The Barnes Wallis Academy

About The Barnes Wallis Academy

The Barnes Wallis Academy’s headline Progress 8 score of -0.58 sits well below the Lincolnshire local authority average of -0.06 for secondary schools, placing it 43rd out of 57 schools of the same type in the county. This is a significant gap, and the school’s national ranking in the bottom 50% (2715th out of 3141 schools) reinforces that its academic outcomes are notably weaker than the typical state secondary in the area. The school’s Progress 8 banding is officially described as “Well below average,” and its Attainment 8 score of 38.8 is modest. However, it’s worth noting that the school serves a community with high levels of disadvantage — 41.7% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, more than double the national average — which provides important context for these figures.

Looking closer at the breakdown, the school’s weakest subject area is English, with a Progress 8 score of -0.99, while maths (-0.35) and EBacc subjects (-0.23) are less negative. The proportion of pupils achieving a grade 5 or above in English and maths (the basics 9-5 measure) is 20.8%, compared with 46.5% at the grade 4 threshold. The EBacc average point score is 3.68, and just over half of pupils (51.5%) entered the EBacc suite of subjects. In its most recent graded Ofsted inspection in 2017, the school was rated Good overall, with leadership and management also judged Good. An ungraded inspection in December 2022 confirmed the school remains Good. This is a notable improvement from its previous inspection in 2013, when it was rated Requires Improvement.

The Barnes Wallis Academy is a mixed 11-16 secondary school in East Lindsey with 509 pupils on roll, operating slightly below its capacity of 560. It was oversubscribed for 2025/26 entry, receiving 128 applications for 83 places, with 72 first-preference offers made. The school offers a range of facilities including a theatre, sports hall, astro turf, tennis courts, science labs, and music rooms. Sports on offer include rounders, basketball, cross country, swimming, cricket, and hockey, while clubs include book club, science club, drama, choir, and gardening. The school has a broad SEND offer, with provisions for specific learning difficulties like dyslexia, moderate learning difficulty, social, emotional and mental health needs, speech and language difficulties, hearing impairment, physical disability, and autistic spectrum disorder. This is a school that will suit families who value a supportive environment for pupils with additional needs, but parents should weigh the below-average academic outcomes against the high level of disadvantage the school serves.

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