Millbay Academy

Millbay Academy has made significant strides since its establishment and is now rated as good in all areas of education delivery. The school fosters a positive environment where pupils feel valued, supported, and are eager to learn. Staff are committed to ensuring that each pupil, regardless of their individual needs, can aspire to achieve high standards. The school has strong backing from the Reach South Academy Trust, contributing to a cohesive leadership approach and effective educational experience for students. Notable strengths include an ambitious curriculum that integrates well with the early years provision, ensuring children are well-prepared for subsequent years of education.

Strengths

• High-quality curriculum with no barriers to success
• Strong and trusting relationships between staff and pupils
• Effective support for pupils with special educational needs
• Well-implemented early years provision
• Proactive career development opportunities for students
• Pupils actively participate in a diverse range of extracurricular activities

Areas for Improvement

• Some secondary pupils are frequently absent, impacting their learning
• Lack of consistent sharing of best practices between primary and secondary phases

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 Millbay Academy attended 84.3% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 42.0% 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, 17.1% of pupils at Millbay Academy were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). 2 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 Millbay Academy had 14.4 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 3.2% 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, 22.8% of pupils at Millbay Academy were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 8.4% 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 Millbay Academy received £9,213 and spent £8,865 for each of its 550 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £63,000 (£114 per pupil).

Across all 18 schools of Reach South Academy Trust, income was £10,522 and spending £10,515 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 Plymouth · Plymouth local authority: places and applications

Millbay Academy is part of Reach South Academy Trust, which runs 19 schools. The nearest others:

• High Street Primary Academy Plymouth
• Pilgrim Primary Academy Plymouth
• Stuart Road Primary Academy Plymouth
• Stoke Damerel Primary Academy Plymouth
• UTC Plymouth Plymouth
• Marlborough Primary Academy Plymouth
• Morice Town Primary Academy Plymouth
• Drake Primary Academy Plymouth
• Courtlands School Plymouth
• Mount Tamar School Plymouth

What is Millbay Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Millbay Academy is Good, from an inspection in April 2024.

When was Millbay Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Millbay Academy was last inspected in April 2024.

How many pupils does Millbay Academy have?

Millbay Academy has 526 pupils on roll.

What age range does Millbay Academy cover?

Millbay Academy for pupils aged 11 to 16.

What are Millbay Academy's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 37.3, and 23% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Millbay Academy?

Millbay Academy is at 22 Millbay Road, Plymouth, Devon, PL1 3EG.