Dorrington Academy

Dorrington Academy is a large, well-above-average-sized primary school in Perry Barr, Birmingham, serving a community with above-average deprivation and a higher-than-average proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals. It is part of Dorrington Academy Trust, runs an on-site nursery and wraparound care, and was inspected under the current framework in June 2026. Safeguarding standards are met, and inspectors found an open, positive safeguarding culture; pupils say they feel safe and well cared for. Overall, the school is performing securely. Inclusion is a standout strength: pupils' needs are identified accurately and promptly, support for disadvantaged pupils and those known to social care is thoughtful and sustained, and pupils with SEND, including those with complex needs, are well supported in an inclusive environment. Pupils behave very well, attendance has improved significantly, and the curriculum is broad and ambitious, with particular strengths in phonics, mathematics and early years. Leadership and governance are effective, visible and focused on improvement. However, several areas require further work. The teaching of writing is not yet consistently effective, and leaders need to strengthen teachers' subject knowledge and pedagogy, especially given the number of early career teachers. Improvements in attendance must be sustained because absence remains above national averages. The relationships, sex and health education curriculum is still developing, and outdoor learning in early years does not yet match the quality of indoor provision.

Strengths

• Highly inclusive provision, with accurate and prompt identification of pupils' needs.
• Strong support for pupils with SEND, including a carefully resourced provision for complex needs.
• Early help and work with disadvantaged pupils and families are notable strengths.
• Pupils behave very well and demonstrate positive attitudes to learning.
• Attendance has improved markedly, with a significant reduction in persistent absence.
• Phonics teaching has improved and is having a clear impact on pupils' reading.
• Pupils build strong fluency and reasoning in mathematics.
• A broad and ambitious curriculum is in place.
• Early years provision is caring, calm and well organised, with a strong focus on communication and language.
• Leadership and governance are effective, visible and well informed.
• High-quality pastoral support and a broad personal development offer.
• Pupils feel safe, valued and respected in a diverse, welcoming school.

Areas for Improvement

• The teaching of writing is not yet consistently effective, including foundational skills such as letter formation, handwriting and spelling.
• Teachers' subject knowledge and pedagogy need further development, especially given the high number of early career teachers, so teaching is consistently strong across all subjects and year groups.
• Recent improvements in attendance must be sustained; overall absence and persistent absence remain above national averages.
• The relationships, sex and health education curriculum is still developing, and older pupils' understanding of sex education and healthy relationships is less secure.
• Outdoor learning in early years is underdeveloped and does not yet match the ambition of indoor provision.

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 Dorrington Academy attended 93.2% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 19.4% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 13.0%).

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, 1.3% of pupils at Dorrington Academy were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). No 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 Dorrington Academy had 23.2 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 20.0% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 15.7%).

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, 18.6% of pupils at Dorrington Academy were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 0.9% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

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 primary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2024–25 Dorrington Academy received £6,585 and spent £5,733 for each of its 615 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £439,000 (£714 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.

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What is Dorrington Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Dorrington Academy is Expected standard, from an inspection in July 2026.

When was Dorrington Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Dorrington Academy was last inspected in July 2026.

How many pupils does Dorrington Academy have?

Dorrington Academy has 651 pupils on roll.

What age range does Dorrington Academy cover?

Dorrington Academy for pupils aged 3 to 11.

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

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

Where is Dorrington Academy?

Dorrington Academy is at Dorrington Road, Perry Barr, Birmingham, West Midlands, B42 1QR.