St Aldhelm's Academy

St Aldhelm's Academy is currently under significant improvement as it is not meeting expected performance standards. The school has made strides in some areas, such as improving attendance and behavioral management, but it still faces challenges particularly in pupil achievement and consistency in teaching practices. Recent leadership changes and ongoing adjustments within the curriculum are seen as both a strength and a challenge, as they have not yet resulted in the necessary uptick in student outcomes.

Strengths

• Effective action taken to improve attendance and behaviour.
• Decisive leadership changes have been positively received.
• Strong careers advice and guidance for pupils.

Areas for Improvement

• Pupil achievement, especially in English and mathematics, is significantly below expectations.
• Inconsistent teaching effectiveness due to high staff turnover.
• Lack of a coherent approach to close gaps in foundational knowledge.

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 St Aldhelm's Academy attended 87.0% 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, 22.7% of pupils at St Aldhelm's 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 St Aldhelm's Academy had 15.8 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 30.6% 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 St Aldhelm's Academy were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 5.2% 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 St Aldhelm's Academy received £9,146 and spent £9,186 for each of its 841 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £810,000 (£963 per pupil).

Across all 13 schools of Authentic Education Group Limited, income was £9,345 and spending £9,661 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 Poole · Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole local authority: places and applications

St Aldhelm's Academy is part of Authentic Education Group Limited, which runs 13 schools. The nearest others:

• Manorside Academy Poole
• Oak Academy Bournemouth
• Elm Academy Bournemouth
• LeAF Studio Bournemouth
• Longspee Academy Poole
• Kinson Academy Bournemouth
• Queen's Park Academy Bournemouth
• King's Park Academy Bournemouth
• Bayside Academy Poole
• Tregonwell Academy Bournemouth

What is St Aldhelm's Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for St Aldhelm's Academy is Urgent improvement, from an inspection in May 2026.

When was St Aldhelm's Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

St Aldhelm's Academy was last inspected in May 2026.

How many pupils does St Aldhelm's Academy have?

St Aldhelm's Academy has 808 pupils on roll.

What age range does St Aldhelm's Academy cover?

St Aldhelm's Academy for pupils aged 11 to 16.

What are St Aldhelm's Academy's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 35.6, and 28% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is St Aldhelm's Academy?

St Aldhelm's Academy is at Herbert Avenue, Poole, Dorset, BH12 4HS.