The Cornerstone Academy

The Cornerstone Academy is a 645-pupil secondary school within the United Learning Trust. It is generally performing in line with expectations, and safeguarding standards are met. Leaders have acted quickly to improve curriculum and teaching after historical variation in achievement across subjects, and pupils are increasingly better prepared for qualifications and next steps. Support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities and for disadvantaged pupils is a notable strength, and reading intervention helps pupils catch up. Pupils benefit from a broad, well-sequenced curriculum and typically positive relationships with staff. Personal development is rich, including clubs, leadership roles, careers work and support for young carers. Leaders and governors know the school’s priorities, use trust support and challenge well, and staff value training and wellbeing support. Most pupils respond positively to raised behaviour expectations and say they feel safe. The main concern is attendance. Overall absence and persistent absence are consistently above national averages, especially for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities and disadvantaged pupils, and recent strategies have not yet had time to show impact. A minority of pupils also continue to display behaviour that falls short of leaders’ expectations, leading to repeated sanctions and suspensions. Next steps focus on rapidly improving attendance and equipping teachers to reduce barriers to learning so all pupils achieve highly across the curriculum.

Strengths

• Broad, well-sequenced curriculum that builds on prior learning
• Swift action to improve curriculum and teaching after historical variation
• Pupils increasingly well prepared for qualifications and next stages
• Strong support for pupils with SEND, who make positive progress from starting points
• Disadvantaged pupils achieve in line with peers nationally
• Effective literacy and reading intervention to help pupils catch up
• Teaching strategies typically used well to explain concepts and check understanding
• High aspirations and early identification of individual needs
• Effective use of pupil premium and alternative provision partnerships
• Accurate self-evaluation and trust support/challenge for improvement
• Staff value professional learning, coaching and wellbeing support
• Rich personal development, including clubs, leadership and careers
• Strong support for young carers to access extra-curricular opportunities
• Positive relationships and pupils feel safe
• Raised behaviour expectations that most pupils meet

Areas for Improvement

• Attendance is consistently lower than the national average
• Too many pupils, especially those with SEND and disadvantaged pupils, are persistently absent
• Recent attendance strategies have not yet had time to show impact
• A minority of pupils do not demonstrate the expected positive learning behaviours
• Some pupils receive repeated sanctions and suspensions and need further help to re-engage
• Teachers need further support to reduce barriers to learning quickly and skilfully across all curriculum areas

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 The Cornerstone Academy attended 87.8% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 34.7% 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, 8.1% of pupils at The Cornerstone Academy were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). 6 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 The Cornerstone Academy had 14.8 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 21.9% 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, 20.8% of pupils at The Cornerstone Academy were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 4.5% 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 The Cornerstone Academy received £9,259 and spent £8,953 for each of its 688 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £615,000 (£894 per pupil).

Across all 93 schools of United Learning Trust, income was £8,687 and spending £8,616 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 Poole · Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole local authority: places and applications

The Cornerstone Academy is part of United Learning Trust, which runs 98 schools. The nearest others:

• Winton Academy Bournemouth
• Glenmoor Academy Bournemouth
• Avonwood Primary School Bournemouth
• Avonbourne Girls Academy Bournemouth
• Avonbourne Boys' Academy Bournemouth
• Gillingham School Gillingham
• Regents Park Community College Southampton
• The Victory Primary School Portsmouth
• Castle View Academy Portsmouth
• Beacon View Primary Academy Portsmouth

What is The Cornerstone Academy's Ofsted rating?

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

When was The Cornerstone Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

The Cornerstone Academy was last inspected in October 2026.

How many pupils does The Cornerstone Academy have?

The Cornerstone Academy has 645 pupils on roll.

What age range does The Cornerstone Academy cover?

The Cornerstone Academy for pupils aged 11 to 16.

What are The Cornerstone Academy's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 46.7, and 57% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is The Cornerstone Academy?

The Cornerstone Academy is at Blandford Close, Hamworthy, Poole, Dorset, BH15 4BQ.