Birchills Church of England Community Academy
Farringdon Street, Walsall, WS2 8NF
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 3 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Trust
- ST CHAD'S ACADEMIES TRUST
- Headteacher
- Miss G Poole
- Diocese
- Diocese of Lichfield
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Sponsor
- St Chad's Academies Trust
- Constituency
- Walsall and Bloxwich
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 420
- Pupils on roll
- 442
- URN
- 139435
- Local authority
- Walsall
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01922721063
About this school
Birchills Church of England Community Academy is a Church of England primary academy in Walsall. It teaches children aged 3 to 11 and has 442 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
- Early years
- Good
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 62 | 60 | 60 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 37% | 30% | 37% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 6% | 0% | 0% |
| Expected standard in reading | 56% | 55% | 53% |
| Expected standard in maths | 45% | 48% | 42% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 60% | 53% | 50% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 104.0 | 102.0 | 102.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 102.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 |
| Reading progress | +0.10 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -0.10 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -1.10 | - | - |
Progress measures ended nationally after the 2022/23 school year, when the key stage 1 assessments they were based on were stopped. Blank progress figures in later years are not missing school data.
Trends over time
How Birchills Church of England Community 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 | Walsall average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 37% | 56.4% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 30% | 57.3% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 37% | 57.2% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 8.6% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 8.7% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 7.5% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 453 |
| 2023/24 | 443 |
| 2024/25 | 442 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Birchills Church of England Community Academy compares
Birchills Church of England Community Academy ranked 57th of 61 primary schools in Walsall for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 10% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 20% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 37% | 7.5% | 45.4% | 442 | — |
| St Patrick's Catholic Primary School, Walsall | 66% | 5.1% | 39.3% | 223 | 0.2 miles |
| Croft Academy | 60% | 5.4% | 67.2% | 246 | 0.3 miles |
| Reedswood E-ACT Academy | 83% | 4.9% | 42.6% | 478 | 0.5 miles |
| Butts Primary School | 68% | 5% | 44.8% | 241 | 0.7 miles |
| North Walsall Primary Academy | 60% | 3.9% | 50.5% | 234 | 0.7 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
- 16 April 2024
-
Ungraded inspection report14 December 2022
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 45.43%
- English as an additional language
- 55.2%
- Overall absence
- 7.54%
- Persistent absence
- 27.3%
Location
Nearby schools
-
St Patrick's Catholic Primary School, Walsall0.2 miles
Primary · Walsall
-
Croft Academy0.3 miles
Primary · Walsall
-
Reedswood E-ACT Academy0.5 miles
Primary · Walsall
-
Butts Primary School0.7 miles
Primary · Walsall
-
North Walsall Primary Academy0.7 miles
Primary · Walsall
Other schools in Walsall
Birchills Church of England Community Academy ranks 48th of the 51 ranked primary schools in Walsall.
- Abbey Primary School Primary
- All Saints National Academy Primary
- Alumwell Infant School Primary
- Alumwell Junior School Primary
- Beacon Academy Primary
- Bentley West Primary School Primary
- Blue Coat Church of England Aided Infant School Primary
- Blue Coat Church of England Aided Junior School Primary
- Brownhills West Primary School Primary
- Busill Jones Primary School Primary
- Butts Primary School Primary
- Caldmore Primary Academy Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does Birchills Church of England Community Academy teach?
- Birchills Church of England Community Academy teaches children aged 3 to 11. It is a primary school in Walsall.
- Who is the headteacher of Birchills Church of England Community Academy?
- The headteacher of Birchills Church of England Community Academy is Miss G Poole, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Birchills Church of England Community Academy last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Birchills Church of England Community 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 Birchills Church of England Community Academy?
- Birchills Church of England Community Academy has 442 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 11.
- Is Birchills Church of England Community Academy full?
- Birchills Church of England Community Academy has capacity for 420 pupils and 442 on roll (105%), 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 Birchills Church of England Community Academy a faith school?
- Yes. Birchills Church of England Community Academy is designated Church of England, in the Diocese of Lichfield.
- Does Birchills Church of England Community Academy have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records Birchills Church of England Community Academy as having nursery classes.
- Who runs Birchills Church of England Community Academy?
- Birchills Church of England Community Academy is part of ST CHAD'S ACADEMIES TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Birchills Church of England Community Academy's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 37% in 2022/23 and 37% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Birchills Church of England Community Academy rank locally?
- Birchills Church of England Community Academy ranked 57th of 61 primary schools in Walsall for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 10% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 20% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Birchills Church of England Community Academy's absence rate?
- Birchills Church of England Community Academy's overall absence rate is 7.5% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Birchills Church of England Community Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Birchills Church of England Community 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.