Rushcliffe Spencer Academy
Boundary Road, West Bridgford, Nottingham, NG2 7BW
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- THE SPENCER ACADEMIES TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mrs Sarah Sismey
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Sponsor
- The Spencer Academies Trust
- Constituency
- Rushcliffe
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,920
- Pupils on roll
- 2,039
- URN
- 138482
- Local authority
- Nottinghamshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01159744050
About this school
Rushcliffe Spencer Academy is a secondary academy in Nottingham. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 2,039 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Rushcliffe Spencer Academy, and its latest judgement is set out 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 did not give an overall grade. Between September 2024 and September 2025 inspections graded each area of a school's work without a single overall judgement, ahead of the move to report cards. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Outstanding
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Outstanding
- Personal development
- Outstanding
- Leadership and management
- Outstanding
- Sixth form
- Outstanding
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 331 | 315 | 297 |
| Attainment 8 score | 59.2 | 59.4 | 58.1 |
| Progress 8 score | +0.84 +0.68 to +0.99 | +0.69 +0.53 to +0.85 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 72% | 74.6% | 73.7% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 87% | 88.6% | 86.2% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 40% | 41.6% | 41.4% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 5.2 | 5.3 | 5.2 |
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 Rushcliffe Spencer 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 | Nottinghamshire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 59.2 | 39.2 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 59.4 | 39.8 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 58.1 | 39.7 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 7.5% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 8.1% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 7.5% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 2,000 |
| 2023/24 | 2,014 |
| 2024/25 | 2,032 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Rushcliffe Spencer Academy compares
Rushcliffe Spencer Academy ranked 2nd of 44 secondary schools in Nottinghamshire for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 91% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 21% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 58.1 | 7.5% | 11.3% | 2,039 | — |
| The West Bridgford School | 62.9 | 4.5% | 6.4% | 1,809 | 0.7 miles |
| The Becket School | 57.3 | 5.8% | 18.9% | 1,157 | 1.5 miles |
| The Nottingham Emmanuel School | 44.2 | 7.6% | 48.4% | 1,108 | 1.7 miles |
| Farnborough Spencer Academy | 38.9 | 11.1% | 43.6% | 1,005 | 1.8 miles |
| Nottingham University Academy of Science and Technology | 51.1 | 6.3% | 41.2% | 928 | 2.9 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)
- 11.28%
- English as an additional language
- 10.9%
- Overall absence
- 7.47%
- Persistent absence
- 16.66%
Location
Nearby schools
-
The West Bridgford School0.7 miles
Secondary · Nottingham
-
The Becket School1.5 miles
Secondary · West Bridgford
-
The Nottingham Emmanuel School1.7 miles
Secondary · West Bridgford
-
Farnborough Spencer Academy1.8 miles
Secondary · Nottingham
-
Nottingham University Academy of Science and Technology2.9 miles
Secondary · Nottingham
Other schools in Nottingham
Rushcliffe Spencer Academy ranks 2nd of the 42 ranked secondary schools in Nottingham.
- Aldercar High School Secondary
- Alderman White School Secondary
- Arnold Hill Spencer Academy Secondary
- Ashfield Comprehensive School Secondary
- Bluecoat Aspley Academy Secondary
- Bluecoat Beechdale Academy Secondary
- Bluecoat Trent Academy Secondary
- Bluecoat Wollaton Academy Secondary
- Bramcote College Secondary
- Carlton Academy Secondary
- Chilwell School Secondary
- Christ The King Voluntary Academy Secondary
Common questions
- What ages does Rushcliffe Spencer Academy teach?
- Rushcliffe Spencer Academy teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in Nottingham.
- Who is the headteacher of Rushcliffe Spencer Academy?
- The headteacher of Rushcliffe Spencer Academy is Mrs Sarah Sismey, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Rushcliffe Spencer Academy been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Rushcliffe Spencer 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 many pupils are at Rushcliffe Spencer Academy?
- Rushcliffe Spencer Academy has 2,039 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is Rushcliffe Spencer Academy full?
- Rushcliffe Spencer Academy has capacity for 1,920 pupils and 2,039 on roll (106%), 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 Rushcliffe Spencer Academy a faith school?
- No. Rushcliffe Spencer Academy has no designated religious character.
- Is Rushcliffe Spencer Academy a selective school?
- No. Rushcliffe Spencer Academy is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Is Rushcliffe Spencer Academy part of an academy trust?
- Rushcliffe Spencer Academy is part of THE SPENCER ACADEMIES TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Rushcliffe Spencer Academy's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 59.2 in 2022/23 and 58.1 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Rushcliffe Spencer Academy compare with other schools in Nottinghamshire?
- Rushcliffe Spencer Academy ranked 2nd of 44 secondary schools in Nottinghamshire for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 91% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 21% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Rushcliffe Spencer Academy's absence rate?
- Rushcliffe Spencer Academy's overall absence rate is 7.5% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Rushcliffe Spencer Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Rushcliffe Spencer 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.