Robert Blake Academy, Bridgwater
Robert Blake Academy is a secondary school for pupils aged 11 to 16 in Bridgwater, part of United Learning Trust.
Year 7 applications for September 2027 close in 5 days
Deadline Saturday 31 October 2026. Apply to Somerset (the council where you live). Offers on 1 March.
Data last updated 26 Oct 2026
Robert Blake Academy in detail
Results
Robert Blake Academy has no published results of its own yet. Before it became an academy in 2026, as Robert Blake School (URN 123878), its pupils had an average Attainment 8 score of 43.6 and 45% passing English and maths at grade 5 or above in the 2026 GCSE results.
Getting a place at Robert Blake Academy
Across Somerset, 92% of families were offered their first-choice secondary school for 2026 entry, and 98% were offered one of the schools they named.
In 2026, families in Somerset lodged 133 appeals against secondary school offers; 99 reached a hearing and 10 succeeded (10.1% of those heard).
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state secondary schools to Robert Blake Academy are Robert Blake School (under 0.1 miles, Requires improvement, Attainment 8 43.6); Haygrove School (0.8 miles, Good, Attainment 8 49.5); Bridgwater College Academy (1.3 miles, Requires improvement, Attainment 8 33.8); and Chilton Trinity School (1.4 miles, Requires improvement, Attainment 8 42.3).
Robert Blake SchoolHaygrove SchoolBridgwater College AcademyChilton Trinity School
The trust
Robert Blake Academy is one of 98 schools run by United Learning Trust, an academy trust.
Across the trust's secondary schools, pupils averaged an Attainment 8 score of 49 in 2024/25.
Where pupils go next
Of the 191 pupils who finished Year 11 in 2023/24, 79% stayed in education or training for at least two terms, including 59% to a further education college, 5% to an apprenticeship and 4% into work.
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Bridgwater Rail Station, about 0.8 miles away in a straight line.
7 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Rhode Lane (ne-bound), 230 metres away.
The area around the school
Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood Robert Blake Academy stands in is among the 20% most deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.
In August 2026, police recorded 551 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, shoplifting and anti-social behaviour. That is well above the typical figure around schools in Somerset (22), as is usual near a town centre.
Primary schools nearby
The primary schools closest to Robert Blake Academy are Hamp Nursery and Infants' School (under 0.1 miles), Hamp Academy (0.2 miles), Westover Green Community School and Autism Centre (0.6 miles) and Somerset Bridge Primary School (0.7 miles). Admission does not depend on which primary a child attends unless the school's policy names feeder schools.
Hamp Nursery and Infants' SchoolHamp AcademyWestover Green Community School and Autism CentreSomerset Bridge Primary School
Sources: DfE school performance data; GIAS establishment links; DfE school-level applications and offers; council admissions booklets; DfE appeals statistics; DfE multi-academy trust performance data; DfE destination measures; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); data.police.uk street-level crime
Location
Our estimate from how close the nearest similar schools are and how oversubscribed the council's schools are. It is not a published boundary.
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Robert Blake Academy has not been inspected by Ofsted since it became an academy in September 2026. Before that, as Robert Blake School (URN 123878), it was rated Requires Improvement in October 2023. See Robert Blake School's inspections
At a Glance
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
Results at Robert Blake School before it became an academy in 2026 (GCSE)
Academic year 2025/26Published for Robert Blake School (URN 123878), the school Robert Blake Academy replaced. There are no figures for Robert Blake Academy yet, so these are shown separately.
GCSE Results
2025/26 academic year
Progress 8 has improved from -0.79 to -0.53 (2023 to 2024). Attainment 8 has improved from 37.7 to 43.6 (2023 to 2026). GCSE English & Maths 5+ has improved from 25% to 45% (2023 to 2026).
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 3 nearby secondary schools
Keep up with Robert Blake Academy
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Robert Blake Academy from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Robert Blake Academy is in Somerset; for families living there:
Apply to Somerset for free school transport. Its policy is on the council's website.
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 19
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 5
- Children hurt
- 7
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 19 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 5 serious and 14 slight.
7 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 4 on foot, 1 on a bicycle and 2 in a vehicle or otherwise.
3 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 Somerset is 3 (the median across 307 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
Will you get a place at Robert Blake Academy? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against Robert Blake Academy's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for Robert Blake Academy:
- The straight-line distance from your home to Robert Blake Academy.
- We hold no last distance offered figures from Somerset, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- How many families in Somerset 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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Applications and offers at Robert Blake School before it became an academy in 2026
Published for Robert Blake School (URN 123878), the school Robert Blake Academy replaced. There are no figures for Robert Blake Academy yet, so these are shown separately.
| Entry year | Places offered | First choices | Named at all | First choices per place | First choices not offered |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 195 | 177 | 247 | 0.9 | 0 |
| 2025 | 152 | 140 | 192 | 0.9 | 0 |
| 2024 | 217 | 211 | 276 | 1.0 | 0 |
| 2023 | 203 | 213 | 274 | 1.0 | 23 |
| 2022 | 204 | 195 | 248 | 1.0 | 0 |
| 2021 | 189 | 176 | 241 | 0.9 | 0 |
| 2020 | 188 | 195 | 266 | 1.0 | 17 |
| 2019 | 194 | 197 | 256 | 1.0 | 8 |
| 2018 | 166 | 146 | 211 | 0.9 | 0 |
| 2017 | 166 | 162 | 258 | 1.0 | 7 |
| 2016 | 156 | 142 | 214 | 0.9 | 0 |
| 2015 | 146 | 138 | 212 | 0.9 | 0 |
| 2014 | 148 | 142 | 196 | 1.0 | 0 |
Source: DfE, Primary and secondary school applications and offers (school-level file). "Places offered" is the number of offers made on national offer day, which can differ from the school's published admission number.
Capacity & Demand
Area Demand Pressure - Bridgwater
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Bridgwater
Across Somerset council
Places available
4,902
Applications
4,659
Got 1st preference
92.1%
Got preferred school
97.7%
All secondary applications across Somerset council (2026/27), not just this school.
Absence at Robert Blake School before it became an academy in 20262024/25
Published for Robert Blake School (URN 123878), the school Robert Blake Academy replaced. There are no figures for Robert Blake Academy yet, so these are shown separately.
10.1%
Overall absence
30.0%
Persistent absence
1,095
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
Questions parents ask about Robert Blake Academy
Are there exam results for Robert Blake Academy?
Robert Blake Academy has no published results of its own yet. Before it became an academy in 2026, as Robert Blake School (URN 123878), its pupils had an average Attainment 8 score of 43.6 and 45% passing English and maths at grade 5 or above in the 2026 GCSE results.
What is Robert Blake Academy's Ofsted rating?
Robert Blake Academy has not been inspected by Ofsted since it became an academy in September 2026. Before that, as Robert Blake School (URN 123878), it was rated Requires Improvement in October 2023.
What is the catchment area for Robert Blake Academy?
No fixed boundary. When Robert Blake Academy is oversubscribed, Somerset allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
How do I apply to Robert Blake Academy?
Apply through Somerset's coordinated admissions process, naming Robert Blake 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 Robert Blake Academy?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 19 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 5 serious and 14 slight. 7 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 4 on foot, 1 on a bicycle and 2 in a vehicle or otherwise. 3 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 Somerset is 3 (the median across 307 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Robert Blake Academy?
Robert Blake Academy is at Hamp Avenue, Bridgwater, Somerset, TA6 6AW.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)