Ormiston Six Villages Academy Review 2026: A large, community-facing secondary with strong facilities and competitive entry

Set between Chichester and Arundel, Ormiston Six Villages Academy serves a predominantly rural cluster of villages around Westergate, with an 11 to 16 intake and a broad local remit. The school day is structured around a clear academic core, with a dedicated enrichment slot at the end of the afternoon, which signals that extracurricular participation is expected rather than optional.

Leadership has been stable in recent years, with Principal Paul Slaughter appointed in September 2018. The most recent full inspection judged the school Good across all reported areas, which aligns with a school that prioritises consistency, safeguarding culture, and steadily improving classroom practice.

This is a school that positions itself as both local and outward-looking. The “Six Villages” identity matters in practice because it frames the academy as a shared secondary option for families spread across multiple rural communities rather than a single-town catchment. That context tends to shape day-to-day expectations: families often value predictable routines, clear standards, and a school that can offer scale without feeling anonymous.

The stated emphasis on “Excellence for All” is best read as a culture cue rather than a slogan. It appears repeatedly in the way the school explains its priorities for students, including expectations around conduct and engagement, and the notion that achievement includes personal development and future planning, not just GCSE outcomes. For parents, the practical implication is that the academy is likely to feel structured. Students who respond well to routines, defined boundaries, and consistent follow-through often settle faster in this style of environment.

A notable characteristic is how the timetable creates space for enrichment. The end-of-day slot is explicitly labelled for enrichment after Period 5, which helps participation because clubs and activities are not competing with the immediate rush to get home. That design choice often correlates with stronger take-up of activities among students who might not otherwise opt in.

FindMySchool’s GCSE outcomes ranking places Ormiston Six Villages Academy at 2,857th in England and 3rd in the Chichester area for GCSE performance (FindMySchool ranking based on official data). This position sits below England average overall, within the lower 40% of schools in England.

The underlying performance indicators point to a mixed attainment picture. The school’s Attainment 8 score is 42, while Progress 8 sits at -0.1, which indicates students make slightly below average progress compared with similar starting points.

EBacc indicators are also worth noting for families who care about the academic core. The school’s average EBacc APS score is 3.48, and 7.5% of pupils achieved grades 5 or above across EBacc subjects.

For parents, the key takeaway is not that the school lacks academic ambition, but that outcomes suggest variability between cohorts and subject areas. This is the kind of profile where the quality of teaching, attendance, and subject options choices at Key Stage 4 can materially affect an individual student’s results.

To compare local alternatives properly, families can use the FindMySchool Local Hub page and the Comparison Tool to line up GCSE indicators across nearby secondaries on a like-for-like basis.

Curriculum breadth is supported by unusually specific specialist spaces, which can make a real difference to teaching quality in practical subjects. The site lists five science laboratories, a dedicated food technology room with 13 hobs and 13 ovens, a textiles room with screen printing facilities, and a technology suite equipped for both hands-on and computer-controlled making.

The implication is straightforward: students who learn best through practical application, prototypes, and iterative project work are more likely to thrive when the physical environment matches the curriculum intent. It also helps teachers deliver consistently because the space and equipment reduce the need for compromise.

Arts provision is similarly anchored in infrastructure. The Gate Theatre is described as a multi-function performance space with tiered seating for 150 plus additional floor capacity, and the music area includes practice rooms, an ensemble room, and a recording studio. In most schools, the arts experience is constrained by rooming and storage. Here, it appears intentionally built into the campus model, which tends to support higher participation at both entry level and for more serious students.

Where Students Go Next

As an 11 to 16 school, the main transition point is post-16. The academy curates guidance for Year 11 students, framing it as the first major choice-point in five years and signposting local sixth forms, colleges, and apprenticeship routes.

For families, this matters because post-16 planning starts earlier than many expect. When a school does not have its own sixth form, students often benefit from structured exposure to external providers, open events, and application timelines. The academy’s published guidance links students towards local sixth forms and colleges, including Bishop Luffa School Sixth Form, St Philip Howard Catholic School Sixth Form, Chichester High School Sixth Form, and Felpham Community College Sixth Form.

The practical implication is that motivated students can build a strong post-16 pathway, but they need to engage early. Parents should expect Year 11 to include a deliberate focus on next-step decisions, not just GCSE preparation.

