Great Wyrley Academy

Great Wyrley Academy is a rapidly improving school that has achieved a solid 'Good' rating across all evaluated areas. Pupils exhibit positive behavior and strong relationships with peers and staff, contributing to a safe learning environment. The school has a committed leadership team that is focused on creating a culture of excellence, supported by the Windsor Academy Trust. However, while significant strides have been made, concerns remain regarding attendance and the effectiveness of some educational approaches, particularly for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).

Strengths

• Strong positive relationships between pupils and staff.
• Improved behavior and commitment to learning.
• Ambitious curriculum that supports academic and social development.
• Effective support for pupils with SEND in the sixth form.
• Prominent focus on reading and student engagement with literature.

Areas for Improvement

• Inconsistent use of assessment in some lessons to identify gaps in knowledge.
• Work given to some pupils with SEND is not always well matched to their needs.
• Attendance and punctuality issues for some students.

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 Great Wyrley Academy attended 89.2% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 31.5% 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, 14.8% of pupils at Great Wyrley 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 Great Wyrley Academy had 17.2 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 18.2% 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, 18.2% of pupils at Great Wyrley Academy were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 3.3% 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 Great Wyrley Academy received £8,443 and spent £8,756 for each of its 576 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £310,000 (£538 per pupil).

Across all 15 schools of Windsor Academy Trust, income was £7,909 and spending £7,979 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 Walsall · Staffordshire local authority: places and applications

Great Wyrley Academy is part of Windsor Academy Trust, which runs 15 schools. The nearest others:

• Cheslyn Hay Academy Walsall
• Rivers Primary Academy Walsall
• Goldsmith Primary Academy Harden
• Windsor Olympus Academy Birmingham
• Kingswinford Academy Kingswinford
• Colley Lane Primary Academy Halesowen
• Windsor High School and Sixth Form Halesowen
• Tenterfields Primary Academy Halesowen
• Manor Way Primary Academy Halesowen
• Clayton Hall Academy Newcastle-Under-Lyme

What is Great Wyrley Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Great Wyrley Academy is Good, from an inspection in February 2023.

When was Great Wyrley Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Great Wyrley Academy was last inspected in February 2023.

How many pupils does Great Wyrley Academy have?

Great Wyrley Academy has 606 pupils on roll.

What age range does Great Wyrley Academy cover?

Great Wyrley Academy for pupils aged 11 to 18.

What are Great Wyrley Academy's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 41.3, and 37% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Great Wyrley Academy?

Great Wyrley Academy is at Hall Lane, Great Wyrley, Walsall, West Midlands, WS6 6LQ.