Oldbury Academy, Oldbury
Oldbury Academy is a secondary school for pupils aged 11 to 16 in Oldbury, part of Stour Vale Academy Trust. Its most recent Ofsted inspection, in June 2026, ended in a report card: 4 expected standard and 2 needs attention. Before that it was rated Good at its last graded inspection, in December 2021. Its 2026 GCSE results were the 5th-highest of the 5 schools in Oldbury with published results, and 2,712th of 3,298 across England. It was 86% full in 2025.
- GCSE results
- Below England average
- Ofsted report card
- 2 areas need attention
- Demand
- Every first choice offered
- Attendance
- In line with England
- Progress (2024)
- Average
Year 7 applications for September 2027 close in 5 days
Deadline Saturday 31 October 2026. Apply to Sandwell (the council where you live). Offers on 1 March.
Data last updated 26 Oct 2026
Oldbury Academy in detail
What Ofsted's report card says
Ofsted's report card from its 2 June 2026 inspection grades Oldbury Academy on 6 areas: 4 expected standard and 2 needs attention. Report cards replaced single-word judgements in November 2025, on a five-point scale from exceptional to urgent improvement.
Attendance and behaviour - Expected standard. "Leaders have secured positive and significant improvements over time to pupil attendance."
Inclusion - Expected standard. "There are significant numbers of pupils, who attend the school with barriers to their learning."
Leadership and governance - Expected standard. "Leaders and adults at the school are deeply committed to its pupils and its wider community."
Personal development and wellbeing - Expected standard. "Leaders have put in place a comprehensive curriculum for pupils' personal development."
Achievement - Needs attention. "Due to inconsistencies in how the school addresses this, there remain significant gaps in some pupils' knowledge of spelling, handwriting, language and communication skills."
Curriculum and teaching - Needs attention. "The standard of teaching is too variable across the school."
Safeguarding standards were met.
Ofsted's next steps for the school: "Leaders should ensure that standards of teaching consistently meet their high expectations and minimise pupils' barriers to learning"; "Leaders should ensure that there is a consistent approach to the development of pupils' foundational knowledge, specifically their spelling, handwriting, language and communication".
Read the full report card on Ofsted's site (school website)
Source: Ofsted report card (Open Government Licence), quoted
Results
In 2026, pupils at Oldbury Academy averaged an Attainment 8 score of 39.5, the average grade across their best eight GCSEs. The average state school scored 43.2 in Sandwell and 47 across England.
30% passed English and maths at grade 5 or above, against 37% in Sandwell and 47% in England.
That is up from 37.4 in 2025.
Its most recent Progress 8 score, for 2024, was -0.09: pupils made about 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 36.5, against 43.1 for other pupils at the school - a gap of 6.6 points.
Pupils sat GCSEs in 27 subjects; after English and maths, the most popular were Combined Science, History and Geography.
Getting a place at Oldbury Academy
For September 2026 entry, 82 families put Oldbury Academy as their first choice and 465 named it as one of their preferences, for 169 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. Every family who put it first was offered a place there for 2026 entry.
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state secondary schools to Oldbury Academy are Q3 Academy Langley (0.5 miles, Good, Attainment 8 50.4); Bristnall Hall Academy (0.7 miles, Outstanding, Attainment 8 51.6); Perryfields Academy (0.9 miles, Attainment 8 41.4); and Holly Lodge High School College of Science (1.5 miles, Good, Attainment 8 38.5).
Oldbury Academy's 2026 results were higher than 1 of these 4 schools.
Q3 Academy LangleyBristnall Hall AcademyPerryfields AcademyHolly Lodge High School College of Science
The trust
Oldbury Academy is one of 13 schools run by Stour Vale Academy Trust, an academy trust.
Across the trust's secondary schools, pupils averaged an Attainment 8 score of 44.8 in 2024/25.
Where pupils go next
Of the 301 pupils who finished Year 11 in 2023/24, 86% stayed in education or training for at least two terms, including 68% to a further education college and 1% to an apprenticeship.
Who goes there
53.4% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well above the average state school (25%), and 43.7% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
The largest ethnic groups are Asian (32%), White British (25%) and Black (19%).
In 2026, 187 pupils (15.7%) received SEN support and 17 (1.4%) 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 social, emotional and mental health needs.
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Langley Green Rail Station, about 0.8 miles away in a straight line.
16 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Oldbury College of Sport (adjacent), 60 metres away.
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, Oldbury Academy issued 374 suspensions, 27.9 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and 4 permanent exclusions.
Primary schools nearby
The primary schools closest to Oldbury Academy are Causeway Green Primary School (0.4 miles), Our Lady and St Hubert's Catholic Primary School (0.4 miles), Moat Farm Infant School (0.5 miles) and Moat Farm Junior School (0.5 miles). Admission does not depend on which primary a child attends unless the school's policy names feeder schools.
