Cromer Academy

Cromer Academy continues to deliver a good quality of education, maintaining its positive legacy within the community. The school fosters a culture that helps pupils take pride in their local heritage, promotes respectful and engaging interactions, and emphasizes high aspirations. Teachers implement a well-structured curriculum that builds knowledge systematically, enabling students to connect their learning with real-world contexts. Overall, pupils are happy and motivated to learn, creating a positive environment that benefits both them and the community. However, the school faces challenges related to attendance, with many pupils missing significant amounts of school, which disrupts their learning opportunities. Despite leaders' efforts to improve engagement with parents and enhance attendance rates, the current strategies have not yet yielded desired improvements. Addressing this issue will be crucial for the school to ensure all pupils can fully benefit from the educational offerings available to them.

Strengths

• Pupils demonstrate strong pride in their community and school.
• High expectations from leaders for all pupils, including those with SEND.
• Well-structured and ambitious curriculum that prepares pupils for future success.
• Positive relationships between staff and pupils, fostering a respectful atmosphere.
• Effective measures to address bullying, leading to low incidents.
• Engaging extra-curricular opportunities that are well-received by pupils.
• Strong careers programme guiding pupils in their educational choices.

Areas for Improvement

• Too many pupils have high absence rates, affecting their learning.

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 Cromer Academy attended 92.9% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 18.8% 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, 5.8% of pupils at Cromer Academy were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). 2 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 Cromer Academy had 16.9 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 7.8% 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, 10.4% of pupils at Cromer Academy were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 5.4% 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 Cromer Academy received £8,789 and spent £8,773 for each of its 650 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £264,000 (£405 per pupil).

Across all 18 schools of Inspiration Trust, income was £8,318 and spending £8,382 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 Cromer · Norfolk local authority: places and applications

Cromer Academy is part of Inspiration Trust, which runs 18 schools. The nearest others:

• Norwich Primary Academy Norwich
• Jane Austen College Norwich
• Sir Isaac Newton Sixth Form Free School Norwich
• Charles Darwin Primary School Norwich
• Hewett Academy Norwich
• Cringleford Prep Cringleford
• Hethersett Academy Norwich
• Great Yarmouth Charter Academy Great Yarmouth
• Cobholm Primary Academy Great Yarmouth
• Great Yarmouth Primary Academy and Nursery Great Yarmouth

What is Cromer Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Cromer Academy is Good, from an inspection in July 2023.

When was Cromer Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Cromer Academy was last inspected in July 2023.

How many pupils does Cromer Academy have?

Cromer Academy has 665 pupils on roll.

What age range does Cromer Academy cover?

Cromer Academy for pupils aged 11 to 16.

What are Cromer Academy's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 47.7, and 50% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Cromer Academy?

Cromer Academy is at Norwich Road, Cromer, Norfolk, NR27 0EX.