Outwood Academy Ormesby

Outwood Academy Ormesby is a rapidly improving school in a challenging context, with a very high proportion of disadvantaged pupils and a well-above-average share of pupils with SEN support. Inspectors found a deeply inclusive culture: leaders, governors and the trust know the community well, safeguarding is effective, and staff work hard to remove barriers for vulnerable pupils, including those with SEND and social, emotional and mental health needs. Personal development, pastoral care and the wider enrichment offer are also strengths, and pupils are safe and generally positive about school. However, pupils do not yet achieve or attend as well as they should. Attainment is well below national averages over time, some pupils have gaps in basic literacy and numeracy, and destinations after 16 are below average. Attendance and persistent absence remain high, the behaviour policy is not applied consistently, and suspension rates, though falling, are still high. The curriculum and teaching are improving but remain in development; teaching quality is mixed, and teachers do not routinely check understanding or adapt work to close gaps and misconceptions. Pupils’ knowledge of different faiths and the depth of the personal development programme are not yet consistently secure. Overall, the school has moved out of significant improvement and is improving at pace, with clear strengths in inclusion, leadership and pastoral support. The next priorities are to make attendance and behaviour strategies consistently effective, improve teaching so that gaps are addressed routinely, and embed the personal development programme more deeply.

Strengths

• Inclusive culture that prioritises disadvantaged pupils, pupils with SEND and vulnerable families.
• Secure identification and regular review of pupils’ individual needs, with appropriate adaptations.
• Strong pastoral and SEMH support, including the Temenos and The Bridge provisions.
• Effective use of pupil premium to improve attendance, behaviour and achievement.
• Purposeful use of alternative provision in pupils’ best interests.
• Leadership and governance have clear trust oversight and deep commitment to the community.
• Staff receive appropriate training and feel well supported in their workload and wellbeing.
• Carefully planned personal development programme covering relationships, online safety and British values.
• High-quality pastoral care and targeted support for anxiety, wellbeing and emotions.
• Established careers programme and inclusive wider opportunities, including trips and enrichment.
• Attendance strategies are improving rates, with increased family support and professional expertise.
• Behaviour is improving; lessons are typically calm and orderly with positive relationships.
• Weakest readers are identified quickly and appropriately trained staff help them catch up.

Areas for Improvement

• Pupils’ attainment is significantly below national averages over time.
• A significant minority of pupils have gaps in learning, including basic literacy and numeracy.
• Some gaps in pupils’ knowledge are not addressed specifically or early enough.
• Destinations in education, employment or training are significantly below national averages.
• Attendance remains poor, with overall and persistent absence well above national averages.
• The behaviour policy is not consistently applied by staff.
• Suspension rates remain high, although they are reducing.
• The curriculum and its delivery are still in development.
• Teaching quality is mixed and teachers do not routinely check pupils’ understanding.
• Teachers do not consistently adapt teaching to address gaps and misconceptions.
• Support for pupils’ spelling and learning of new vocabulary is inconsistent.
• Pupils’ knowledge of different faiths is not secure.
• The impact of the personal development programme is not yet deep, embedded and consistent.

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 Outwood Academy Ormesby attended 84.7% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 44.5% 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, 24.9% of pupils at Outwood Academy Ormesby were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). 11 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 Outwood Academy Ormesby had 14.4 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 27.1% 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, 19.2% of pupils at Outwood Academy Ormesby were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 3.3% 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 Outwood Academy Ormesby received £11,282 and spent £10,959 for each of its 738 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £1,042,000 (£1,412 per pupil).

Across all 40 schools of Outwood Grange Academies Trust, income was £8,313 and spending £8,200 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 Middlesbrough · Middlesbrough local authority: places and applications

Outwood Academy Ormesby is part of Outwood Grange Academies Trust, which runs 40 schools. The nearest others:

• Outwood Academy Normanby Middlesbrough
• Outwood Academy Riverside Middlesbrough
• Outwood Academy Acklam Middlesbrough
• Outwood Academy Redcar Redcar
• Outwood Academy Bydales Redcar
• Outwood Academy Bishopsgarth Stockton-On-Tees
• Outwood Academy Easingwold York
• Outwood Academy Ripon Ripon
• Outwood Primary Academy Alne York
• Outwood Primary Academy Greystone Ripon

What is Outwood Academy Ormesby's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Outwood Academy Ormesby is Needs attention, from an inspection in February 2026.

When was Outwood Academy Ormesby last inspected by Ofsted?

Outwood Academy Ormesby was last inspected in February 2026.

How many pupils does Outwood Academy Ormesby have?

Outwood Academy Ormesby has 698 pupils on roll.

What age range does Outwood Academy Ormesby cover?

Outwood Academy Ormesby for pupils aged 11 to 16.

What are Outwood Academy Ormesby's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 36.1, and 32% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Outwood Academy Ormesby?

Outwood Academy Ormesby is at Tothill Avenue, Netherfields, Middlesbrough, Cleveland, TS3 0RH.