St Peter’s Collegiate Academy Review 2026: A faith-rooted secondary with a clear improvement story

A school can feel unsettled when expectations shift, or it can feel purposeful. Here, the message to students is consistent: respect, service, aspiration, and the daily habits that make learning possible. The rhythm of the day includes form time or worship before lessons begin, which frames the academy’s Church of England character in a practical, not performative, way.

The headline external picture is now more positive than the older “Requires Improvement” label suggests. The latest Ofsted inspection, carried out on 25 and 26 March 2025, graded the academy Good across every judgement area, including sixth form provision.

For families, that combination matters. It points to a school that has stabilised core routines, tightened teaching consistency, and clarified what good behaviour looks like, while keeping a strong emphasis on personal development through clubs, trips, and leadership opportunities.

The academy’s identity is built around its Christian foundation and a broad welcome. The values of respect, service and aspiration are repeated across school life as a shared language for students and staff, and they are explicitly tied to the school’s understanding of its Church of England role.

What does that look like day to day. In practice, it is a school that puts calm routines first. Registration is scheduled as form time or worship, and the timetable is structured in five main teaching periods with clear social times. That predictability tends to support students who need certainty to feel secure, particularly in Key Stage 3 when the transition from primary can feel intense.

Leadership is clearly signposted. The senior team lists Mr T Mullen-Furness as Principal, supported by an Executive Principal role and vice principals with defined remits. For parents, that kind of clarity is useful because it usually correlates with consistent communication and fewer mixed messages when issues arise.

The most recent SIAMS inspection date matters for Church schools because it is an official check on whether the stated vision is being lived out. The academy reports a SIAMS inspection on 13 November 2024 with a J1 judgement, indicating strong alignment between vision and daily practice.

This is a mixed secondary with post-16, so the most helpful way to interpret performance is to look at GCSE outcomes, then separately at sixth form outcomes, and finally at the trajectory implied by external evaluation.

At GCSE level, the academy ranks 2,415th in England and 11th in Wolverhampton for GCSE outcomes (FindMySchool ranking based on official data). That sits in line with the middle 35% of schools in England (25th to 60th percentile), which is broadly consistent performance rather than standout results.

The underlying GCSE indicators reinforce that “steady but still improving” picture. Attainment 8 is 46.9. Progress 8 is -0.15, a signal that pupils, on average, made slightly below average progress from their starting points across eight subjects. EBacc outcomes are an area to watch, with 4.2% achieving grades 5 or above across EBacc and an EBacc average point score of 4.01.

Sixth form outcomes are currently a clearer challenge than the main school. Ranked 2,126th in England and 14th in Wolverhampton for A-level outcomes (FindMySchool ranking), the sixth form sits below England average. The grade distribution is 2.26% at A*, 9.02% at A, 18.42% at B, and 29.7% at A* to B. England averages are 23.6% for A* to A and 47.2% for A* to B, so the gap is material.

What parents should take from this. The academy is not presenting itself as a results-first institution. Instead, it appears to be consolidating consistency of teaching and behaviour, then building academic improvement on that foundation. External evaluation supports the view that this work is having impact, even if the outcomes data still shows unevenness across phases.

Parents comparing local options can use the FindMySchool Comparison Tool on the Wolverhampton Local Hub to view GCSE and A-level indicators side-by-side, including the percentile context that is hard to judge from raw numbers alone.

The most persuasive evidence of teaching quality is specificity. In the latest inspection documentation, subject “deep dives” included English, mathematics, science, history, sociology and modern foreign languages, which suggests a broad evaluation across both core and humanities. The write-up also describes a more consistent approach to teaching and curriculum sequencing than in the prior inspection cycle.

Reading is treated as a practical lever for improvement, rather than a slogan. The academy checks reading ages on entry and then uses planned support for students who need to build fluency, with form time reading and carefully selected texts as part of that daily routine.

For parents who want a window into departmental thinking, curriculum pages add useful texture. English, for example, describes regular reading time supported by Accelerated Reader and structured milestones in Key Stage 3, then a knowledge-heavy GCSE approach focused on quotations, academic language and exam readiness. The same page gives concrete enrichment examples, such as Year 7 Shakespeare-linked learning in Stratford-upon-Avon and participation in the Wolverhampton Young Authors Competition.

At sixth form, the academy is part of a joint post-16 model within the trust. The inspection report links sixth form improvement work directly to a revised approach following the prior year’s results, including collaboration with another trust school.

The academy does not appear to publish a numerical Russell Group breakdown on its website, so the most reliable picture comes from wider progression data and the academy’s recorded Oxbridge pathway.

For the 2023/24 leaver cohort (size 109), 57% progressed to university. Apprenticeships accounted for 7%, employment 6%, and further education 3%. That is a mixed set of outcomes, and it is often a better reflection of a comprehensive intake than a narrow focus on one destination type.

Oxbridge is present but small scale, which is typical outside the most selective schools. Over the measurement period, seven students applied to Oxford or Cambridge and one student accepted a place. The implication for families is that highly academic routes are possible with the right individual profile, but they are not the dominant destination story here.

