Too many pupils, including disadvantaged pupils, do not attend school as often as they should, missing important learning.
• Leaders do not consistently use data to evaluate the effect of improvement actions, limiting their ability to identify what is working.
• School improvement planning is not as sharp as it could be, with some priorities and actions lacking specific guidance.
• The number of pupils entered for the English Baccalaureate is markedly below the government’s national ambition.
• Further work is needed to fully embed the curriculum and improve examination outcomes, especially for disadvantaged pupils.
• The school recognises the need to analyse patterns of misbehaviour and suspensions further.
• The school is working hard to reduce persistent non-attendance but acknowledges that further work is required.

Admissions: local authority offers data from the Department for Education. A school is oversubscribed when at least 5% of the families who put it first were not offered a place, and undersubscribed when everyone who put it first got in but 10% or more of its places were unfilled in the Department's school capacity survey (the latest survey is used for entry years it does not cover). Places: Department for Education, School capacity, from local authorities' annual survey as at 1 May. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024–25); the survey was not run in 2020. Places include sixth form places. Forecasts are the local authority's own for the school's planning area, an area it uses to plan places that is not the school's catchment area. The forecast starts from a head count in 2025; the dashed line is the Department's estimate of places in that area, including those the authority has firm plans for. Planned places are cumulative, and only those with firm plans are counted.

In 2024–25 pupils at Applemore College attended 88.2% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 34.1% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 23.4%).

Sessions missed

Pupils persistently absent

Source: Department for Education, Pupil absence in schools in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Persistent absence means missing 10% or more of sessions; severe absence means 50% or more. No figures were published for 2019/20.

In 2024–25, 10.1% of pupils at Applemore College were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). No pupils were permanently excluded.

Pupils suspended at least once

Source: Department for Education, Suspensions and permanent exclusions in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). A pupil can be suspended more than once, so suspensions per 100 pupils can be higher than the share of pupils suspended. Very small numbers are hidden by the DfE. Exclusion figures dropped in 2020 and 2021 because of school closures.

In 2025–26 Applemore College had 15.0 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 11.3% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 14.1%).

Pupils per teacher

Teachers who left the school within a year

Source: Department for Education, School workforce in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Pupils per teacher counts full-time-equivalent pupils and teachers. Turnover is the share of a year's teachers (full-time equivalent) who were not at the school the following year, whether they moved to another school or left state-funded teaching. Turnover and sickness figures run one year behind the ratios. Sick leave is the share of teachers who took at least one day in the year, so it swings widely at small schools, where a few teachers can make it 0% or 100%. The national figures are for all state schools of the same type.

In 2025–26, 24.9% of pupils at Applemore College were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 12.3% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 3.5%).

Pupils by main type of need

Source: Department for Education, Special educational needs in England (the 2025–26 school census). SEN support is extra help in school without an EHC plan. National figures are for all state-funded secondary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2025–26 Applemore College received £10,048 and spent £10,027 for each of its 479 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £758,000 (£1,582 per pupil).

Income per pupil

Spending per pupil

Source: Department for Education, Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool. Each year is the one the financial year ends in (2024 is 2023–24).

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Southampton · Hampshire local authority: places and applications

What is Applemore College's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Applemore College is Good, from an inspection in November 2024.

When was Applemore College last inspected by Ofsted?

Applemore College was last inspected in November 2024.

How many pupils does Applemore College have?

Applemore College has 478 pupils on roll.

What age range does Applemore College cover?

Applemore College for pupils aged 11 to 16.

What are Applemore College's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 37.4, and 28% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Applemore College?

Applemore College is at Roman Road, Dibden Purlieu, Southampton, Hampshire, SO45 4RQ.