Brook Sixth Form and Academy Review 2026: A specialist UTC route for STEM and media

A school that starts at Year 10 changes the tone of the conversation. Brook Sixth Form and Academy is designed for students who want a more technical, career-facing education than most 11 to 16 routes provide, with engineering and media sitting alongside academic GCSEs and A-level pathways. The latest Ofsted inspection (19 to 20 November 2024) judged Behaviour and attitudes as Outstanding and Personal development as Outstanding, with Quality of education and Sixth form provision both judged Good.

Brook is small relative to its published capacity, which tends to create a more close-knit feel and enables staff to know students well. The distinctive feature is the employer-linked curriculum and equipment base, including engineering workshops and a developing media suite shaped by its location near a film studio complex.

Brook Sixth Form and Academy is unusual in two ways that families notice quickly. First, it is a university technical college that begins at 14, so the student body is made up of people who have actively chosen to move at the start of GCSE study. Second, it brings technical learning into the centre of the school week rather than treating it as a bolt-on. That combination tends to attract students who want their timetable to connect clearly to real jobs, real kit, and real project briefs, without giving up the academic option of A-levels.

Because of its scale, daily routines can feel more personal than in a larger 11 to 18. The latest inspection evidence describes pupils as proud of the setting, supported closely by staff, and learning in a calm, purposeful environment where they feel safe. It also highlights respectful behaviour and a culture that challenges discriminatory language. Those are meaningful signals for parents considering a mid-secondary move, where social confidence and belonging can be as important as subjects.

Leadership context matters here. The Principal is Kim Donovan, and the school sits within Partnership Learning Trust. Governance information published by the school shows Kim Donovan in post as Principal from 1 May 2018, and also identifies the trust leadership structure.

The atmosphere is also shaped by the school’s specialist identity. Students are expected to take learning seriously, including punctuality and structured starts to the day. The published day structure places registration at 8:30am and builds in planned time for clubs and study, with expectations around lateness that are clear and formal.

This is a technical college model serving Years 10 to 13, so the fairest way to read outcomes is to separate Key Stage 4 performance from post-16 outcomes, and then consider how well each fits your child’s strengths and interests.

GCSE outcomes

Based on FindMySchool rankings drawn from official data, Brook Sixth Form and Academy is ranked 3563rd in England for GCSE outcomes, and 14th within Barking and Dagenham. This performance sits below England average overall, placing it in the lower tier of schools in England on these measures.

The school’s Attainment 8 score is 38.4, and its Progress 8 score is -0.6, indicating that, on average, students made less progress than pupils nationally with similar starting points. EBacc entry and EBacc grade measures are low in the available dataset, which aligns with a curriculum model that prioritises technical pathways alongside core subjects rather than an EBacc-heavy approach.

What this means in practice is that Brook may be a stronger fit for students whose motivation and performance lift when learning is applied and career-facing, especially in engineering, computing, or media. If your child is strongly academic across a broad suite of traditional GCSE subjects, you will want to scrutinise subject availability and teaching stability carefully.

A-level and post-16 outcomes

Based on FindMySchool rankings drawn from official data, Brook Sixth Form and Academy is ranked 2421st in England for A-level outcomes, and 12th within Barking and Dagenham. This places outcomes below England average overall for sixth form results on these measures.

Grade breakdowns reinforce that picture. The proportion of grades at A or above is 7.84%, and A* to B is 19.61%, compared with England averages of 23.6% at A* or A and 47.2% at A* to B.

The implication is not that strong students cannot thrive here, they can, particularly when the course choice fits and the student is highly engaged. It does mean the median experience is less consistently high at A-level than the England picture, so families should pay close attention to subject leadership, staffing continuity, and the support offered for independent study.

The educational model is designed to blend academic learning with technical depth and employer-linked practice. One of the clearer strengths in published inspection evidence is the way technical learning is made concrete: students value access to industry-standard equipment, they engage with employer-designed project briefs, and practical work is used to build real skill, not just to decorate a curriculum statement.

The school also uses structured academic support in ways that are particularly relevant for mid-secondary joiners. Inspection evidence notes that staff assess new pupils carefully, identify gaps in prior learning and special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), and provide targeted support, including one-to-one work to build reading confidence and fluency, plus deliberate teaching of subject vocabulary.

Curriculum sequencing appears strongest where the technical curriculum is most developed. The inspection describes engineering pupils starting with design work that includes skills such as casting, screw threading, computer-aided design, and laser cutting, which is a level of specificity that families can take seriously when comparing technical routes.

Where to probe, particularly for sixth form applicants, is consistency across subjects. The inspection flags that, in a small number of subjects, especially at A-level, subject leadership and staffing are not yet fully embedded, limiting the school’s ability to identify and close gaps in knowledge and to refine curriculum content. That is exactly the kind of behind-the-scenes issue that can affect outcomes even when day-to-day relationships are strong.

Brook’s story is mainly about progression at 16 and 18, not at 11, so destinations should be read through that lens.

The latest published cohort data (56 leavers in the 2023 to 2024 cohort) shows 63% progressed to university, 16% started apprenticeships, and 7% entered employment. The remaining destinations are not detailed in the available figures.

There is no published Oxbridge acceptance data in the available dataset for this school, and the school’s public materials tend to present destination examples and pathways rather than a quantified Oxbridge pipeline.

