Ark Victoria Academy

Ark Victoria Academy is experiencing significant improvements across all areas since the previous inspection and is well positioned for its next graded inspection. The school provides a holistic and unique educational experience, highly valuing ambition, resilience, and kindness, which is reflected in the positive behavior and participation of its pupils. With a well-structured and ambitious curriculum focused on developing literacy and communication skills, students are equipped to handle complex texts and foster deep engagement in their learning.

Strengths

• The school provides a holistic education that embodies its values.
• Pupils show high levels of respect and engage well with the challenging curriculum.
• There is a highly ambitious curriculum impacting early years to Year 11.
• Special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) pupils are well supported.
• Pupils have access to numerous leadership roles and extracurricular activities.
• Attendance is consistently high due to effective oversight and action.

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 Victoria Academy attended 94.4% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 16.8% 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, 3.9% of pupils at Ark Victoria 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 Ark Victoria Academy had 17.0 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 12.6% 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, 17.8% of pupils at Ark Victoria Academy were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 1.2% 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 Victoria Academy received £8,134 and spent £8,170 for each of its 1,503 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £461,000 (£307 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 Victoria Academy is part of Ark Schools, which runs 48 schools. The nearest others:

• Ark Boulton Academy Birmingham
• Ark St Alban's Academy Birmingham
• Ark Tindal Primary 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 Victoria Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Ark Victoria Academy is Good, from an inspection in November 2024.

When was Ark Victoria Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Ark Victoria Academy was last inspected in November 2024.

How many pupils does Ark Victoria Academy have?

Ark Victoria Academy has 1,519 pupils on roll.

What age range does Ark Victoria Academy cover?

Ark Victoria Academy for pupils aged 3 to 18.

What are Ark Victoria Academy's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 48.5, and 41% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

What are Ark Victoria Academy's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 85% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Ark Victoria Academy?

Ark Victoria Academy is at Talbot Way, Small Heath, Birmingham, West Midlands, B10 0HJ.