Causeway Green Primary SchoolOur Lady and St Hubert's Catholic Primary SchoolMoat Farm Infant SchoolMoat Farm Junior School
Sources: DfE school performance data (averages: state mainstream schools); DfE school-level applications and offers; council admissions booklets; DfE appeals statistics; DfE multi-academy trust performance data; DfE destination measures; DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); DfE exclusions statistics
Location
Every family who put it first was offered a place for 2026 entry, so distance did not limit places that year.
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 4 months agoReport card - no single overall grade (Ofsted's framework since November 2025)
Safeguarding standards met
- Attendance and behaviourExpected standard
- InclusionExpected standard
- Leadership and governanceExpected standard
- Personal development and wellbeingExpected standard
- AchievementNeeds attention
- Curriculum and teachingNeeds attention
Safeguarding standards: met
Ofsted's report card, in its own words
What it's like to be a pupil at Oldbury Academy
This is a school which thrives on positive relationships. Pupils enjoy coming to school as they benefit from the care and support of the adults who work here. They get along well with each other, and are proud of the diversity of their school. As one pupil states, typical of many, 'This school embraces us all as being different and recognises difference.' Pupils enjoy participating in the opportunities, which leaders offer them. This includes 2 recent musicals, and many clubs including weightlifting, gaming and support for their schoolwork. Pupils make good use of these opportunities. As pupils enjoy the school, they attend well. They understand leaders' expectations for their conduct and work hard to meet them. Typically, they try their hardest in lessons. They behave well around the school site and are polite and courteous to visitors. They feel safe and learn how to keep themselves safe. If they have concerns about their wellbeing, they know who to approach. They have confidence that they will be listened to and that leaders will act promptly to support them. Pupils benefit from significant numbers of pastoral staff, who are also there to assist them if they have worries. Pupils typically enjoy their learning. However, there is some variability in how well they are taught. This impacts on how well they learn to spell, to write legibly and to communicate in good English. Despite this, most pupils typically achieve well in examinations, enabling them to progress to ambitious destinations. Pupils come to the school with many barriers to their learning. Leaders work effectively to identify these barriers and many interventions enable these pupils to learn well and to thrive. There is variation, however, in how consistently this happens in lessons for these pupils, which impacts on their learning.
What Ofsted says the school should do next
- Leaders should ensure that standards of teaching consistently meet their high expectations and minimise pupils' barriers to learning.
- Leaders should ensure that there is a consistent approach to the development of pupils' foundational knowledge, specifically their spelling, handwriting, language and communication.
From Ofsted's report card (inspection 2 June 2026). Read the full report Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Ofsted Insights
From Ofsted's June 2026 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
Oldbury Academy creates a welcoming, inclusive community where all pupils feel celebrated and supported. The school excels at identifying and removing barriers to learning for disadvantaged pupils, those with SEND, and English language learners, with excellent outcomes for these groups. Strong leadership and a comprehensive offer of clubs, activities and career guidance help pupils thrive both academically and personally.
Key Strengths
- Strong safeguarding culture with clear procedures and well-trained staff
- Excellent inclusion provision for pupils with SEND, English language learners and disadvantaged students
- Comprehensive range of enrichment clubs and activities with high pupil take-up
- Positive attendance improvements through targeted support and rewards
- Warm, respectful relationships between pupils and adults across the school
Areas for Improvement
- Too much variability in teaching quality, with inconsistent checking of pupil understanding
- Significant gaps in many pupils' spelling, handwriting and communication skills that persist across year groups
- Lack of agreed whole-school approach to teaching grammar and spelling
- Some teachers not fully using information about pupils' needs to remove learning barriers
- Poor quality or incomplete work from some pupils, particularly boys' handwriting
Safeguarding
Safeguarding standards are met - the school has an open culture of safeguarding where all legal requirements are met and pupils feel safe.
Extracurricular Activities
School newspaper (The Oldbury Owl), musicals, weightlifting club, gaming club, support for schoolwork clubs, before-school clubs, after-school clubs, lunchtime clubs, work experience, careers events
Oldbury Academy is a school that thrives on positive relationships and creates an inclusive, safe community where pupils feel valued and supported. The school has made significant improvements in attendance and wellbeing, though teaching quality remains inconsistent, particularly affecting pupils' foundational skills in spelling, handwriting and communication.
About
Oldbury Academy is a mixed secondary school and former sixth form located in Oldbury, West Midlands, England. It opened as a merger of Warley High School and Langley High School on 1 January 1999.
From Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
At a Glance
53.4%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
Secondary Performance (GCSE)
Academic year 2025/26GCSE Results
2025/26 academic year
Progress 8 has remained stable at around -0.09 (2023 to 2024). Attainment 8 has improved from 39.2 to 39.5 (2023 to 2026). GCSE English & Maths 5+ has remained stable at around 30% (2023 to 2026).
