Brackensdale Spencer Academy

Brackensdale Spencer Academy is a school that has undergone rapid and sustainable improvement and now provides a strong education for its pupils. Inspectors found high expectations, a highly ambitious curriculum and exceptional leadership at all levels, including secure trust and governance oversight. Pupils feel valued and included, behaviour is typically positive, safeguarding is effective, and the school’s work to support pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities is a particular strength, including through its large enhanced resource provision for pupils with complex needs and EHC plans. The early years provision is exceptionally well designed, with indoor and outdoor environments carefully matched to children’s developmental needs. Reading is a high priority from Nursery onwards, staff receive high-quality training, and attendance systems are highly effective. Personal development is thoughtfully planned, with pupils taking on leadership roles and showing a clear understanding of diversity and equality. Published outcomes may not yet fully reflect the improvements seen in pupils’ growing subject understanding. This was the school’s first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic and its first inspection under section 5 since becoming an academy within Spencer Academies Trust. The predecessor school had been judged inadequate in 2019, and the current principal took up post in 2021. The main areas for further work are ensuring all pupils get sufficient opportunities to deepen their understanding, including in writing and problem-solving, and making sure the behaviour system is applied consistently by all staff so that a small number of pupils focus well on their learning.

Strengths

• Exceptional leadership at all levels has driven rapid and sustainable improvement
• A highly ambitious curriculum is well designed and implemented across the school
• Support for pupils with SEND is praiseworthy, with swift identification and well-structured processes
• The SEND enhanced resource provision is expertly tailored to pupils’ individual needs
• Early years provision is exceptionally well designed to meet children’s developmental needs
• Staff benefit from high-quality training that supports consistent curriculum delivery
• Reading is a high priority, with secure foundations built from Nursery onwards
• Pupils behave well, show kindness and empathy, and benefit from caring, well-trained staff
• Attendance systems and procedures are highly effective
• Personal development is extremely well thought out, including leadership roles and clubs
• Trust and governance oversight is secure and highly effective
• Staff benefit from a positive working environment

Areas for Improvement

• Some pupils do not receive sufficient opportunities to deepen their understanding, including in writing and problem-solving
• The behaviour system is not always applied consistently by all staff, so a small number of pupils do not always focus on their learning

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 Brackensdale Spencer Academy attended 93.7% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 17.2% 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, 0.8% of pupils at Brackensdale Spencer 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 Brackensdale Spencer Academy had 18.5 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 10.6% 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, 23.1% of pupils at Brackensdale Spencer Academy were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 15.5% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

The school has resourced provision with 55 pupils.

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 Brackensdale Spencer Academy received £8,382 and spent £8,684 for each of its 505 pupils. It ended the year with a deficit of £395,000 (-£781 per pupil).

Across all 27 schools of The Spencer Academies Trust, income was £7,619 and spending £7,638 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 Derby · Derby local authority: places and applications

Brackensdale Spencer Academy is part of The Spencer Academies Trust, which runs 27 schools. The nearest others:

• Derby Moor Spencer Academy Derby
• Castleward Spencer Academy Derby
• St Giles' Spencer Academy Derby
• Highfields Spencer Academy Derby
• Ashwood Spencer Academy Derby
• Wyndham Spencer Academy Derby
• John Port Spencer Academy Derby
• Clover Leys Spencer Academy Derby
• Chellaston Fields Spencer Academy Chellaston
• Hilton Spencer Academy Derby

What is Brackensdale Spencer Academy's Ofsted rating?

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

When was Brackensdale Spencer Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Brackensdale Spencer Academy was last inspected in November 2024.

How many pupils does Brackensdale Spencer Academy have?

Brackensdale Spencer Academy has 497 pupils on roll.

What age range does Brackensdale Spencer Academy cover?

Brackensdale Spencer Academy for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are Brackensdale Spencer Academy's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 61% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Brackensdale Spencer Academy?

Brackensdale Spencer Academy is at Walthamstow Drive, Mackworth Estate, Derby, Derbyshire, DE22 4BS.