Athena School
South Park, Lincoln, LN5 8EL
- Phase
- Special schools
- School type
- Community special school
- Ages
- 11 to 16
- Gender
- Mixed
- Headteacher
- Miss Michelle Bunn
- Federation
- The Fortuna Athena Federation
- SEN provision
- SEMH - Social, Emotional and Mental Health
- Constituency
- Lincoln
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 115
- Pupils on roll
- 112
- URN
- 131277
- Local authority
- Lincolnshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01522534559
About this school
Athena School is a community special school in Lincoln. It teaches children aged 11 to 16 and has 112 pupils on roll.
You can read Ofsted's latest judgement for the school below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Seeing a school for yourself shows what no page can, so arrange a visit before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 12 February 2025, where inspectors found that standards have been maintained. The school's last full inspection took place before September 2019, so its area grades are not part of Ofsted's current published data. Older reports are on the school's Ofsted page.
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 16 | 23 | 23 |
| Attainment 8 score | 11.5 | 6.4 | 6.0 |
| Progress 8 score | -1.37 -2.11 to -0.62 | -1.63 -2.24 to -1.03 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 13% | 0% | 0% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 1.0 | 0.7 | 0.6 |
Progress 8 is paused nationally for the 2024/25 and 2025/26 school years. Those pupils sat no key stage 2 tests during the Covid pandemic, so there is no starting point to measure progress from. A blank figure here is not missing school data.
Trends over time
How Athena School has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Lincolnshire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 11.5 | 42.9 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 6.4 | 41.1 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 6 | 39.8 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 18.5% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 21% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 19.9% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 108 |
| 2023/24 | 113 |
| 2024/25 | 118 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 61.02%
- English as an additional language
- 0.8%
- Overall absence
- 19.94%
- Persistent absence
- 44.63%
Location
Nearby schools
-
University of Lincoln0.8 miles
Universities · Lincoln
-
Lincolnshire Secure Unit1.0 miles
Other types · Lincoln
-
Lincoln Minster School1.2 miles
Independent schools · Lincoln
-
Lincoln Bishop University1.8 miles
Universities · Lincoln
-
The Lincoln St Christopher's School1.9 miles
Special schools · Lincoln
Other schools in Lincoln
- Acacia School Special schools
- Acorn Free School Free Schools
- Fortuna School Special schools
- Kisimul School Special schools
- Lincolnshire Secure Unit Other types
- Springwell Alternative Academy Lincoln Free Schools
- The Lincoln St Christopher's School Special schools
- The St Francis Special School, Lincoln Special schools
- The Willows School Special schools
- The Kingsdown Nursery School, Lincoln Nursery
- The Lincoln St Giles Nursery School Nursery
- Bardney Church of England and Methodist Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does Athena School teach?
- Athena School teaches children aged 11 to 16. It is a special school in Lincoln.
- Who is the headteacher of Athena School?
- The headteacher of Athena School is Miss Michelle Bunn, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Athena School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Athena School, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How big is Athena School?
- Athena School has 112 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 16.
- Is Athena School full?
- Athena School has capacity for 115 pupils and 112 on roll (97%), so it is close to full. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Athena School a faith school?
- No. Athena School has no designated religious character.
- Who runs Athena School?
- Athena School is part of the The Fortuna Athena Federation federation. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- What SEN provision does Athena School have?
- The schools register lists Athena School's special educational needs provision as: SEMH - Social, Emotional and Mental Health. Contact the school to discuss how it would support a particular child.
- How have Athena School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 11.5 in 2022/23 and 6 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- What is Athena School's absence rate?
- Athena School's overall absence rate is 19.9% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Athena School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Athena School's key stage results are shown in the results section on this page, with the last three years so you can see the trend rather than a single year.
School details come from the Department for Education's Get Information About Schools register. Inspection outcomes come from Ofsted, and exam results from the Department for Education's school performance service. This page was last updated on 30 June 2026.