King Edward VI Balaam Wood Academy
New Street, Frankley, Birmingham, B45 0EU
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 11 to 16
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- KING EDWARD VI ACADEMY TRUST BIRMINGHAM
- Headteacher
- Mr Damian McGarvey
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Sponsor
- King Edward VI Foundation
- Constituency
- Birmingham Northfield
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 546
- Pupils on roll
- 423
- URN
- 147440
- Local authority
- Birmingham
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01214649901
About this school
King Edward VI Balaam Wood Academy is a secondary academy in Birmingham. It teaches children aged 11 to 16 and has 423 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected King Edward VI Balaam Wood 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
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 | 73 | 76 | 75 |
| Attainment 8 score | 31.7 | 35.8 | 41.4 |
| Progress 8 score | -0.63 -0.99 to -0.26 | -0.48 -0.81 to -0.15 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 18% | 22.4% | 32% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 34% | 43.4% | 52% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 25% | 18.4% | 8% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 2.6 | 2.9 | 3.4 |
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 King Edward VI Balaam Wood 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 | Birmingham average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 31.7 | 40.1 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 35.8 | 40.3 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 41.4 | 40.6 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 10.3% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 10.9% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 9.9% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 393 |
| 2023/24 | 419 |
| 2024/25 | 414 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How King Edward VI Balaam Wood Academy compares
King Edward VI Balaam Wood Academy ranked 63rd of 85 secondary schools in Birmingham for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 43% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 8% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 41.4 | 9.9% | 69.3% | 423 | — |
| Colmers School and Sixth Form College | 41.7 | 11.8% | 54.1% | 1,139 | 0.8 miles |
| Waseley Hills High School | 40.5 | 11.3% | 30.7% | 782 | 1.0 miles |
| Turves Green Boys' School | 37.3 | 9.3% | 59.1% | 592 | 2.0 miles |
| King Edward VI Northfield School for Girls | 46 | 9.2% | 50.5% | 740 | 2.1 miles |
| King Edward VI Five Ways School | 75.9 | 4.2% | 22.6% | 1,324 | 2.1 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)
- 69.32%
- English as an additional language
- 13.3%
- Overall absence
- 9.86%
- Persistent absence
- 29.77%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Colmers School and Sixth Form College0.8 miles
Secondary · Birmingham
-
Waseley Hills High School1.0 miles
Secondary · Birmingham
-
Turves Green Boys' School2.0 miles
Secondary · Birmingham
-
King Edward VI Northfield School for Girls2.1 miles
Secondary · Birmingham
-
King Edward VI Five Ways School2.1 miles
Secondary · Birmingham
Other schools in Birmingham
King Edward VI Balaam Wood Academy ranks 61st of the 87 ranked secondary schools in Birmingham.
- Archbishop Ilsley Catholic School Secondary
- Arena Academy Secondary
- Ark Boulton Academy Secondary
- Ark St Alban's Academy Secondary
- Aston Manor Academy Secondary
- Aston University Engineering Academy Secondary
- Bartley Green School Secondary
- Birmingham Ormiston Academy Secondary
- Bishop Challoner Catholic College Secondary
- BOA Digital Technologies Academy Secondary
- Bordesley Green Girls' School & Sixth Form Secondary
- Broadway Academy Secondary
Common questions
- What ages does King Edward VI Balaam Wood Academy teach?
- King Edward VI Balaam Wood Academy teaches children aged 11 to 16. It is a secondary school in Birmingham.
- Who is the headteacher of King Edward VI Balaam Wood Academy?
- The headteacher of King Edward VI Balaam Wood Academy is Mr Damian McGarvey, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has King Edward VI Balaam Wood Academy been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected King Edward VI Balaam Wood 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 King Edward VI Balaam Wood Academy?
- King Edward VI Balaam Wood Academy has 423 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 16.
- Is King Edward VI Balaam Wood Academy full?
- King Edward VI Balaam Wood Academy has capacity for 546 pupils and 423 on roll (77%), 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 King Edward VI Balaam Wood Academy a faith school?
- No. King Edward VI Balaam Wood Academy has no designated religious character.
- Is King Edward VI Balaam Wood Academy a selective school?
- No. King Edward VI Balaam Wood Academy is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Is King Edward VI Balaam Wood Academy part of an academy trust?
- King Edward VI Balaam Wood Academy is part of KING EDWARD VI ACADEMY TRUST BIRMINGHAM. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have King Edward VI Balaam Wood Academy's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 31.7 in 2022/23 and 41.4 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does King Edward VI Balaam Wood Academy compare with other schools in Birmingham?
- King Edward VI Balaam Wood Academy ranked 63rd of 85 secondary schools in Birmingham for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 43% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 8% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is King Edward VI Balaam Wood Academy's absence rate?
- King Edward VI Balaam Wood Academy's overall absence rate is 9.9% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are King Edward VI Balaam Wood Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, King Edward VI Balaam Wood 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.