Small Heath Leadership Academy, Birmingham

In its own words: "To promote a culture of educational excellence, from within a caring and secure environment enriched with the values of discipline, mutual care and respect, which extends beyond the Academy into the wider community."

From the headteacher's welcome: "As Principal of Small Heath Leadership Academy, it gives me great pleasure to welcome you to our school community. We are delighted to have you with us and look forward to working in partnership to fulfil our vision: “Nurturing today’s young people, inspiring tomorrow’s leaders.” At Small Heath, we are deeply committed to providing an excellent education for every student."

Clubs and activities named on the school's website include football, netball, cricket, tennis, basketball, badminton, dance, drama, Duke of Edinburgh and cadets.

In 2026, pupils at Small Heath Leadership Academy averaged an Attainment 8 score of 46.6, the average grade across their best eight GCSEs. The average state school scored 47.5 in Birmingham and 47 across England.

55% passed English and maths at grade 5 or above, against 49% in Birmingham and 47% in England.

That is in line with 2025, when the score was 45.7.

Its most recent Progress 8 score, for 2024, was 0.42: pupils made above 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 45.4, against 48.1 for other pupils at the school - a gap of 2.7 points.

Pupils sat GCSEs in 21 subjects; after English and maths, the most popular were Religious Studies, Combined Science and Information and Communication Technology.

For September 2026 entry, 137 families put Small Heath Leadership Academy as their first choice and 777 named it as one of their preferences, for 220 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. Every family who put it first was offered a place there for 2026 entry.

The nearest other state secondary schools to Small Heath Leadership Academy are Holy Trinity Catholic School (0.4 miles, Good, Attainment 8 41.4); Bordesley Green Girls' School & Sixth Form (0.7 miles, Good, Attainment 8 51.3); Ark Victoria Academy (0.7 miles, Good, Attainment 8 48.5); and Starbank School (0.9 miles, Good, Attainment 8 46.4).

Small Heath Leadership Academy's 2026 results were higher than 2 of these 4 schools.

Small Heath Leadership Academy is one of 36 schools run by Star Academies, an academy trust.

Across the trust's secondary schools, pupils averaged an Attainment 8 score of 50.6 in 2024/25.

22 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about Small Heath Leadership Academy (as of April 2026): 91% would recommend the school, 96% say their child is happy there and 67% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.

The strongest agreement was that their child feels safe (100%); the weakest, that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (67%).

Of the 222 pupils who finished Year 11 in 2023/24, 87% stayed in education or training for at least two terms, including 43% to a further education college, 1% to an apprenticeship and 1% into work.

59.8% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well above the average state school (25%), and 49.5% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.

The largest ethnic groups are Asian (60%), Black (23%) and other ethnic groups (9%).

In 2026, 176 pupils (15.6%) received SEN support and 12 (1.1%) 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 speech, language and communication needs.

Small Heath Leadership Academy has a resourced provision for hearing impairment: 8 places, 1 pupil on roll.

The nearest railway station is Small Heath Rail Station, about 850 metres away (roughly a 11-minute walk).

18 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Baker Street (opposite), 60 metres away.

Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood Small Heath Leadership 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, Small Heath Leadership Academy issued 55 suspensions, 4.6 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and 1 permanent exclusion.

The primary schools closest to Small Heath Leadership Academy are Somerville Primary (NC) School (under 0.1 miles); Wyndcliffe Primary School (0.3 miles); Marlborough Primary School (0.4 miles); and The Olive School, Small Heath (0.5 miles). Admission does not depend on which primary a child attends unless the school's policy names feeder schools.