Year 7 admission is coordinated through the local authority. For September 2026 entry, City of Wolverhampton Council lists an application deadline of 31 October 2025 and an allocation day of 3 March 2026.

As a Church of England academy, there is also a faith-related pathway families should understand. Wolverhampton’s admissions guidance identifies the academy as one of the schools requiring a Supplementary Information Form where applicable. The academy’s own published guidance for the 2026 intake also sets a separate closing date for the supporting evidence form for foundation places, Monday 1 December 2025, and it explains that the form must be returned directly to the academy rather than to the local authority.

Open events matter most when you are testing “fit”. The 2026 intake guidance shows an open evening in late September and daytime tours in early and mid October, which suggests a familiar annual pattern. For families planning ahead for a later year, it is reasonable to expect open events around September to October, with booking details confirmed on the academy’s website closer to the time.

Sixth form entry is open to internal and external applicants. The published sixth form admissions policy sets a minimum entry threshold of at least six GCSE grades at 4 or above, with 4 in both GCSE English and GCSE Maths, plus subject-specific grade requirements for particular courses. Acceptance is tied to GCSE results day, with enrolment arrangements published annually.

If catchment distance is a deciding factor for your family, FindMySchoolMap Search is the most practical way to sanity-check travel time and proximity, particularly when several Wolverhampton schools sit close together and small address differences can change the daily commute.

Pastoral strength is often visible in behaviour, attendance, and the extent to which students can concentrate in lessons. The latest inspection documentation describes students being able to focus without interruption, with orderly social times, and it also emphasises improved attendance as a deliberate priority.

SEND support is framed as improving, with needs identified clearly and staff given information to support learning, while acknowledging that some subjects still use that information more effectively than others. For parents of children with additional needs, the key question to ask at transition is not whether support exists, but how consistently it is implemented across departments, and what the escalation route is if it is not.

The inspection report also confirmed safeguarding arrangements as effective, which should reassure families that the basics of keeping children safe are being handled properly.

A school’s broader offer is only meaningful when it is concrete. The academy publishes an enrichment timetable, and it shows a mix of academic support, creative opportunities, and sport, spread across lunchtime and after school.

On the creative side, there is a Year 7 Choir, a Training Band, and a Full Orchestra. For students who enjoy performance, the enrichment list also includes a Key Stage 3 Drama Club and a Dance Club. The implication is that music and performance are treated as normal parts of school life, not occasional add-ons for a small minority.

On the academic support and stretch side, the programme includes a Key Stage 3 Code Club, a Science Club, and a Maths Homework and Challenge Club, plus regular Key Stage 3 homework club sessions across the week. This can be particularly valuable for families who want structured after-school learning without relying on private tutoring.

Sport is a major pillar. Published PE timetables for autumn include netball, volleyball, football, rugby, badminton, fitness sessions, and multiple basketball options across year groups, including sixth form. Table tennis is listed as a paid option with a professional coach, which indicates some specialist provision sits alongside the free clubs programme.

Trips add breadth when they align with curriculum intent. English enrichment examples include a Year 7 visit linked to Shakespeare study and engagement in a local young authors competition, plus theatre experiences for Key Stage 4.

School day

Registration runs from 8.30am to 9.00am, followed by five main lesson periods. The day ends at 3.00pm. Key Stage 3 and Key Stages 4 and 5 have slightly different break and lunchtime timings, with the overall weekly allocation shown as 32.5 hours.

Term dates

The academy publishes term dates for 2025 to 2026, including INSET days and half term windows.

Transport

The academy publishes school bus route information and links this to National Express provision, with timetables available for the Compton Park schools routes. Families who plan to rely on buses should validate timings against the most recent timetable before committing to an option.

Costs

This is a state school with no tuition fees. Families should still budget for uniform, transport, and optional extras such as some trips and some paid activities where indicated.

• Sixth form outcomes are the main weakness in the published performance picture. A-level grades sit below England averages so families who are sixth form focused should ask for subject-level outcomes, class size expectations, and how the joint provision is structured day to day.

• Progress 8 is slightly negative. That does not mean students do not achieve, but it does suggest that consistency of progress across subjects is still an active improvement priority.

• Faith-related admissions may involve extra paperwork. If you are applying under a foundation criteria route, you will need to manage both the main local authority application and the academy’s supporting evidence process, with deadlines that can fall after the council deadline.

• Enrichment is substantial, but some options can be paid. If cost sensitivity matters, check which clubs are free and which are fee-based before promising a child a particular activity.

St Peter’s Collegiate Academy looks like a school that has made meaningful operational improvements, with clearer behaviour expectations, stronger teaching consistency, and an external inspection profile that has moved firmly into Good across all judgement areas. The outcomes data is mixed, with GCSE indicators broadly typical for England and sixth form results currently lagging behind, so it will suit families who value stability, pastoral clarity, and a broad enrichment offer as much as headline grades.

Who it suits: students who respond well to clear routines, benefit from structured academic support, and want accessible clubs in music, sport, and academic extension, within a Church of England ethos that welcomes families of different backgrounds.