Coppice Performing Arts School Review 2026: Performing arts identity, strong culture, improving outcomes

A secondary school that trades heavily on performance and participation, with a curriculum and enrichment model designed to get students involved, not just through lessons but through structured wider programmes. Behaviour and day-to-day routines are a clear strength, and leadership is established through the Central Learning Partnership Trust (CLPT), with a Head of School appointed from September 2025.

Academically, the picture is mixed. GCSE outcomes sit below England average overall, and Progress 8 is negative, which matters for families prioritising headline exam measures. Sixth form outcomes, by contrast, look closer to typical for England and compare more favourably on A level grade distribution. This is a school many families will weigh for its culture, performing arts offer, and pastoral security, while keeping a close eye on academic trajectory and subject consistency.

Relationships are a defining feature. Students describe staff as caring and expectations as clear, with calm day-to-day conduct and a shared understanding that poor behaviour is dealt with quickly. The tone is purposeful, with students encouraged to participate and to take pride in representing the school across activities.

Leadership is structured around an Executive Headteacher role at trust level and a Head of School leading Coppice day to day. The current Head of School is Mrs Joanna Thomas, appointed from 01 September 2025 (GIAS appointment record), with Mrs Georgetta Holloway OBE named in senior leadership communications as part of the CLPT structure.

The physical environment supports the school’s identity. A major rebuild programme culminated in a final building phase opened in January 2013, including specialist teaching areas for Art, Technology and ICT, alongside facilities positioned to support performance and sport.

FindMySchool’s GCSE ranking places Coppice at 3,021st in England and 16th in Wolverhampton for GCSE outcomes (proprietary FindMySchool ranking based on official data). This sits below England average overall (bottom 40% of schools in England by this measure).

Key GCSE indicators from the latest dataset show:

• Attainment 8: 43.7

• Progress 8: -0.62

• EBacc APS: 3.33 (England average: 4.08)

• Pupils achieving grades 5+ in EBacc: 2.2%

Taken together, this suggests that while the wider curriculum may be broad in structure, EBacc uptake and outcomes are low, and overall progress from starting points is a central challenge to watch. (Families comparing local options can use the FindMySchool Local Hub and Comparison Tool to view these measures side by side.)

At sixth form, outcomes look more stable. FindMySchool’s A level ranking places Coppice 1,125th in England and 6th in Wolverhampton for A level outcomes (proprietary FindMySchool ranking based on official data), broadly in line with the middle 35% of schools in England (25th to 60th percentile).

A level grade distribution:

• A star: 6.25%

• A: 10%

• B: 37.5%

• A star to B: 53.75% (England average A star to B: 47.2%)

That A star to B rate suggests a sixth form where many students achieve solid outcomes, even if top-end grades (A star and A) are below the England benchmark shown.

The curriculum model emphasises breadth early, then structured choice. The school describes a two-year Key Stage 3 approach in Years 7 and 8, with a thematic model designed to build skills and independence, before options routes in Years 9 to 11 that combine GCSEs and vocational pathways.

Lesson practice is designed around clarity and recall. Teachers use recap activities to strengthen long-term knowledge, and classroom questioning is used to probe understanding and promote discussion. Where this works consistently, it supports students who benefit from routine and explicit teaching.

Subject consistency is the key pressure point. The main area identified for improvement is ensuring science is delivered as effectively as stronger areas, with more rigorous checking of prior knowledge. Reading support also matters for students at early stages of fluency, where phonics approaches were described as recently implemented and needing embedding.

For families thinking beyond Year 11, Coppice sits within a shared post-16 model. Central Sixth operates as a joint sixth form across Coppice, Heath Park and Moseley Park, with students accessing courses across settings.

Leaver destinations data for the 2023 to 2024 cohort (cohort size 61) indicates:

• 49% progressed to university

• 7% started apprenticeships

• 20% entered employment

• 2% moved into further education

The sixth form also offers enrichment alongside courses. A structured personal development model (the Excellence Academy) includes opportunities such as student writing for an e-magazine, debate-based societies, and themed programmes linked to participation and leadership.

