Bluecoat Aspley Academy
Academy converter · sixth form · 1,344 pupils
91% stayed in education · Attainment 8 48.6
Academy sponsor led
Park Vale Academy
- Pupils on roll
- 880of 950 places
- Free school meals
- 44.5%
- Year 11 cohort 2025
- 181
- Ofsted
- Good, 19 March 2024Read the Ofsted report
Results below include those reported under the school’s previous registration: Top Valley Academy (URN 138573, until 1 September 2016).
What the data says
Of the 158 pupils who finished Year 11 at Park Vale Academy in 2023, 15% stayed on in Park Vale Academy’s own sixth form (Nottingham average 27%), 56% went to a further education college and 2% started an apprenticeship.
13% of leavers were not in sustained education, employment or training six months on, compared with 6% nationally.
Photography is unusually popular at GCSE: 24% of the year group took it, against 6% of pupils across England.
GCSE results in 2025 were below the national picture: Attainment 8 of 42.8 against 46.1 across England and 43.0 in Nottingham, with 37% of pupils getting grade 5 or above in both English and maths (England 45%).
Where pupils went after Year 11
Destinations of the 2023 Year 11 leavers, measured the following year: the share in a sustained place for at least two terms. Compared with all state-funded schools in Nottingham and England.
School sixth formSixth form collegeFurther education collegeOther educationApprenticeshipEmploymentNo sustained destination
| Measure | Park Vale Academy | Nottingham | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils in the cohort | 158 | 3,152 | 607,348 |
| Any sustained destination | 80% | 88% | 92% |
| Stayed in education | 75% | 85% | 86% |
| — school sixth form | 15% | 27% | 34% |
| — sixth form college | 4% | 14% | 13% |
| — further education college | 56% | 42% | 37% |
| — other education | 0% | 2% | 2% |
| Apprenticeship | 2% | 2% | 3% |
| Employment | 3% | 2% | 3% |
| No sustained destination | 13% | 7% | 6% |
| Destination unknown | 6% | 5% | 3% |
Where students went after sixth form
Destinations of students who finished 16–18 study in 2023, measured the following year.
No published destinations for sixth-form leavers yet.
GCSE results 2025
| Measure | Park Vale Academy | Nottingham | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Attainment 8 (average points per pupil) | 42.8 | 43.0 | 46.1 |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 37% | 40% | 45% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 58% | 59% | 65% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate subjects | 56% | 27% | 41% |
| EBacc average point score | 3.90 | 3.73 | 4.09 |
| Disadvantaged pupils in the cohort | 37% | 42% | 28% |
| Attainment 8 — disadvantaged pupils | 34.7 | 35.1 | 34.9 |
| Attainment 8 — other pupils | 47.5 | 48.8 | 50.4 |
| Pupils with high prior attainment (Key Stage 2) | — | — | — |
| English as an additional language | 20% | 35% | 19% |
Progress 8 is not available for 2025 and 2026: these cohorts had no Key Stage 2 tests in 2020 and 2021, so there is no baseline. Attainment 8 shows results without taking pupils’ starting points into account.
Subjects taken at GCSE
Entries in 2025 as a share of the Year 11 cohort, and the share of entries graded 7–9 and 4–9, compared with all entries in England.
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England | Grades 7–9 | England | Grades 4–9 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| English Language | 180 | 99% | 89% | 14% | 20% | 67% |
| Mathematics | 180 | 99% | 88% | 12% | 22% | 59% |
| English Literature | 180 | 99% | 86% | 10% | 21% | 66% |
| Religious Studies | 170 | 94% | 31% | 9% | 32% | 42% |
| Combined Science | 145 | 80% | 65% | 3% | 9% | 49% |
| Spanish | 96 | 53% | 19% | 14% | 27% | 61% |
| Geography | 94 | 52% | 41% | 19% | 25% | 68% |
| History | 78 | 43% | 41% | 9% | 26% | 40% |
| Design and Technology | 46 | 25% | 11% | 0% | 23% | 24% |
| Photography | 44 | 24% | 6% | 2% | 19% | 91% |
| Biology | 35 | 19% | 23% | 37% | 45% | 100% |
| Chemistry | 35 | 19% | 23% | 34% | 47% | 94% |
| Physics | 35 | 19% | 23% | 46% | 46% | 100% |
| Fine Art | 28 | 15% | 9% | 7% | 28% | 50% |
| Music | 22 | 12% | 5% | 0% | 33% | 14% |
| Drama | 21 | 12% | 7% | 0% | 27% | 67% |
| Dance | 17 | 9% | 1% | 18% | 27% | 65% |
| Physical Education | 15 | 8% | 11% | 27% | 24% | 80% |
| French | 14 | 8% | 18% | 0% | 29% | 79% |
| Portuguese | 3 | 2% | 0% | — | 50% | — |
| Polish | 2 | 1% | 1% | — | 84% | — |
| Italian | 1 | 1% | 0% | — | 53% | — |
| Chinese | 1 | 1% | 1% | — | 75% | — |
| Art and Design | 1 | 1% | 7% | — | 24% | — |
Technical awards and other Key Stage 4 qualifications
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Computer Appreciation / Introduction | 43 | — | — |
| Hospitality / Catering Studies | 43 | — | — |
| Small Business Management | 31 | — | — |
| Childcare Skills | 24 | — | — |
| Health Studies | 22 | — | — |
| Sports / Movement Science | 12 | — | — |
Other secondary schools in Nottingham
Bluecoat Beechdale Academy
Academy sponsor led · 887 pupils
80% stayed in education · Attainment 8 34.0
Bluecoat Wollaton Academy
Academy converter · 879 pupils
92% stayed in education · Attainment 8 49.4
Djanogly City Academy
Academy sponsor led · sixth form · 1,270 pupils
83% stayed in education · Attainment 8 38.0
Ellis Guilford School
Academy sponsor led · 1,171 pupils
79% stayed in education · Attainment 8 37.1
Farnborough Spencer Academy
Academy sponsor led · 1,005 pupils
77% stayed in education · Attainment 8 38.9
Sources: Department for Education school and college performance tables 2024/2025 (Key Stage 4 and 16–18 results, subject entries, destination measures for 2023 leavers); Get Information About Schools register as at 19 September 2026; Ofsted management information as at 31 August 2026. Small numbers are suppressed by DfE and shown as “—”. How to read these figures.