Newcastle Academy Review 2026: Community-focused 11 to 16 provision with improving momentum

A clear theme here is rebuilding confidence and consistency, with leadership and culture set out in simple, repeatable messages. The school’s published values, honour, positivity and excellence, are expected to show up in day-to-day behaviour, as well as in rewards and leadership roles for pupils.

The most recent Ofsted inspection (7 and 8 November 2023) judged the school Good overall, and Good across quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, and leadership and management.

For families, the practical question is fit. Newcastle Academy is an 11 to 16 school, so post-16 pathways sit outside the site and depend on local sixth form and college options. Entry at Year 7 is competitive, with 247 applications for 105 offers in the most recent published admissions snapshot, which equates to around 2.35 applications per place.

There is a strong emphasis on community, routines, and shared language. Pupils are expected to understand and demonstrate the values the school promotes, and staff set high expectations for behaviour in lessons and around the site. Inspectors described bullying as rare, with pupils confident that issues are dealt with quickly.

Leadership has a visible, communication-led tone. Mr Will Trugeon-Smith is the headteacher, and his role on the Local Community Committee is shown with a term start date of 01 October 2025. His introductory letter to families sets out priorities that are easy for pupils and parents to recognise in practice, standards, attendance, participation, and a push for pupils to be known as individuals while feeling part of something larger than themselves.

The school also presents itself as a smaller setting where relationships matter. In an open event write-up, the headteacher describes the school as “a small school with a big heart”, linked to a focus on every child being known and supported. That framing matters for families weighing up whether they want a bigger, more anonymous secondary, or a place that leans into familiarity and consistency.

Newcastle Academy is ranked 3,753rd in England and 27th in Newcastle for GCSE outcomes (FindMySchool ranking based on official data), which places it below England average overall.

The attainment and progress picture in the available dataset points to a cohort that, on average, has not been achieving as strongly as peers nationally. An Attainment 8 score of 30.5 and a Progress 8 score of -1.19 indicate that outcomes, and progress from starting points, have been weaker than families typically hope for.

What that means in practice is that the school’s improvement work needs to be visible in day-to-day teaching, curriculum choices, and intervention. The 2023 inspection narrative supports the idea that the school has tightened its curriculum planning, improved staff training, and increased expectations, but also signals priorities that tend to affect results over time, particularly reading culture and attendance.

Parents comparing outcomes locally should use the FindMySchool Local Hub page to view GCSE measures side-by-side and to track whether improvement is sustained across multiple cohorts, rather than relying on a single set of figures.

Curriculum intent is clearly stated. At Key Stage 3, students follow a broad programme including English, mathematics, science, art, geography, history, computing, French, music and drama, physical education, religious education, and personal, social, health and economic education (PSHE), alongside a Character Curriculum and technology. The implication for families is breadth first, before narrowing choices later.

At Key Stage 4, options are introduced in Year 10, and the school describes an approach designed to keep GCSE and vocational routes open, including an English Baccalaureate pathway for those who choose it, rather than making it mandatory for all. Subjects listed as option routes include a mix of academic and applied courses, for example Computer Science, Film Studies, Triple Science, Health and Social Care (BTEC), Engineering (BTEC), Construction (BTEC), and Creative iMedia (BTEC). For many students, that mix is practical, it lets them combine the core academic requirements with courses that align to local labour markets and post-16 college programmes.

A distinctive strand is literacy and communication. The school describes a “Quality First Communication” approach aimed at developing fluent readers, confident listeners, and accurate writers, and notes that Years 7 to 10 are enrolled on Bedrock Learning for explicit vocabulary teaching. The implication is a deliberate attempt to raise reading and writing confidence across subjects, not only in English. This aligns with the inspection focus on reading ages on entry and the wider push for a stronger reading culture, even while acknowledging that impact takes time to embed.

Because the school finishes at Year 11, the key transition is post-16. In practice, families should expect students to move into a mix of sixth form colleges, further education colleges, apprenticeships, or training providers, depending on grades, interests, and local availability.

Careers education is part of the school’s stated offer, and the 2023 inspection describes an approach that is being developed to include a wider work experience offer for all pupils. The practical implication is that families should ask two concrete questions during open events or transition meetings: what does work experience look like by year group, and how are students supported to choose between academic and vocational post-16 routes.

For parents who want a structured way to compare options, it is sensible to shortlist nearby sixth form and college destinations early, then use Saved Schools to keep track of entry requirements, travel time, and subject availability.