Performance by Group
| Group | Progress 8 | Attainment 8 | Eng+Maths 5+ |
|---|---|---|---|
| All pupils | - | 39.5 | 30.1% |
| Disadvantaged(145) | - | 36.5 | 24.1% |
| Not known to be disadvantaged(121) | - | 43.1 | 37.2% |
| Boys(136) | - | 38.5 | 31.6% |
| Girls(130) | - | 40.6 | 28.5% |
Show more breakdowns (2)
| Known or believed to be other than English(111) | - | 39.8 | 31.5% |
| Non mobile(239) | - | 40.6 | 31% |
2025/26 academic year - DfE performance tables data
GCSE Subjects Offered
+ 7 more subjects
2025/26 academic year - entries by number of pupils
After GCSEs - Leaver Destinations
After GCSEs (Year 11) - 301 students
2023/24 data
Exclusions & Suspensions
4
Permanent exclusions
0.30%
Exclusion rate
374
Suspensions
27.89%
Suspension rate
154 pupils received one or more suspensions out of 1,341 pupils
2024/25 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby secondary schools
Keep up with Oldbury Academy
Term dates
Oldbury Academy is an academy, so it sets its own term dates: check the school's website. As a guide, see Sandwell's term dates for its community schools.
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Oldbury Academy from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Oldbury Academy is in Sandwell; for families living there:
Apply to Sandwell for free school transport. Its policy is on the council's website.
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 29
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 8
- Children hurt
- 9
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 29 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 8 serious and 21 slight.
9 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 8 on foot and 1 in a vehicle or otherwise.
6 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included.
The typical figure for schools in Sandwell is 26.5 (the median across 134 schools, same distance and years).
Serious and slight counts use the Department for Transport's severity adjustment, which allows for changes in how police forces record injuries; they are estimates, rounded to whole numbers. Distances are in a straight line. Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19), Open Government Licence v3.0.
Commute and house prices
Your chances of a place at Oldbury Academy
Will you get a place at Oldbury Academy? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against Oldbury Academy's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for Oldbury Academy:
- The straight-line distance from your home to Oldbury Academy.
- We hold no last distance offered figures from Sandwell, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at Oldbury Academy for 2014 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in Sandwell got their first choice, and how often appeals there succeed.
- The nearest state schools to your home, with Ofsted rating, demand and last distance offered where published.
- Key dates for September 2027 entry and how to apply.
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Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
86%
Available places
1,332 pupils
1,550 places
218 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Oldbury
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Oldbury
Across Sandwell council
Places available
5,146
Applications
4,404
Got 1st preference
80.8%
Got preferred school
95.8%
All secondary applications across Sandwell council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Every first choice offered
Inspection History(13)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
187
SEN Support
17
EHC Plans
17.1%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
1,193
Total Pupils
590
Boys
603
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
84
Teachers
14.2:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£53,598
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£7,852
Per pupil
£11441k
Total funding
£723k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
8.6%
Overall absence
26.4%
Persistent absence
1,462
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
Feeder Primary Schools
Primary schools that likely feed into this school, based on proximity
Oldbury Academy
Showing 10 of 12 linked schools
Questions parents ask about Oldbury Academy
What are GCSE results like at Oldbury Academy?
In the 2026 results, pupils at Oldbury Academy achieved an Attainment 8 score of 39.5. 30% passed GCSE English and maths at grade 5 or above.
What is Oldbury Academy's Ofsted rating?
Oldbury Academy's most recent Ofsted inspection, in June 2026, produced a report card, which grades each area but gives no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in December 2021, it was rated Good.
What is the catchment area for Oldbury Academy?
No fixed boundary. When Oldbury Academy is oversubscribed, Sandwell allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at Oldbury Academy?
Oldbury Academy was not full in 2025: it ran at 86% of its 1550 places.
How big are the classes at Oldbury Academy?
Classes at Oldbury Academy average 23.6 pupils (2025/26).
How many pupils go to Oldbury Academy?
Oldbury Academy has around 1193 pupils on roll. 53% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at Oldbury Academy?
8.6% of sessions were missed at Oldbury Academy in 2024/25. 26.4% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Oldbury Academy?
Apply through Sandwell's coordinated admissions process, naming Oldbury Academy on your application. Applications for Year 7 places starting in September 2027 close on Saturday 31 October 2026, and offers are made on Monday 1 March 2027.
How many road collisions happen near Oldbury Academy?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 29 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 8 serious and 21 slight. 9 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 8 on foot and 1 in a vehicle or otherwise. 6 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included. The typical figure for schools in Sandwell is 26.5 (the median across 134 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Oldbury Academy?
Oldbury Academy is at Pound Road, Oldbury, West Midlands, B68 8NE.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)