St Paul's Academy

About St Paul's Academy

St Paul's Academy in Greenwich is a Roman Catholic secondary school for boys and girls aged 11 to 16, with a headteacher named Anton Innocent. The school currently has 1,119 pupils on roll, which is a significant number given its official capacity of just 55. This suggests the school is operating well beyond its intended size, though the data doesn't clarify whether the capacity figure is a typo or reflects a specific administrative measure. In terms of intake demographics, the school's free school meal data isn't provided here, so it's hard to compare directly with national or local averages. However, the school is clearly in demand: it has an official sixth form, and the fact that it's oversubscribed relative to its stated capacity points to strong local interest. As a state-funded mixed school in a London borough with 19 secondary schools of the same type, St Paul's sits within a competitive landscape where only four schools hold an Outstanding rating from Ofsted.

Academically, St Paul's Academy faces significant challenges. Its most recent Ofsted rating is Requires Improvement, and the exam results from the 2023/24 academic year paint a stark picture. The school's Attainment 8 score is just 3.7, which is low compared with the national average of around 46.5. The EBacc average point score is 0.21, and the percentage of pupils achieving a grade 5 or above in English and maths is zero across both the 9-4 and 9-5 measures. No pupils entered the EBacc combination of subjects, and Progress 8 data is not available, so it's impossible to measure how much value the school adds relative to pupils' starting points. For context, the local authority average Progress 8 score is 0.1, meaning the typical Greenwich school performs slightly above the national average. St Paul's is a long way from that benchmark, and its results place it well behind local peers like Ark Greenwich Free School and St Thomas More Catholic Comprehensive School.

On the practical side, St Paul's Academy offers a broad range of facilities including science labs, a sports hall, gymnasium, theatre, library, ICT suite, sixth form centre, playing fields, swimming pool, astro turf, music rooms, and a chapel. Sports on offer include swimming, rounders, basketball, gymnastics, martial arts, athletics, and cross country, while extracurricular clubs cover the Duke of Edinburgh's Award, Eco Club, Film Club, Orchestra, Young Enterprise, Coding, and Model UN. The school has a sixth form, so pupils can stay on after Year 11. For families considering this school, the key takeaway is that while the facilities and club offerings are strong, the academic outcomes are currently very weak, and the school is under an Ofsted Requires Improvement rating. It may suit families who prioritise a Catholic ethos and a wide range of activities over exam performance, but those seeking strong academic results would likely need to look at higher-performing local options.

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