Ormiston Bolingbroke Academy

Ormiston Bolingbroke Academy is a secondary academy in the Ormiston Academies Trust, serving 829 pupils in an area of well-above-average deprivation and with a high proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals and SEN support. Safeguarding standards are met. The inspection found an inclusive culture, effective leadership and governance, and personal development and wellbeing at the expected standard. Pupils feel safe and cared for, behaviour is generally positive and improving, and the school provides strong pastoral support and a wide range of enrichment activities. However, achievement, attendance and behaviour, curriculum and teaching, and post-16 provision all need attention. Pupils’ achievement is inconsistent, too many pupils do not build their learning securely over time, and published outcomes remain below national averages. Outcomes for pupils with SEND and some other pupils facing barriers are variable. Attendance is below national averages and persistent absence is too high. Teaching is variable, and formative assessment is not used consistently enough to check understanding and adapt lessons. Post-16 outcomes have been weak and remain below national averages. Leaders know the school well and are taking action, often with strong support from governance and the trust, but much of this work is recent or still embedding. Disadvantaged pupils achieve broadly in line with national averages because of targeted support, but overall attainment and progress remain below where they should be. The next steps focus on securing knowledge and skills at each stage, strengthening formative assessment, improving attendance, and raising the quality and consistency of post-16 teaching.

Strengths

• Leaders promote an effective inclusive culture and hold high expectations for all pupils.
• Pupils’ individual needs are identified accurately and promptly, including disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND.
• Leaders work closely with families, the local authority and external professionals to coordinate responsive support.
• Strategic use of additional funding and targeted support improves pupils’ access to learning.
• Governance and trust oversight provide appropriate challenge and support.
• Staff access a coherent, evidence-informed professional learning programme, including for early career teachers.
• Leaders are mindful of staff wellbeing and workload, and staff feel supported.
• Personal development and wellbeing are rooted in an ethos of inclusion, respect and belonging.
• House and pastoral systems help pupils feel part of the community and provide consistent support.
• Pupils have access to a wide range of enrichment activities, with disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND supported to take part.
• PSHE and careers education help pupils learn about health, safety, respectful relationships and future pathways.
• Pupils feel safe and cared for, and bullying, unkindness or discriminatory behaviour is taken seriously and dealt with promptly.
• Behaviour and attitudes to learning are generally positive and improving, with calm routines and respectful relationships.
• Suspensions have reduced because of clearer expectations and earlier support.
• The curriculum is broad and balanced and designed to build pupils’ knowledge and skills over time.
• Staff generally demonstrate secure subject knowledge and explain new concepts clearly.
• Leaders prioritise subject-specific vocabulary and foundational knowledge, particularly in reading.

Areas for Improvement

• Pupils’ achievement is inconsistent, and too many pupils do not build their learning over time.
• Overall attainment and progress remain below where they should be, and published outcomes reflect this inconsistency.
• Outcomes for pupils with SEND and some other pupils facing barriers remain variable.
• Some pupils do not receive timely or effective support to overcome gaps in learning, attendance or behaviour.
• Teaching effectiveness is variable, and formative assessment is not used consistently to check understanding.
• Misconceptions are not always identified or addressed promptly, so learning sometimes moves on before pupils are secure.
• Attendance remains below national averages, and persistent absence is too high for some pupils.
• Improvements in attendance have not yet been sustained, particularly for pupils with SEND and those with ongoing barriers.
• Post-16 outcomes in national examinations have been weak and remain below national averages.
• Post-16 teaching does not consistently support students to make strong progress, and some written work lacks depth and accuracy.
• Some approaches to inclusion are still embedding and are not applied consistently across subjects or classrooms.
• Much improvement work is recent or still embedding and has not yet led to consistent improvements.
• Pupils’ understanding of fundamental British values is not consistent for all pupils.
• The impact of enrichment on pupils’ aspirations and confidence varies.
• The impact of academic and pastoral support on sixth-form achievement is not yet secure.

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 Ormiston Bolingbroke Academy attended 86.8% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 37.6% 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, 11.8% of pupils at Ormiston Bolingbroke Academy were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). 10 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 Ormiston Bolingbroke Academy had 13.4 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 19.7% 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, 20.6% of pupils at Ormiston Bolingbroke Academy were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 2.8% 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 2024–25 Ormiston Bolingbroke Academy received £10,932 and spent £10,634 for each of its 829 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £626,000 (£755 per pupil).

Across all 40 schools of Ormiston Academies Trust, income was £8,888 and spending £8,698 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). Academy figures include a share of the trust's central services, shared out by pupil numbers, and are rounded to the nearest £1,000. Premises costs were defined differently from 2024, so compare them across that gap with care.

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Runcorn · Halton local authority: places and applications

Ormiston Bolingbroke Academy is part of Ormiston Academies Trust, which runs 41 schools. The nearest others:

• Sandymoor Ormiston Academy Runcorn
• Ormiston Chadwick Academy Widnes
• Packmoor Ormiston Academy Stoke-On-Trent
• Ormiston Horizon Academy Stoke On Trent
• Ormiston Sir Stanley Matthews Academy Stoke-On-Trent
• Ormiston Meridian Academy Stoke-On-Trent
• Ormiston NEW Academy Wolverhampton
• Brownhills Ormiston Academy Walsall
• Ormiston Shelfield Community Academy Walsall
• Ormiston SWB Academy Bilston

What is Ormiston Bolingbroke Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Ormiston Bolingbroke Academy is Needs attention, from an inspection in March 2026.

When was Ormiston Bolingbroke Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Ormiston Bolingbroke Academy was last inspected in March 2026.

How many pupils does Ormiston Bolingbroke Academy have?

Ormiston Bolingbroke Academy has 754 pupils on roll.

What age range does Ormiston Bolingbroke Academy cover?

Ormiston Bolingbroke Academy for pupils aged 11 to 19.

What are Ormiston Bolingbroke Academy's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 37.0, and 31% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Ormiston Bolingbroke Academy?

Ormiston Bolingbroke Academy is at Barnfield Avenue, Murdishaw, Runcorn, Cheshire, WA7 6EP.