Year 7 entry is coordinated through the local authority, not directly through the school. For September 2026 entry, Newcastle Academy publishes the same key dates as Staffordshire County Council: applications open 1 September 2025, close 31 October 2025, and decisions are issued on 2 March 2026.

Demand is real. The most recent admissions snapshot shows 247 applications for 105 offers, and the school is described as oversubscribed on that measure. Without a published last-offered distance figure here, families should avoid assumptions about how far out places typically go and should instead focus on the published oversubscription criteria and realistic travel plans.

Open events provide a useful window into expectations and routines. For the 2026 admissions cycle, the school listed multiple open events across early October, including one evening and several daytime slots, with a booking form on the school website. Where the dates shown are historical, the safe assumption is that the pattern repeats in early October each year, but families should always check the current year’s calendar.

Parents can also use the FindMySchool Map Search to estimate travel time and compare it to likely alternatives. While distance alone cannot confirm admission, it is still an important practical filter for day-to-day attendance and punctuality.

Pastoral messaging is explicit and sits alongside PSHE and safeguarding. The school describes PSHE as a discrete programme supporting healthy lifestyles and relationships, and links this to spiritual, moral, social and cultural development and British values education. The implication for families is that personal development is not treated as an optional add-on but as part of the weekly structure.

Behaviour expectations are framed around calm starts and finishes to lessons, consistent routines, and a rewards system pupils understand. A realistic point for parents to probe is attendance, which the inspection narrative highlights as a priority area due to higher-than-desired absence. If a child has anxiety-related absence or medical needs, families should discuss how attendance support works in practice and what escalation steps look like.

Support for additional needs is referenced through “personalised plans” and a stated approach to removing barriers to learning for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities. Families should ask how these plans are reviewed, who leads them, and how quickly support can flex if needs change mid-year.

Extracurricular provision is positioned as an extension of learning and belonging, with a structured programme across lunchtimes, after school, and targeted Key Stage 4 intervention. The school publishes a weekly schedule, which is helpful because it moves the conversation from generalities to specifics.

Several clubs stand out because they link to curriculum ambition and confidence-building. Robotics appears as a club option, which is often a practical hook for students who engage best through building and problem solving. Paired with CREST (Science) on the same schedule, it suggests a STEM strand that can translate into motivation for science and technology options later.

Creative and cultural opportunities are also visible. Choir, drama, art club, watercolour club, textiles, fashion-related sessions, and music options such as ukulele create accessible entry points for students who thrive when performance and making are part of their week. The implication is that the school is trying to give more than one route to confidence, not only through sport or academic intervention.

Sport is present in both inclusive and targeted formats, for example indoor football by year group, netball, badminton, and girls’ football, alongside a named Stoke City Girls activity. For families, the useful question is participation: which clubs run consistently each term, and how the school supports students to try something new rather than sticking to a familiar group.

The published school day begins with gates opening at 8.20am, followed by registration and form time, and finishes at 3.15pm. Optional after-school clubs run from 3.15pm to 4.00pm.

For transport planning, Staffordshire’s secondary admissions guidance explicitly prompts families to consider travel and to check eligibility for home-to-school travel assistance where relevant. Wraparound care is not typically a feature of secondary settings in the same way as primary schools, so families who need supervision beyond 4.00pm should ask directly what supervised provision exists outside the published club window.

• Outcomes and progress need careful scrutiny. The current GCSE outcomes ranking places the school below England average, and the Progress 8 figure in the available dataset is substantially negative. Families should ask what has changed in curriculum, staffing, and intervention since the last cohort measured, and how improvement is being tracked.

• Attendance is a stated priority. External review highlights that absence has been higher than it should be, and the school is working with families to address it. If your child has a history of attendance anxiety, probe the support plan early.

• Oversubscription makes planning important. With 247 applications for 105 offers in the latest snapshot, admission is competitive. Families should list multiple preferences and plan transport to realistic alternatives.

• Post-16 is off site. As an 11 to 16 school, the quality of transition guidance matters. Ask how the school supports applications to colleges, apprenticeships, and training routes, and what work experience opportunities are available.

Newcastle Academy presents as a school with an increasingly consistent message: strong routines, clear expectations, and a community feel that aims to ensure pupils are known and supported. The latest inspection outcome is Good, and the published curriculum and extracurricular detail show a structured approach to breadth, literacy, and confidence-building.

Best suited to families who want a smaller-feeling 11 to 16 setting with explicit values, clear daily routines, and practical options at Key Stage 4. The main challenge is weighing the improvement narrative against outcome measures that, at present, sit below England average, and making a realistic admissions plan in an oversubscribed local market.