Penrice Academy

About Penrice Academy

Penrice Academy is a large secondary school in Cornwall, running at near-full capacity with 1,422 pupils against a maximum of 1,440 places. Its intake reflects a notably higher-than-average level of disadvantage: 21 per cent of pupils are eligible for free school meals, compared with the national secondary average of around 24 per cent, placing it above the local norm for Cornwall. Demand is strong — for the 2025/26 academic year, the school received 490 applications for 273 places, an oversubscription ratio of 1.79. Of those, 277 families put Penrice as their first preference, and all 273 first-preference offers were taken up, suggesting that for most local families who want a place, it is achievable but not guaranteed. The school is mixed, non-denominational, and serves pupils aged 11 to 16, with no sixth form on site. Headteacher Tanya Coleman leads a school that has held an Outstanding Ofsted rating since at least 2014, and its most recent graded inspection in February 2025 confirmed Outstanding across all four categories: quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, and leadership and management.

Academically, Penrice performs well above the local average. Its Progress 8 score of 0.32 is classified as 'Above average' nationally and places it second out of 31 schools in Cornwall, well ahead of the local authority average of -0.12. The school's Attainment 8 score of 48.5 is solid, and 74.7 per cent of pupils achieved a grade 4 or above in both English and maths, with 52.4 per cent reaching grade 5 or above. The EBacc entry rate is high at 84.4 per cent, though only 25.7 per cent of pupils achieved the full EBacc at grade 5 or above. Progress in the EBacc subjects is particularly strong at 0.58, while English and maths progress scores are 0.21 and 0.30 respectively. Nationally, Penrice ranks 797th out of 3,141 schools on Progress 8, placing it in the top 25 per cent. In the South West region, it sits 63rd out of 306 schools.

The school offers a broad range of facilities including a swimming pool, sports hall, tennis courts, science labs, art studios, music rooms, and a chapel. Sports provision covers football, rowing, rugby, cricket, and athletics, while clubs include choir, debate, Young Enterprise, gardening, and film club. SEND support is listed for a wide range of needs including dyslexia, autism, speech and language difficulties, and physical disabilities, though parent views on SEND provision are notably mixed — 31 per cent strongly disagreed that SEND children receive the support they need, the highest negative response across all survey questions. Overall, 70 per cent of parents would recommend the school. Penrice suits families who prioritise strong academic outcomes and a well-resourced environment, but who are comfortable with a large, oversubscribed school where competition for places is real and SEND satisfaction is an area of concern.

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