The practical implication is that Brook can suit students who want credible routes into university and higher technical careers, but it is not positioned as a traditional Oxbridge-focused sixth form. If Oxbridge is a central aim, families should ask for recent application support structures, subject availability, and super-curricular provision specific to competitive entry.

Admissions are best understood as two separate entry points.

Year 10 entry (age 14)

Brook actively recruits students to start GCSEs at the beginning of Year 10. The school frames this as a positive choice for students who want a clearer focus on mathematics, science, and technical specialisms, with engineering and media offered as options alongside core GCSEs.

The website directs applicants to apply online for Year 10, and the admissions content is written for families considering a mid-secondary move, including discussion of induction and bridging support for new starters. Precise closing dates are not clearly published on the pages reviewed, so families should treat applications as time-sensitive and confirm current deadlines directly through the application portal and open events.

Year 12 entry (age 16)

Sixth form applications for September 2026 are stated as open on the school’s website, again using an online application route.

Entry criteria are unusually explicit and subject-specific, which is helpful. The published requirements set minimum GCSE grades by subject for A-level routes, including stronger thresholds for Mathematics and Further Mathematics, and they also set criteria for technical Level 3 routes such as T Levels and BTEC engineering pathways.

Open events and decision-making

Open events are particularly important for a specialist school where facilities and course fit matter. The school published sixth form open events in January 2026, with booking via an external platform. If you are reading this later in the year, treat January as a typical open-event period and check the school’s events page for the next cycle.

For families weighing commute and daily logistics, FindMySchool’s Map Search tool can help you model realistic travel time against the school day start, especially if your child is joining at 14 and needs to settle quickly into punctual routines.

The pastoral structure is designed to support students who may be transitioning from other schools and may have varied prior experiences. Sixth form pastoral information highlights daily form time at 8:30am as both an organisational anchor and a forum for students to raise support needs, with form tutors positioned as the first point of contact for everyday issues.

Inspection evidence supports the picture of a safe and orderly setting, including calm behaviour, respectful relationships, and effective safeguarding arrangements.

Attendance is treated as a serious priority, with rapid follow-up on daily absence and punctuality. That is consistent with the school’s workplace-facing ethos, where routines and reliability are framed as employability behaviours, not just school rules.

Extracurricular provision at Brook is structured into the school day in a way that fits a technical model: shorter, regular sessions that sit just after the formal day and allow students to participate without the evening drift that can come with long commutes.

Clubs and activities published by the school include STEM- and project-leaning options such as Coding, Engineering, Science, and Magazine Club, with Karting Club also referenced within the sixth form enrichment offer.

Two wider features stand out as more distinctive than the club list alone:

• Employer engagement projects. The school describes a structured programme of employer-led projects, workplace visits, industry placements, and masterclasses intended to develop professional behaviours such as time management, teamwork, leadership, and communication.

• Student contribution and leadership. Inspection evidence references the Brook Tea student magazine and student council participation, plus outward-facing activities such as work with local primary pupils around Black History Month events.

Facilities also play directly into enrichment. The engineering workshops include a CAD room, a CNC machine shop, lathes and milling machines, fabrication, and an additive manufacturing suite (3D printers). The school also describes a bespoke media suite in development, planned to include a virtual production LED screen, editing suite, sound studio, and Apple Mac computer suites, linked to the nearby film studio context.

The published timings show registration at 8:30am, with lessons running from 9:00am and a formal teaching day ending at 3:00pm, followed by structured time for extracurricular and subject intervention. The school also indicates that some days run to 3:30pm to accommodate clubs.

Transport is a practical advantage here. The school states that Dagenham East tube station is a short walk away, which is relevant for students travelling across East London and nearby Essex areas.

Because the school begins at Year 10, wraparound care is not usually a core part of provision in the way it can be for primary schools. Families who need supervised early arrival or late collection should confirm what is available beyond the published school day.

• Mid-secondary transfer is a big step. Joining at Year 10 can be positive for the right student, but it requires confidence and readiness to reset friendships and routines quickly. The school describes an induction and bridging approach, but families should ask what this looks like week by week for new starters.

• A-level outcomes are below England averages. The A-level grade distribution is materially lower than England averages on the measures available, so subject choice and staffing stability matter. Ask specifically about teaching continuity in your intended subjects and how independent study is monitored.

• This is not an EBacc-driven model. If your preference is a broad, traditional GCSE diet centred on EBacc subjects, Brook’s technical specialism may feel narrower. For students energised by engineering or media, the focus can be a strength.

• Facilities and programme delivery are central. The engineering offer is detailed and equipment-led, and the media facilities are described as evolving. Families should confirm what is currently available versus planned, particularly for media applicants.

Brook Sixth Form and Academy suits students who want a purposeful, technical pathway from age 14, and who respond well to clear routines, applied learning, and employer-facing projects. The strongest fit is a student who wants engineering, computing, or media to be part of everyday learning rather than an occasional enrichment activity, and who values a smaller setting where staff know them well.

The limiting factor is not price, this is a state school with no tuition fees, but fit. Families should weigh the benefits of specialism and facilities against below-average exam outcomes in the available data, and do the work of matching course choices to the student’s strengths and ambitions.