King Edward VI Academy

King Edward VI Academy has demonstrated a good overall effectiveness in its latest inspection. The school prioritizes high expectations for pupil behavior and offers a variety of extracurricular activities, which pupils appreciate. Leaders emphasize the importance of a well-structured curriculum that allows pupils to revisit their prior learning, fostering academic growth. While the school has made significant strides in improving reading and attendance, a few students express concerns regarding their experiences at school, particularly older pupils who are struggling to connect their learning as effectively as intended. This inspection marks the school's first routine assessment since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has been taken into consideration by the inspectors.

Strengths

• Leaders encourage pupils to live out school values such as ambition and resilience.
• Pupils exhibit calm and focused behavior in the classroom.
• A wide range of extracurricular opportunities caters to pupils' talents and interests.
• The curriculum is ambitious and well-organized, enhancing students' learning experiences.
• Teachers possess secure subject knowledge and effectively model new tasks.
• The school has made notable improvements in reading, with daily reading sessions.
• Leaders have prioritized and improved attendance significantly.
• Effective safeguarding arrangements are in place to protect pupils.

Areas for Improvement

• Some older pupils struggle to make complex connections in their learning.
• Pupils lack a detailed understanding of British values and have insufficient opportunities for discussion.

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 King Edward VI Academy attended 92.0% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 28.6% 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, 15.0% of pupils at King Edward VI Academy were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). One pupil was 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 King Edward VI Academy had 13.7 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 13.0% 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, 24.4% of pupils at King Edward VI Academy were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 3.1% 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 King Edward VI Academy received £10,305 and spent £11,190 for each of its 380 pupils. It ended the year with a deficit of £163,000 (-£430 per pupil).

Across all 36 schools of The David Ross Education Trust, income was £8,189 and spending £8,020 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 Spilsby · Lincolnshire local authority: places and applications

King Edward VI Academy is part of The David Ross Education Trust, which runs 36 schools. The nearest others:

• The Eresby School, Spilsby Spilsby
• Hogsthorpe Primary Academy Skegness
• Skegness Grammar School Skegness
• The Richmond Primary Academy Skegness
• The Barnes Wallis Academy Lincoln
• Thomas Middlecott Academy Boston
• Humberston Academy Grimsby
• Fairfield Academy Grimsby
• Havelock Academy Grimsby
• Edward Heneage Primary Academy Grimsby

What is King Edward VI Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for King Edward VI Academy is Good, from an inspection in March 2023.

When was King Edward VI Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

King Edward VI Academy was last inspected in March 2023.

How many pupils does King Edward VI Academy have?

King Edward VI Academy has 357 pupils on roll.

What age range does King Edward VI Academy cover?

King Edward VI Academy for pupils aged 11 to 16.

What are King Edward VI Academy's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 38.4, and 23% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is King Edward VI Academy?

King Edward VI Academy is at West End, Spilsby, Lincolnshire, PE23 5EW.