Brighton academy rated ‘good’ by Ofsted

The new academy at Falmer has had its first inspection by Ofsted.

The independent watchdog said that the Brighton Aldridge Community Academy (BACA) was good – the second highest of its four ratings.

Two inspectors visited the school last month and said that the academy had made “good progress towards raising standards”.

The official inspection follows the academy’s record-breaking exam results.

This summer 36 per cent of pupils achieved at least five GCSEs including English and mathematics, a 64 per cent improvement on last year.

The school said that the inspection came as a massive boost as pupils and staff established themselves in the new building which opened in September.

Academy principal Philomena Hogg said: “I have nothing but praise for our staff for their hard work and determination to drive improvement within the school.

“As our GCSE performance shows, this is leading to life-changing results for our students.

“We hope to build on this result in future.’’

Peter Kyle, the chairman of the governors, said: “Students and staff have really outdone themselves this year and this Ofsted inspection will further underpin BACA’s determination to excel academically and become a source of pride for the local community.

“It’s important to recognise the enormous contribution that both the Aldridge Foundation and Philomena Hogg have made to BACA’s success, providing the new resources and resolute leadership that is unlocking aspirations across the academy.”

Rod Aldridge, chairman of the Aldridge Foundation, which sponsors the academy, said: “To be judged ‘Good’ at this stage is a reflection of excellent work being done by the team at BACA, and their unwavering commitment to improvement.

“This is excellent news and a result we will hope to build on over time.”

On Thursday the Business and Enterprise Minister Mark Prisk is due to visit the academy which specialises in entrepreneurship.