The de Ferrers Academy
St Mary's Drive, Burton-on-Trent, DE13 0LL
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- AFFINITY LEARNING PARTNERSHIP
- Principal
- Mrs Alison Bickle
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Sponsor
- The de Ferrers Trust
- Constituency
- Burton and Uttoxeter
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 2,564
- Pupils on roll
- 2,403
- URN
- 136414
- Local authority
- Staffordshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01283247700
About this school
The de Ferrers Academy is a secondary academy in Burton-on-Trent. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 2,403 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
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 | 379 | 399 | 401 |
| Attainment 8 score | 44.8 | 45.4 | 46.5 |
| Progress 8 score | -0.06 -0.21 to +0.08 | +0.05 -0.09 to +0.20 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 47% | 45.6% | 47.6% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 63% | 64.4% | 66.8% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 41% | 26.6% | 38.7% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.1 |
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 The de Ferrers 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 | Staffordshire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 44.8 | 36.7 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 45.4 | 35 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 46.5 | 36.6 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 9.8% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 9.3% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 8% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 2,444 |
| 2023/24 | 2,467 |
| 2024/25 | 2,438 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How The de Ferrers Academy compares
The de Ferrers Academy ranked 18th of 56 secondary schools in Staffordshire 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 16% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 46.5 | 8% | 25.7% | 2,403 | — |
| Abbot Beyne School | 39.4 | 10.1% | 33% | 834 | 1.9 miles |
| Paulet High School | 41 | 7.9% | 26.2% | 915 | 2.9 miles |
| Paget High School | 38.5 | 8.9% | 29.8% | 606 | 3.1 miles |
| Blessed Robert Sutton Catholic Voluntary Academy | 46.7 | 6.3% | 23.4% | 632 | 3.2 miles |
| John Taylor Free School | 46.4 | 7.7% | 22.5% | 1,315 | 3.2 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.
Inspection history
- 24 October 2023
-
Ungraded inspection report5 May 2022
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 25.67%
- English as an additional language
- 27.6%
- Overall absence
- 8.03%
- Persistent absence
- 22.13%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Abbot Beyne School1.9 miles
Secondary · Burton-on-Trent
-
Paulet High School2.9 miles
Secondary · Burton-on-Trent
-
Paget High School3.1 miles
Secondary · Burton-on-Trent
-
Blessed Robert Sutton Catholic Voluntary Academy3.2 miles
Secondary · Burton-on-Trent
-
John Taylor Free School3.2 miles
Secondary · Burton-on-Trent
Other schools in Burton-on-Trent
The de Ferrers Academy ranks 3rd of the 7 ranked secondary schools in Burton-on-Trent.
- Abbot Beyne School Secondary
- Blessed Robert Sutton Catholic Voluntary Academy Secondary
- John Taylor Free School Secondary
- John Taylor High School Secondary
- Paget High School Secondary
- Paulet High School Secondary
- All Saints Church of England Primary and Nursery School Primary
- All Saints CofE (C) Primary School Primary
- Branston Locks Primary and Nursery School Primary
- Burton Fields School Primary
- Christ Church Primary School Primary
- Edge Hill Academy Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does The de Ferrers Academy teach?
- The de Ferrers Academy teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in Burton-on-Trent.
- Who is the principal of The de Ferrers Academy?
- The principal of The de Ferrers Academy is Mrs Alison Bickle, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was The de Ferrers Academy last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected The de Ferrers 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 The de Ferrers Academy?
- The de Ferrers Academy has 2,403 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is The de Ferrers Academy full?
- The de Ferrers Academy has capacity for 2,564 pupils and 2,403 on roll (94%), so it has space against 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 The de Ferrers Academy a faith school?
- No. The de Ferrers Academy has no designated religious character.
- Is The de Ferrers Academy a selective school?
- No. The de Ferrers Academy is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Who runs The de Ferrers Academy?
- The de Ferrers Academy is part of AFFINITY LEARNING PARTNERSHIP. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have The de Ferrers Academy's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 44.8 in 2022/23 and 46.5 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does The de Ferrers Academy rank locally?
- The de Ferrers Academy ranked 18th of 56 secondary schools in Staffordshire 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 16% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is The de Ferrers Academy's absence rate?
- The de Ferrers Academy's overall absence rate is 8% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are The de Ferrers Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, The de Ferrers 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.