Priory Park Community School, Castle & Priory

Senior
Other independent school
Mixed
Ages 1116

Data last updated 11 Sept 2026

Location

Key Information

DfE GIAS
Head:Mr Stuart Playford
Pupils:33 / 35 capacity
LA:Dudley
Phone:01384813640
Address:Meadow Road, DUDLEY, Castle & Priory, DY1 3JY
Status:open
Opened:22 September 2021

Ofsted Rating

Ofsted · 1 year ago
-

Overall

Inspected 3 June 2025View full report
URN:148642
UKPRN:10092224
Diocese:Not applicable
Constituency:Dudley
Urban/Rural:Urban: Nearer to a major town or city

Ofsted Insights

What This School Does Well

This is a caring school where pupils who have struggled in education previously now thrive and take pride in their achievements. Staff genuinely know and support each pupil, creating an environment where young people feel safe and valued. Beyond academics, the school offers exceptional enrichment activities like car mechanics workshops and residential experiences that help pupils develop confidence and life skills.

Key Strengths

  • Creates a strong sense of belonging where pupils feel happy, valued and safe with caring staff who know them well
  • Teaches knowledge in a logical order with pupils regularly revisiting topics, helping them retain essential information
  • Provides outstanding personal development through enrichment activities including car mechanics workshops, Duke of Edinburgh, trips and residential experiences
  • Supports pupils with SEND effectively through regular reviews and thoughtful adaptations to help them access the curriculum
  • Prepares pupils well for their next steps with a strong careers curriculum and transition mentors for Year 11 pupils

Areas for Improvement

  • Staff checks on what pupils know and can do are sometimes too broad, meaning activities are not precisely matched to individual pupils' learning needs
  • Teachers need to tighten their assessment practices to identify exactly what pupils need to learn next, particularly in areas like handwriting and letter formation

Safeguarding

Safeguarding arrangements are effective with a positive culture around pupil protection.

Extracurricular Activities

Car mechanics workshop, bicycle maintenance, Duke of Edinburgh programme, trips, visits, residential experiences, work experience with employers

Priory Park Community School is a nurturing independent school rated Good overall that specializes in supporting pupils with social, emotional and mental health needs linked to SEND. Pupils thrive in this caring environment and successfully re-engage with their education, gaining GCSEs and other qualifications.

At a Glance

No

Boarding

No

Nursery

No

Sixth Form

No

Special Measures

What Parents Think

14 responses
Would recommend93%
Child is happy93%
Well taught86%
Good progress86%
Feels safe79%
Well behaved86%
Bullying dealt with29%
Kept informed93%
Handles concerns79%
Wider development93%

Source: Ofsted Parent View - % who strongly agree or agree

Class Sizes

0.0

Avg class size

0

Total classes

2024/25 academic year

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Capacity & Demand

School Occupancy

94%

Near capacity

33 pupils

35 capacity

2 spare places available

Area Demand Pressure - Castle & Priory

Low pressure
New homes approved:21
Projected new pupils:4

Based on MHCLG housing supply data for Castle & Priory

Admissions Demand - Dudley

Low demand0.99x oversubscription

Places available

3,770

Applications

3,731

Got 1st preference

83.9%

Got preferred school

97.1%

Secondary admissions across Dudley (2025/26)

Inspection History(3)

3 June 2025
1 November 2022
21 July 2021

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SEN Provision

How many pupils have special educational needs, what types of support the school provides, and how it compares to similar schools.

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Pupil Demographics

The school's pupil mix - ethnicity breakdown, free school meals eligibility, and English as an additional language. Useful context when evaluating school fit.

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