The Brian Clarke Church of England Academy

This is a new Church of England academy, opened in 2022 and part of the Cranmer Education Trust, inspected for the first time under section 5 while it had pupils only in key stage 3. Inspectors found a very welcoming school with warm staff-pupil relationships, exemplary behaviour and a calm, focused learning environment. Leaders’ high expectations and a broad, ambitious curriculum, with strong literacy and reading provision, help most pupils achieve well. Personal development is a particular strength, with a rich programme covering safety, leadership and careers, and staff feel very well supported by leaders and the trust.

Strengths

• Warm, caring relationships and a welcoming culture help pupils feel happy and safe.
• Pupils’ behaviour is exemplary, with calm routines and highly engaged learning.
• Leaders have high expectations and encourage pupils to be ambitious.
• The curriculum is broad, ambitious and prioritises literacy and academic rigour.
• Teachers use strong subject knowledge and clear explanation in most subjects.
• Reading has deep-rooted routines and pupils develop confidence and fluency.
• SEND systems are secure and staff tailor learning effectively.
• Personal development is exceptional, including well-being, leadership and careers.
• Staff are well supported through professional development and workload and well-being strategies.
• Trust and governance monitor improvement carefully and safeguarding is effective.
• Attendance is strong and absence rates are low.

Areas for Improvement

• Assessment checks are not consistently secure across subjects and year groups, so gaps in pupils’ knowledge are sometimes missed and pupils move on before they are ready.

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 The Brian Clarke Church of England Academy attended 95.3% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 10.4% 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, 4.2% of pupils at The Brian Clarke Church of England Academy were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). 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 The Brian Clarke Church of England Academy had 15.1 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 10.4% 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, 11.7% of pupils at The Brian Clarke Church of England Academy were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 4.1% 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 The Brian Clarke Church of England Academy received £8,750 and spent £9,017 for each of its 720 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £321,000 (£446 per pupil).

Across all 10 schools of Cranmer Education Trust, income was £6,109 and spending £6,244 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 Oldham · Oldham local authority: places and applications

The Brian Clarke Church of England Academy is part of Cranmer Education Trust, which runs 10 schools. The nearest others:

• The Blue Coat CofE School Oldham
• The Radclyffe School Oldham
• Mayfield Primary School Oldham
• St Matthew's CofE Primary School Oldham
• St John's Church of England Primary School, Thornham Slattocks
• East Crompton St George's CofE School Oldham
• St Anne's Church of England Academy Manchester
• Rhodes Green CE Primary School Manchester
• Saddleworth School Oldham

What is The Brian Clarke Church of England Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for The Brian Clarke Church of England Academy is Good, from an inspection in July 2025.

When was The Brian Clarke Church of England Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

The Brian Clarke Church of England Academy was last inspected in July 2025.

How many pupils does The Brian Clarke Church of England Academy have?

The Brian Clarke Church of England Academy has 950 pupils on roll.

What age range does The Brian Clarke Church of England Academy cover?

The Brian Clarke Church of England Academy for pupils aged 11 to 16.

Where is The Brian Clarke Church of England Academy?

The Brian Clarke Church of England Academy is at Bloom Street, Shaw, Oldham, OL9 6BP.