Cedars Academy

Cedars Academy is a vibrant, inclusive junior academy where pupils feel safe, relationships are highly positive, and staff know pupils exceptionally well. Inspectors found good quality of education and behaviour and attitudes, with outstanding personal development and leadership and management; no overall effectiveness grade was awarded under the September 2024 framework. The school has high expectations, pupils generally work hard and behave courteously, attendance has improved steadily, and safeguarding is effective. The curriculum is ambitious, reading and phonics are taught well—particularly for pupils at an early stage of learning English—and pupils with SEND are identified and supported effectively. Pupils benefit from an exceptional range of extracurricular and personal development opportunities, and the school engages strongly with parents and the community. Leadership is a particular strength, with a strong culture of professional learning and research and exceptional strategic oversight. The main areas for improvement are ensuring retrieval practice is equally effective across all subjects so pupils retain key knowledge securely, and making sure pupils understand the purpose and value of their work so they remain focused. The report also notes that 2023 key stage 2 reading attainment was below the national average, although many pupils joined the school at an early stage of learning English. This was the school’s first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic and follows a change of headteacher; it is part of Robin Hood Multi Academy Trust.

Strengths

• A vibrant, inclusive culture where every pupil is highly valued and feels safe and supported.
• Staff know pupils exceptionally well and are particularly skilled at supporting their emotional health.
• High expectations of pupils, with positive relationships and consistently courteous behaviour.
• Pupils are proud of their school and absence has reduced steadily in recent years.
• An ambitious curriculum with clearly set out key knowledge and skills across subjects.
• Strong phonics and reading teaching, especially for pupils at an early stage of learning English.
• Effective identification and targeted support for pupils with SEND, enabling them to achieve well.
• An exceptional range of extracurricular and personal development activities, including bespoke cultural and enterprise opportunities.
• Pupils understand equality thoroughly and are very well prepared for life in modern Britain.
• Exceptional parent and community engagement, with parents speaking highly of the support offered.
• An impressive culture of professional learning and research, with exceptional strategic oversight.
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective.

Areas for Improvement

• Retrieval practice is less effective in a small number of subjects, so pupils do not retain key knowledge securely.
• Sometimes pupils lose focus because teachers do not make the purpose and value of their work clear.
• In 2023, the proportion of key stage 2 pupils reaching the expected standard in reading was below the national average, although many were at an early stage of learning English.

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 Cedars Academy attended 93.8% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 16.2% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 13.0%).

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, 0.6% of pupils at Cedars Academy were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). No 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 Cedars Academy had 20.6 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 35.4% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 15.7%).

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, 18.6% of pupils at Cedars Academy were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 0.3% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

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 primary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2024–25 Cedars Academy received £7,685 and spent £7,675 for each of its 318 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £667,000 (£2,097 per pupil).

Across all 9 schools of Robin Hood Multi Academy Trust, income was £6,900 and spending £6,755 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

Cedars Academy is part of Robin Hood Multi Academy Trust, which runs 9 schools. The nearest others:

• Ulverley School Solihull
• Robin Hood Academy Birmingham
• Yorkswood Primary School Birmingham
• Birches Green Primary School Birmingham
• Broadmeadow Infant School Birmingham
• Broadmeadow Junior School Birmingham
• Yenton Primary School Birmingham
• Story Wood School Birmingham

What is Cedars Academy's Ofsted rating?

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

When was Cedars Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Cedars Academy was last inspected in November 2024.

How many pupils does Cedars Academy have?

Cedars Academy has 301 pupils on roll.

What age range does Cedars Academy cover?

Cedars Academy for pupils aged 7 to 11.

What are Cedars Academy's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 36% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Cedars Academy?

Cedars Academy is at Cedars Avenue, Birmingham, West Midlands, B27 6JL.