Bloxwich Academy

Bloxwich Academy is a large all-through school in the Matrix Academy Trust, serving a catchment with well-above-average deprivation and a high proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals. Safeguarding standards are met. The early years and primary phase are clear strengths: children get off to a flying start, teaching is strong, phonics and reading are highly effective, and primary pupils—including disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND—achieve well. Personal development is also a positive feature, with a broad programme, strong social and emotional support, and a wide range of clubs, trips, leadership roles and careers activities. The secondary phase is still recovering from a period of significant instability. Achievement, attendance, curriculum and teaching, and leadership and governance require further improvement. Leaders have made an effective start—behaviour has improved, suspensions have fallen, and pupils are happier—but attendance remains too low, especially for pupils with SEND, teaching is inconsistent, and legacy gaps in English and mathematics are not closing quickly enough. GCSE outcomes and progress have been below national averages, and secondary improvement plans need more time to embed. Trustees and trust leaders have a secure understanding of priorities and are providing effective support. Staff are positive about leadership, workload and professional learning. The main next steps are to close legacy knowledge gaps in the secondary phase, embed attendance strategies, ensure teaching consistently accounts for pupils' starting points and checks understanding, and sustain recent improvements over time. The school no longer has sixth-form students on roll, and that provision is due to close in September 2026.

Strengths

• Early years provides a highly positive start through effective transition and strong parent partnerships.
• Ambitious early years curriculum builds language, vocabulary, reading and mathematics effectively.
• Primary pupils achieve very well, including disadvantaged pupils and pupils with SEND.
• Phonics teaching is highly effective and helps pupils build reading fluency rapidly.
• Inclusion is well led, with accurate assessment of needs and regular review of support.
• A specially resourced SEND provision for social, emotional and mental health needs has been established.
• Personal development prepares pupils well for life in modern Britain and healthy relationships.
• Social and emotional support is a real strength, including mood trackers and extensive secondary provision.
• Pupils benefit from a wide range of trips, clubs, leadership roles and careers activities.
• Behaviour is typically calm, orderly and respectful, and suspensions have reduced significantly.
• Primary pupils behave very well and show self-discipline, resilience and empathy.
• Trust and trustees provide effective support and have a secure understanding of priorities.
• Staff are positive about leaders' consideration of workload, wellbeing and professional learning.
• Safeguarding standards are met.

Areas for Improvement

• Secondary pupils have not attained well or made the progress they should over time.
• GCSE outcomes, Attainment 8 and Progress 8 in the secondary phase are below national averages.
• Significant gaps remain in some secondary pupils' knowledge, including foundational English and mathematics.
• Teaching in the secondary phase is inconsistent and does not always take pupils' starting points into account.
• Teachers' checks on pupils' understanding in the secondary phase are too imprecise to close gaps.
• Adaptations for pupils with SEND in the secondary phase are sometimes imprecise.
• Attendance in the secondary phase is too low and well below national levels.
• Attendance is especially low for secondary pupils with SEND.
• Persistent absence is well above national levels.
• Secondary leadership has been affected by instability, and improvement plans need more time to embed.
• Use of inclusion support within the secondary phase is inconsistent.
• Disadvantaged pupils' GCSE outcomes and destinations remain below national averages.

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 Bloxwich Academy attended 87.7% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 38.7% 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, 20.8% of pupils at Bloxwich Academy were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). 5 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 Bloxwich Academy had 12.6 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 27.6% 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, 15.4% of pupils at Bloxwich 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 Bloxwich Academy received £8,490 and spent £9,723 for each of its 1,447 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £2,230,000 (£1,542 per pupil).

Across all 7 schools of Matrix Academy Trust, income was £8,375 and spending £9,033 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 Walsall · Walsall local authority: places and applications

Bloxwich Academy is part of Matrix Academy Trust, which runs 9 schools. The nearest others:

• Pool Hayes Primary School Willenhall
• Elmwood School Walsall
• Wednesfield Academy Wolverhampton
• Barr Beacon School Walsall
• Smestow Academy Wolverhampton
• Dame Elizabeth Cadbury School Birmingham
• Turves Green Boys' School Birmingham
• Etone College Nuneaton

What is Bloxwich Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Bloxwich Academy is Needs attention, from an inspection in June 2026.

When was Bloxwich Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Bloxwich Academy was last inspected in June 2026.

How many pupils does Bloxwich Academy have?

Bloxwich Academy has 1,383 pupils on roll.

What age range does Bloxwich Academy cover?

Bloxwich Academy for pupils aged 3 to 16.

What are Bloxwich Academy's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 32.9, and 21% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

What are Bloxwich Academy's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 75% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Bloxwich Academy?

Bloxwich Academy is at Leamore Lane, Bloxwich, Walsall, West Midlands, WS2 7NR.