Farnborough Spencer Academy
Farnborough Road, Clifton, Nottingham, NG11 8JW
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 11 to 16
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- None
- Trust
- THE SPENCER ACADEMIES TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mr Graeme Smith
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Sponsor
- The Spencer Academies Trust
- Constituency
- Nottingham South
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,050
- Pupils on roll
- 1,005
- URN
- 146564
- Local authority
- Nottingham
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01159744444
About this school
Farnborough Spencer Academy is a secondary academy in Nottingham. It teaches children aged 11 to 16 and has 1,005 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
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 146 | 157 | 181 |
| Attainment 8 score | 37.1 | 33.8 | 38.9 |
| Progress 8 score | -0.64 -0.87 to -0.40 | -0.64 -0.87 to -0.41 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 21% | 21% | 41.4% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 48% | 41.4% | 55.2% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 5% | 32.5% | 30.9% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 3.0 | 3.1 | 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 Farnborough 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 | Nottingham average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 37.1 | 38.5 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 33.8 | 38 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 38.9 | 38.1 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 13.5% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 10.5% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 11.1% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 881 |
| 2023/24 | 940 |
| 2024/25 | 997 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Farnborough Spencer Academy compares
Farnborough Spencer Academy ranked 14th of 18 secondary schools in Nottingham for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 35% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 5% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 38.9 | 11.1% | 43.6% | 1,005 | — |
| The West Bridgford School | 62.9 | 4.5% | 6.4% | 1,809 | 1.3 miles |
| The Becket School | 57.3 | 5.8% | 18.9% | 1,157 | 1.4 miles |
| The Nottingham Emmanuel School | 44.2 | 7.6% | 48.4% | 1,108 | 1.7 miles |
| Rushcliffe Spencer Academy | 58.1 | 7.5% | 11.3% | 2,039 | 1.8 miles |
| Nottingham University Academy of Science and Technology | 51.1 | 6.3% | 41.2% | 928 | 2.2 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.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 43.63%
- English as an additional language
- 12.2%
- Overall absence
- 11.05%
- Persistent absence
- 30.97%
Location
Nearby schools
-
The West Bridgford School1.3 miles
Secondary · Nottingham
-
The Becket School1.4 miles
Secondary · West Bridgford
-
The Nottingham Emmanuel School1.7 miles
Secondary · West Bridgford
-
Rushcliffe Spencer Academy1.8 miles
Secondary · Nottingham
-
Nottingham University Academy of Science and Technology2.2 miles
Secondary · Nottingham
Other schools in Nottingham
Farnborough Spencer Academy ranks 34th 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 year groups does Farnborough Spencer Academy teach?
- Farnborough Spencer Academy teaches children aged 11 to 16. It is a secondary school in Nottingham.
- Who is the headteacher of Farnborough Spencer Academy?
- The headteacher of Farnborough Spencer Academy is Mr Graeme Smith, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Farnborough Spencer Academy last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Farnborough 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 big is Farnborough Spencer Academy?
- Farnborough Spencer Academy has 1,005 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 16.
- Is Farnborough Spencer Academy full?
- Farnborough Spencer Academy has capacity for 1,050 pupils and 1,005 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 Farnborough Spencer Academy a faith school?
- No. Farnborough Spencer Academy has no designated religious character.
- Is Farnborough Spencer Academy a selective school?
- No. Farnborough Spencer Academy is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Who runs Farnborough Spencer Academy?
- Farnborough 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 Farnborough Spencer Academy's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 37.1 in 2022/23 and 38.9 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Farnborough Spencer Academy rank locally?
- Farnborough Spencer Academy ranked 14th of 18 secondary schools in Nottingham for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 35% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 5% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Farnborough Spencer Academy's absence rate?
- Farnborough Spencer Academy's overall absence rate is 11.1% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Farnborough Spencer Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Farnborough 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 10 July 2026.