Year 7 entry is coordinated through West Sussex County Council. The academy’s published admission number is 150 per year, and it states that applications typically open in September and close on 31 October each year.

Demand data indicates competition. In the most recent admissions snapshot provided, there were 321 applications and 147 offers for the main entry route, with oversubscription recorded and around 2.18 applications per offered place.

For September 2026 entry across West Sussex, the council’s published process shows online applications opening at 9am on 8 September 2025, with an on-time deadline of 31 October 2025. National offer day is 2 March 2026.

Open events are typically scheduled early in the autumn term ahead of the 31 October deadline. For families mapping feasibility, the FindMySchool Map Search is useful for checking home-to-school distance patterns alongside local admission rules, particularly in areas where demand can shift meaningfully year to year.

Pastoral systems look designed to be visible rather than hidden behind generic “support” language. The academy publishes a safeguarding team structure that includes a named Designated Safeguarding Lead and identifies leadership roles within safeguarding oversight. This is relevant to parents because safeguarding confidence is often built on clarity, who is responsible, how concerns are escalated, and how consistently procedures are applied.

The most recent inspection confirmed that safeguarding arrangements are effective. Beyond formal safeguarding, the academy also signals ongoing development in student wellbeing through its published wellbeing hub initiative, indicating that wellbeing is treated as an active workstream rather than a static policy area.

The enrichment offer is unusually concrete. The academy describes lunchtime and after-school activities as a programme with weekly sign-up and an expectation of commitment across the half term, which tends to support better attendance and skill development compared with purely drop-in clubs.

Activities referenced include coding, dissection, American comic book drawing, Latin, chess, public speaking, drama, dance, and the Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Award programme. The educational implication is breadth: students can test interests across both academic and creative domains, and then build depth where motivation is strongest.

Music provision is especially well-defined. Instrumental tuition is offered on a range of instruments, with pathways that can move from group sessions to individual masterclass lessons for students showing aptitude. The enrichment layer includes Guitar club, Ukulele club, a vocal ensemble called Voices Together, a Djembe Drumming ensemble, and a Samba and Steel pans group. That combination tends to work well in mixed-ability schools because it reduces barriers to entry, no audition requirement is stated for these enrichment groups, and it allows students to participate without prior formal training.

Sport and physical activity also benefit from strong infrastructure, including a four-court sports hall with indoor cricket nets, a floodlit multi-use games area, extensive playing fields, and an indoor climbing wall. For students who regulate best through movement, or who gain confidence through sport, that range can be a genuine asset.

Student core learning hours run Monday to Friday from 8:20am to 2:50pm, and the published daily structure includes an enrichment slot from 2:50pm to 3:50pm.

Food provision is organised around the Gate Café, with breakfast service available from 8:00am and space for students to sit in a mix of canteen and mezzanine seating areas.

For travel planning, the academy’s “Six Villages” role means many students come from surrounding rural communities. Families should factor in transport reliability and end-of-day enrichment when considering routes and pick-up arrangements, particularly in areas where bus timetables may shape after-school participation.

• Competitive entry. Recent demand data shows the main entry route is oversubscribed, with more than two applications per offered place in the most recent snapshot. This raises the importance of understanding local admissions rules and deadlines early.

• Outcomes suggest variability. Progress 8 at -0.1 indicates slightly below average progress overall. Families with highly academic children may want to look closely at subject options, set expectations, and how the school supports top-end attainment as well as catch-up.

• No on-site sixth form. Post-16 transition is a real step change. This suits students ready for a fresh start at 16, but it does mean Year 11 includes decisions about external providers and application timelines.

• Attendance remains a practical focus. Official reporting highlights attendance as an area leaders continue to prioritise, which is relevant if a child has struggled with attendance patterns in earlier years.

Ormiston Six Villages Academy combines the scale of a large secondary with facilities that support a genuinely broad curriculum, especially across arts, technology, and sport. The academic picture is mixed in the available indicators, while the wider offer, structured enrichment, and clear post-16 guidance strengthen the overall proposition.

Who it suits: families seeking a local, mainstream 11 to 16 school with strong specialist spaces and a clear enrichment culture, particularly for students who benefit from structure and learn well through practical and creative pathways.