Ark Boulton Academy, Birmingham

From the headteacher's welcome: "Welcome to Ark Boulton Academy, where we serve the children and families of Sparkhill, Birmingham. Our mission is to provide a quality education that empowers all individuals to flourish and make a positive contribution to their community, culture and wider society."

Clubs and activities named on the school's website include football, netball, cricket, tennis, basketball, badminton, chess, STEM, debating and Duke of Edinburgh.

In 2026, pupils at Ark Boulton Academy averaged an Attainment 8 score of 46.4, the average grade across their best eight GCSEs. The average state school scored 47.5 in Birmingham and 47 across England.

48% passed English and maths at grade 5 or above, against 49% in Birmingham and 47% in England.

That is up from 44.2 in 2025.

Its most recent Progress 8 score, for 2024, was -0.49: pupils made below average progress compared with pupils nationally who started secondary school at the same level. Progress 8 was not published for 2026.

Disadvantaged pupils averaged an Attainment 8 of 44, against 52.4 for other pupils at the school - a gap of 8.4 points.

Pupils sat GCSEs in 19 subjects; after English and maths, the most popular were Religious Studies, Combined Science and French.

For September 2026 entry, 145 families put Ark Boulton Academy as their first choice and 698 named it as one of their preferences, for 176 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. 3 families who put it first were not offered a place there.

The nearest other state secondary schools to Ark Boulton Academy are Ark Victoria Academy (0.7 miles, Good, Attainment 8 48.5); Holy Trinity Catholic School (0.7 miles, Good, Attainment 8 41.4); Yardleys School (0.8 miles, Good, Attainment 8 43.6); and Small Heath Leadership Academy (1 mile, Good, Attainment 8 46.6).

Ark Boulton Academy's 2026 results were higher than 2 of these 4 schools.

Ark Boulton Academy is one of 48 schools run by ARK Schools, an academy trust.

Across the trust's secondary schools, pupils averaged an Attainment 8 score of 47.7 in 2024/25.

Of the 173 pupils who finished Year 11 in 2023/24, 87% stayed in education or training for at least two terms, including 41% to a further education college and 2% to an apprenticeship.

66.4% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well above the average state school (25%), and 83.5% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.

The largest ethnic groups are Asian (60%), other ethnic groups (20%) and Black (8%).

In 2026, 139 pupils (15.8%) received SEN support and 11 (1.3%) had an education, health and care plan, against 16.2% and 4.6% at the average state school. The most common need among them is a moderate learning difficulty.

The nearest railway station is Small Heath Rail Station, about 750 metres away (roughly a 9-minute walk).

7 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is St Johns Road (opposite), 160 metres away.

Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood Ark Boulton Academy stands in is among the 10% most deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.

In 2024/25, Ark Boulton Academy issued 79 suspensions, 9.1 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and 3 permanent exclusions.

The primary schools closest to Ark Boulton Academy are Arden Primary School (0.1 miles), Greet Primary School (0.3 miles), Conway Primary School (0.4 miles) and English Martyrs' Catholic Primary School (0.4 miles). Admission does not depend on which primary a child attends unless the school's policy names feeder schools.