The Priory Ruskin Academy

The Priory Ruskin Academy is a positive, inclusive school where pupils feel safe and are known well by staff. Safeguarding standards are met, and leaders have created a calm, productive environment with clear routines. The school's provision for inclusion is a notable strength, with timely identification of pupil needs and effective use of additional funding to support disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND. Pupils with SEND attend school more regularly than national averages, and disadvantaged pupils make stronger progress than their peers nationally. However, overall attendance and behaviour are broadly in line with national averages, and some disadvantaged pupils still attend less regularly than they should.

Strengths

• Inclusion is a priority across the school.
• Safeguarding standards are met, with an open and positive culture.
• Pastoral support is a significant strength.
• Pupils with SEND have attendance above national averages.
• Disadvantaged pupils progress well from their starting points.
• Sixth-form students achieve particularly well in vocational subjects.
• Leaders have created a calm and positive environment with consistent routines.
• Bullying and discrimination are rare.

Areas for Improvement

• Disadvantaged pupils do not attend as regularly as they should.
• Assessment strategies are not consistently precise, so gaps in key knowledge and basic skills are not always identified quickly.
• Monitoring of pupils' engagement in wider opportunities beyond the curriculum is not yet sufficiently detailed.
• Overall attendance and persistent absence remain broadly in line with national averages and could be improved.

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 The Priory Ruskin Academy attended 91.4% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 26.8% 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, 7.4% of pupils at The Priory Ruskin Academy were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). 6 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 The Priory Ruskin Academy had 15.5 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 10.8% 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, 20.3% of pupils at The Priory Ruskin Academy were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 5.9% 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 The Priory Ruskin Academy received £8,871 and spent £8,786 for each of its 1,381 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £2,330,000 (£1,687 per pupil).

Across all 14 schools of The Priory Federation of Academies, income was £8,686 and spending £8,648 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 Grantham · Lincolnshire local authority: places and applications

The Priory Ruskin Academy is part of The Priory Federation of Academies, which runs 14 schools. The nearest others:

• Huntingtower Community Primary Academy Grantham
• The Priory Belvoir Academy Nottingham
• Willoughby Academy Bourne
• Waddington Redwood Primary Academy Lincoln
• Ling Moor Primary Academy Lincoln
• Bracebridge Heath St John's Primary Academy Lincoln
• The Priory Witham Academy Lincoln
• Bracebridge Infant and Nursery School Lincoln
• The Priory Academy LSST Lincoln
• The Priory City of Lincoln Academy Lincoln

What is The Priory Ruskin Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for The Priory Ruskin Academy is Expected standard, from an inspection in September 2026.

When was The Priory Ruskin Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

The Priory Ruskin Academy was last inspected in September 2026.

How many pupils does The Priory Ruskin Academy have?

The Priory Ruskin Academy has 1,347 pupils on roll.

What age range does The Priory Ruskin Academy cover?

The Priory Ruskin Academy for pupils aged 11 to 19.

What are The Priory Ruskin Academy's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 43.1, and 30% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is The Priory Ruskin Academy?

The Priory Ruskin Academy is at Rushcliffe Road, Grantham, Lincolnshire, NG31 8ED.