The Cornerstone Academy, Poole
The Cornerstone Academy is a secondary school for pupils aged 11 to 16 in Poole, part of United Learning Trust. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in January 2017. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in October 2022 did not change this grade. Its 2026 GCSE results were the 5th-highest of the 8 schools in Poole with published results, and 1,514th of 3,298 across England. It was 75% full in 2025.
- GCSE results
- In line with England
- Ofsted
- Good (2017)
- Demand
- Every first choice offered
- Attendance
- Below England average
- Progress (2024)
- Average
Year 7 applications for September 2027 close in 4 days
Deadline Saturday 31 October 2026. Apply to Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (the council where you live). Offers on 1 March.
Data last updated 27 Oct 2026
The Cornerstone Academy in detail
Results
In 2026, pupils at The Cornerstone Academy averaged an Attainment 8 score of 46.7, the average grade across their best eight GCSEs. The average state school scored 50.2 in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole; and 47 across England.
57% passed English and maths at grade 5 or above, against 56% in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole; and 47% in England.
That is up from 41 in 2025.
Its most recent Progress 8 score, for 2024, was -0.03: 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 38.8, against 51.9 for other pupils at the school - a gap of 13.1 points.
Pupils sat GCSEs in 21 subjects; after English and maths, the most popular were Combined Science, History and Geography.
Getting a place at The Cornerstone Academy
For September 2026 entry, 81 families put The Cornerstone Academy as their first choice and 161 named it as one of their preferences, for 96 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. Every family who put it first was offered a place there for 2026 entry.
Admissions history and your chances at The Cornerstone Academy
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state secondary schools to The Cornerstone Academy are Poole High School (1 mile, Attainment 8 48.1); Parkstone Grammar School (2.2 miles, Outstanding, selective, Attainment 8 67.6); St Edward's Roman Catholic/Church of England School, Poole (2.4 miles, Good, Attainment 8 46.7); and Magna Academy (2.8 miles, Good, Attainment 8 45.2).
The Cornerstone Academy's 2026 results were higher than 1 of these 4 schools.
Poole High SchoolParkstone Grammar SchoolSt Edward's Roman Catholic/Church of England School, PooleMagna Academy
The trust
The Cornerstone 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 116 pupils who finished Year 11 in 2023/24, 75% stayed in education or training for at least two terms, including 53% to a further education college, 1% to an apprenticeship and 8% into work.
Who goes there
39.5% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well above the average state school (25%), according to the 2026 school census.
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Poole Rail Station, about 0.9 miles away in a straight line.
8 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Ashmore Avenue (e-bound), 140 metres away.
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, The Cornerstone Academy issued 254 suspensions, 37.2 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and 6 permanent exclusions.
Primary schools nearby
The primary schools closest to The Cornerstone Academy are Twin Sails Infant and Nursery School (0.1 miles), Hamworthy Park Junior School (0.2 miles), Old Town Infant School and Nursery (0.9 miles) and Oakdale Junior School (1.3 miles). Admission does not depend on which primary a child attends unless the school's policy names feeder schools.
Twin Sails Infant and Nursery SchoolHamworthy Park Junior SchoolOld Town Infant School and NurseryOakdale 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 years agoThis judgement is from January 2017, 9 years ago, longer than Ofsted's usual 4-year cycle: the school may have changed since.
Overall
Latest (ungraded) inspection: The school remains Good.
Ofsted Insights
Ofsted rated this school Good at its January 2017 inspection - up from Requires Improvement.
Rated Good for
Leadership & management.
At a Glance
39.5%
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 declined from 0.19 to -0.03 (2023 to 2024). Attainment 8 has improved from 42.1 to 46.7 (2023 to 2026). GCSE English & Maths 5+ has improved from 43% to 57% (2023 to 2026).