Coppice is a non-selective state school, so there are no tuition fees, and admissions sit within Wolverhampton’s coordinated process. The school signposts families to read the admissions policy carefully and notes that the application deadline is 31 October for the normal round.

For September 2026 Year 7 entry in Wolverhampton, the local authority admissions documentation confirms:

• online applications open in September 2025

• applications should be submitted by 31 October 2025

A Wolverhampton-area admissions document aligned to the coordinated scheme also states that offers are released on 01 March 2026 (or the next working day if relevant).

Demand is strong. In the most recent admissions cycle captured for this school, there were 508 applications for 174 offers, which is about 2.92 applications per place, indicating oversubscription.

For post-16 entry, Central Sixth publishes application deadlines:

• internal applications by Monday 08 December 2025

• external applications by Friday 16 January 2026

Open events appear to follow an autumn pattern. Historical local authority materials list early October open sessions for Coppice, with some listed as by appointment, which suggests families should check each year’s booking arrangements.

Parents weighing distance should use the FindMySchool Map Search to check travel practicality and compare against alternative schools, particularly where oversubscription limits realistic choice.

Behaviour is an established strength. The latest Ofsted inspection (October 2022) graded the school Good overall, with Outstanding judgements for Behaviour and Attitudes and for Leadership and Management.

Students report that bullying is rare and that staff respond when concerns are raised. Safeguarding practice is described as embedded, with staff training and referral processes designed to respond quickly when families need help from external services. Ofsted also confirmed that safeguarding arrangements are effective.

Personal development is structured, not left to chance. The personal, social and health education programme is described as coherent and responsive, and careers education is positioned as part of a planned approach from Year 7 onward, supporting students to make informed choices at Key Stage 4 and post-16.

Performing arts is not just a label here. Students access Dance, Drama and Music as curriculum subjects, and enrichment routes build on that through performance opportunities and studio-based work.

Two structured programmes stand out for specificity:

• The Excellence Academy acts as a framework for wider learning, including debate, cultural societies, student leadership, and participation projects. Examples include Up for Debate, The Shakespeare Society, and themed societies such as the EPAS Excellence Academy Society.

• STEM participation is also visible through named activities, including STEM Club (practical builds and challenges) and a linked climate-focused group, Coppice Climate Club.

For students who engage best through doing, the wider offer provides multiple entry points. Language enrichment includes Club de Español, and enterprise-style learning appears through programmes such as Young Enterprise activity linked to the Excellence Academy.

Sport is part of the routine, with a published timetable of clubs and sessions across year groups, and a post-16 Football Academy option referenced within sixth form navigation.

The published school day for Years 7 to 11 begins with arrival at 8:40am, registration from 8:45am to 9:05am, and the final period ending at 3:00pm. The school also states that additional after-school provision typically runs 3:00pm to 4:00pm.

Sixth form runs a session-based timetable, finishing at 3:00pm, with transport to partner schools operating around the minibus schedule where students are travelling between sites for Central Sixth courses.

• GCSE progress is a key watch point. A Progress 8 score of -0.62 suggests students, on average, make less progress than peers with similar starting points. Families should explore how the school supports progress for their child’s attainment profile, including support for reading fluency.

• EBacc entry is very low in the latest dataset. With 2.2% achieving grades 5+ in EBacc, this may matter for families prioritising languages and a traditional EBacc pathway, even while the school maintains a broad curriculum offer.

• Central Sixth requires maturity about travel and independence. A shared sixth form can widen subject choice, but it also means some students move between partner sites, which suits confident, organised learners best.

• Admission remains competitive. Oversubscription means families should have realistic backup preferences and understand the Wolverhampton coordinated process well before the October deadline.

Coppice Performing Arts School is strongest where culture, behaviour, and participation are the drivers of success. For many students, especially those who gain confidence through performance, clubs, leadership opportunities and structured enrichment, it can feel like a place that gives them reasons to belong and clear expectations to meet. The main strategic question is academic trajectory at GCSE, where progress measures and EBacc outcomes are weaker than many families will want.

Best suited to students who will engage with the school’s wider programmes and respond well to structured routines, and to families who value a strong behavioural culture while actively monitoring academic progress and support, particularly in literacy and science.