The Link Academy
Simms Lane, Netherton, Dudley, DY2 0PB
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 11 to 16
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- DUDLEY ACADEMIES TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mrs Emma Edwards-Morgan
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Sponsor
- Dudley Academies Trust
- Constituency
- Stourbridge
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,050
- Pupils on roll
- 1,013
- URN
- 144952
- Local authority
- Dudley
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01384986550
About this school
The Link Academy is a secondary academy in Dudley. It teaches children aged 11 to 16 and has 1,013 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected The Link Academy, and its latest judgement is set out 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
Ofsted no longer gives schools a single overall grade. Each area of the school's work is graded on a five-point scale, and safeguarding is judged separately.
- Inclusion
- Strong standard
- Curriculum and teaching
- Expected standard
- Achievement
- Expected standard
- Attendance and behaviour
- Strong standard
- Personal development and wellbeing
- Strong standard
- Leadership and governance
- Strong standard
- Safeguarding
- Met
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 169 | 177 | 195 |
| Attainment 8 score | 39.4 | 39.8 | 40.4 |
| Progress 8 score | +0.06 -0.16 to +0.28 | -0.02 -0.24 to +0.19 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 33% | 33.9% | 32.8% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 52% | 51.4% | 56.9% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 8% | 6.8% | 18.5% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 3.2 | 3.3 | 3.5 |
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 Link 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 | Dudley average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 39.4 | 35.3 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 39.8 | 34.4 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 40.4 | 34.8 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 10.8% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 11.1% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 9.8% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 930 |
| 2023/24 | 984 |
| 2024/25 | 1,014 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How The Link Academy compares
The Link Academy ranked 14th of 18 secondary schools in Dudley for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 40% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 9% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 40.4 | 9.8% | 50.9% | 1,013 | — |
| Pegasus Academy | 44.4 | 8.8% | 46.2% | 697 | 1.1 miles |
| St James Academy | 36.8 | 11.5% | 51% | 867 | 1.4 miles |
| Ormiston Forge Academy | 39.7 | 9.8% | 41.1% | 1,643 | 1.6 miles |
| St Michael's Church of England High School | 48.9 | 7.7% | 38.8% | 1,213 | 1.8 miles |
| Bishop Milner Catholic College | 45.9 | 8.2% | 28.4% | 798 | 1.9 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.
Inspection history
-
Graded inspection report19 May 2026
- 8 February 2022
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 50.89%
- English as an additional language
- 24.6%
- Overall absence
- 9.77%
- Persistent absence
- 32.06%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Pegasus Academy1.1 miles
Secondary · Dudley
-
St James Academy1.4 miles
Secondary · Dudley
-
Ormiston Forge Academy1.6 miles
Secondary · Cradley Heath
-
St Michael's Church of England High School1.8 miles
Secondary · Rowley Regis
-
Bishop Milner Catholic College1.9 miles
Secondary · Dudley
Other schools in Dudley
The Link Academy ranks 6th of the 8 ranked secondary schools in Dudley.
- Beacon Hill Academy Secondary
- Bishop Milner Catholic College Secondary
- Ellowes Hall Sports College Secondary
- Pegasus Academy Secondary
- St James Academy Secondary
- The Crestwood School Secondary
- The Dormston School Secondary
- Netherton Park Nursery School Nursery
- Alder Coppice Primary School Primary
- Beechwood Church of England Primary School Primary
- Blowers Green Primary School Primary
- Cotwall End Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does The Link Academy teach?
- The Link Academy teaches children aged 11 to 16. It is a secondary school in Dudley.
- Who is the headteacher of The Link Academy?
- The headteacher of The Link Academy is Mrs Emma Edwards-Morgan, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has The Link Academy been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected The Link 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 The Link Academy?
- The Link Academy has 1,013 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 16.
- Is The Link Academy full?
- The Link Academy has capacity for 1,050 pupils and 1,013 on roll (96%), 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 The Link Academy a faith school?
- No. The Link Academy has no designated religious character.
- Is The Link Academy a selective school?
- No. The Link Academy is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Is The Link Academy part of an academy trust?
- The Link Academy is part of DUDLEY ACADEMIES TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have The Link Academy's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 39.4 in 2022/23 and 40.4 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 Link Academy compare with other schools in Dudley?
- The Link Academy ranked 14th of 18 secondary schools in Dudley for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 40% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 9% 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 Link Academy's absence rate?
- The Link Academy's overall absence rate is 9.8% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are The Link Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, The Link 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 15 July 2026.