Ark Boulton Academy

Ark Boulton Academy is performing well, maintaining a 'Good' overall effectiveness rating, consistent with its previous inspection. The school demonstrates high aspirations through strong relationships among staff and pupils, fostering a supportive and purposeful learning environment. Personal development is prioritized, with students actively participating in leadership and extracurricular activities that enhance their educational experience. However, the school is still addressing areas of inconsistency in teaching practices, which affect outcomes in some subjects, particularly by the end of key stage 4.

Strengths

• High aspirations shared by staff and pupils
• Strong emphasis on personal development
• Effective support for pupils with SEND
• Rich and diverse extracurricular program
• Purposeful atmosphere in lessons and unstructured times
• Well-planned and sequenced personal, social, health and economic curriculum
• Strong community and supportive relationships

Areas for Improvement

• Inconsistency in teachers checking pupils' understanding and retention of knowledge
• Some teachers do not adapt their teaching effectively for all pupils

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 Ark Boulton Academy attended 93.3% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 20.6% 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, 7.2% of pupils at Ark Boulton Academy were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). 3 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 Ark Boulton Academy had 13.9 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 12.8% 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, 15.8% of pupils at Ark Boulton Academy were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 1.3% 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 Ark Boulton Academy received £10,415 and spent £9,893 for each of its 877 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £559,000 (£637 per pupil).

Across all 48 schools of Ark Schools, income was £9,191 and spending £9,015 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 Birmingham · Birmingham local authority: places and applications

Ark Boulton Academy is part of Ark Schools, which runs 48 schools. The nearest others:

• Ark Victoria Academy Birmingham
• Ark Tindal Primary Academy Birmingham
• Ark St Alban's Academy Birmingham
• Ark Kings Academy Birmingham
• Ark Northfield Primary School Pontefract
• Ark Carleton High School Pontefract
• Ark Larks Hill Primary School Pontefract
• Ark The Rookeries Carleton Primary School Pontefract
• Ark Carleton Park Primary School Pontefract
• Ark The King's School Pontefract

What is Ark Boulton Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Ark Boulton Academy is Good, from an inspection in July 2026.

When was Ark Boulton Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Ark Boulton Academy was last inspected in July 2026.

How many pupils does Ark Boulton Academy have?

Ark Boulton Academy has 877 pupils on roll.

What age range does Ark Boulton Academy cover?

Ark Boulton Academy for pupils aged 11 to 16.

What are Ark Boulton Academy's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 46.4, and 48% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Ark Boulton Academy?

Ark Boulton Academy is at Golden Hillock Road, Sparkhill, Birmingham, West Midlands, B11 2QG.