Performance by Group
| Group | Progress 8 | Attainment 8 | Eng+Maths 5+ |
|---|---|---|---|
| All pupils | - | 46.7 | 56.8% |
| Disadvantaged(50) | - | 38.8 | 40% |
| Not known to be disadvantaged(75) | - | 51.9 | 68% |
| Boys(64) | - | 46.2 | 53.1% |
| Girls(61) | - | 47.2 | 60.7% |
Show more breakdowns (2)
| Known or believed to be other than English(19) | - | 51.7 | 63.2% |
| Non mobile(121) | - | 46.8 | 56.2% |
2025/26 academic year - DfE performance tables data
GCSE Subjects Offered
+ 1 more subjects
2025/26 academic year - entries by number of pupils
After GCSEs - Leaver Destinations
After GCSEs (Year 11) - 116 students
2023/24 data
Exclusions & Suspensions
6
Permanent exclusions
0.88%
Exclusion rate
254
Suspensions
37.24%
Suspension rate
55 pupils received one or more suspensions out of 682 pupils
2024/25 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby secondary schools
Keep up with The Cornerstone Academy
Term dates
The Cornerstone Academy is an academy, so it sets its own term dates: check the school's website. As a guide, see Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole's term dates for its community schools.
Getting There
Ferry Terminals
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to The Cornerstone Academy from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. The Cornerstone Academy is in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole; for families living there:
- Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole's school travel policy: Home to school transport policy
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 24
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 6
- Children hurt
- 1
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 24 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 6 serious and 18 slight.
1 child aged 0 to 15 was hurt: 1 on foot.
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 Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole is 24 (the median across 117 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 The Cornerstone Academy
Will you get a place at The Cornerstone Academy? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against The Cornerstone Academy's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for The Cornerstone Academy:
- The straight-line distance from your home to The Cornerstone Academy.
- Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole publishes last distance offered figures, but none for The Cornerstone Academy that we hold, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at The Cornerstone Academy for 2014 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole 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
75%
Available places
674 pupils
900 places
226 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Poole
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Poole
Across Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council
Places available
4,119
Applications
3,624
Got 1st preference
86.4%
Got preferred school
96.9%
All secondary applications across Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Every first choice offered
Inspection History(4)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
134
SEN Support
29
EHC Plans
25.3%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
645
Total Pupils
298
Boys
347
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
46
Teachers
14.0:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£53,303
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£7,787
Per pupil
£5760k
Total funding
£297k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
12.2%
Overall absence
34.7%
Persistent absence
754
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
The Cornerstone Academy
Questions parents ask about The Cornerstone Academy
What are GCSE results like at The Cornerstone Academy?
In the 2026 results, pupils at The Cornerstone Academy achieved an Attainment 8 score of 46.7. 57% passed GCSE English and maths at grade 5 or above.
What is The Cornerstone Academy's Ofsted rating?
The Cornerstone Academy's most recent Ofsted inspection, in October 2022, was ungraded, so it gave no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in January 2017, it was rated Good.
What is the catchment area for The Cornerstone Academy?
No fixed boundary. When The Cornerstone Academy is oversubscribed, Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at The Cornerstone Academy?
The Cornerstone Academy was not full in 2025: it ran at 75% of its 900 places.
How big are the classes at The Cornerstone Academy?
Classes at The Cornerstone Academy average 22.9 pupils (2025/26).
How many pupils go to The Cornerstone Academy?
The Cornerstone Academy has around 645 pupils on roll. 40% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at The Cornerstone Academy?
12.2% of sessions were missed at The Cornerstone Academy in 2024/25. 34.7% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to The Cornerstone Academy?
Apply through Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole's coordinated admissions process, naming The Cornerstone 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 The Cornerstone Academy?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 24 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 6 serious and 18 slight. 1 child aged 0 to 15 was hurt: 1 on foot. 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 Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole is 24 (the median across 117 schools, same distance and years).
Where is The Cornerstone Academy?
The Cornerstone Academy is at Blandford Close, Hamworthy, Poole, Dorset, BH15 4BQ.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)