Oxford Spires Academy
Glanville Road, Oxford, OX4 2AU
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 11 to 19
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- ANTHEM SCHOOLS TRUST
- Principal
- Mrs Louise Cowley
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Religious ethos
- None
- Sponsor
- Anthem Schools Trust
- Constituency
- Oxford East
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,050
- Pupils on roll
- 1,351
- URN
- 136261
- Local authority
- Oxfordshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01865428200
About this school
Oxford Spires Academy is a secondary academy in Oxford. It teaches children aged 11 to 19 and has 1,351 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. Numbers and a report only go so far, so visit in person before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Overall judgement at the last full inspection
This inspection took place under the previous framework, which gave a single overall grade. Ofsted now publishes report cards instead, so newer inspections of other schools will look different. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Good
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Good
- Personal development
- Good
- Leadership and management
- Good
- Sixth form
- Good
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 214 | 217 | 215 |
| Attainment 8 score | 48.2 | 48.8 | 46.3 |
| Progress 8 score | +0.28 +0.08 to +0.47 | +0.53 +0.34 to +0.73 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 49% | 52.5% | 49.8% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 64% | 69.1% | 70.7% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 57% | 43.3% | 53.5% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 4.5 | 4.4 | 4.2 |
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 Oxford Spires Academy has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Oxfordshire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 48.2 | 38.1 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 48.8 | 37.2 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 46.3 | 37.5 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 10.9% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 11.2% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 10.2% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,345 |
| 2023/24 | 1,317 |
| 2024/25 | 1,306 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Oxford Spires Academy compares
Oxford Spires Academy ranked 19th of 41 secondary schools in Oxfordshire for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 63% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 7% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 46.3 | 10.2% | 28.1% | 1,351 | — |
| Greyfriars Catholic School | 34 | 9.7% | 31.4% | 669 | 0.5 miles |
| Cheney School | 46 | 10.8% | 27% | 1,706 | 0.7 miles |
| The Oxford Academy | 33.6 | 13.7% | 52.7% | 1,062 | 1.4 miles |
| The Swan School | 55.4 | 7.2% | 21.8% | 1,057 | 2.2 miles |
| The Cherwell School | 58.3 | 7.2% | 18.6% | 2,023 | 2.8 miles |
Results reflect each school's cohort as much as its teaching, and free school meals share is context, not a judgement. Small gaps between neighbouring schools are rarely meaningful on their own.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 28.11%
- English as an additional language
- 39.4%
- Overall absence
- 10.18%
- Persistent absence
- 27.96%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Greyfriars Catholic School0.5 miles
Secondary · Oxford
-
Cheney School0.7 miles
Secondary · Oxford
-
The Oxford Academy1.4 miles
Secondary · Oxford
-
The Swan School2.2 miles
Secondary · Oxford
-
The Cherwell School2.8 miles
Secondary · Oxford
Other schools in Oxford
Oxford Spires Academy ranks 5th of the 8 ranked secondary schools in Oxford.
- Cheney School Secondary
- Greyfriars Catholic School Secondary
- Matthew Arnold School Secondary
- The Cherwell School Secondary
- The Oxford Academy Secondary
- The Swan School Secondary
- Wheatley Park School Secondary
- Comper Nursery School Nursery
- Grandpont Nursery School Nursery
- Headington Quarry Nursery School Nursery
- Slade Nursery School Nursery
- Wheatley Nursery School Nursery
Common questions
- What year groups does Oxford Spires Academy teach?
- Oxford Spires Academy teaches children aged 11 to 19. It is a secondary school in Oxford.
- Who is the principal of Oxford Spires Academy?
- The principal of Oxford Spires Academy is Mrs Louise Cowley, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Oxford Spires Academy last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Oxford Spires Academy, 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 Oxford Spires Academy?
- Oxford Spires Academy has 1,351 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 19.
- Is Oxford Spires Academy full?
- Oxford Spires Academy has capacity for 1,050 pupils and 1,351 on roll (129%), so it is at or above its published capacity. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Oxford Spires Academy a faith school?
- No. Oxford Spires Academy has no designated religious character.
- Is Oxford Spires Academy a selective school?
- No. Oxford Spires Academy is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Who runs Oxford Spires Academy?
- Oxford Spires Academy is part of ANTHEM SCHOOLS TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Oxford Spires Academy's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 48.2 in 2022/23 and 46.3 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Oxford Spires Academy rank locally?
- Oxford Spires Academy ranked 19th of 41 secondary schools in Oxfordshire for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 63% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 7% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Oxford Spires Academy's absence rate?
- Oxford Spires Academy's overall absence rate is 10.2% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Oxford Spires Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Oxford Spires Academy'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 1 July 2026.