Admiral Lord Nelson School
Academy converter · 1,245 pupils
85% stayed in education · Attainment 8 40.4
Academy sponsor led
The Portsmouth Academy
- Pupils on roll
- 1,203of 1,150 places
- Free school meals
- 56.0%
- Year 11 cohort 2025
- 239
- Ofsted
- School remains Good, 27 April 2022Read the Ofsted report
Results below include those reported under the school’s previous registration: City of Portsmouth Girls' School (URN 116460, until 22 May 2013).
What the data says
The Portsmouth Academy has no sixth form. Of the 218 pupils who finished Year 11 there in 2023, 2% moved to a sixth form college, 75% to a further education college and 3% started an apprenticeship.
GCSE results in 2025 were well below the national picture: Attainment 8 of 33.5 against 46.1 across England and 39.5 in Portsmouth, with 21% of pupils getting grade 5 or above in both English and maths (England 45%).
Media Studies is unusually popular at GCSE: 21% of the year group took it, against 4% of pupils across England.
As an 11–16 school, The Portsmouth Academy is judged on where pupils go at 16 rather than on A level results.
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 Portsmouth and England.
School sixth formSixth form collegeFurther education collegeOther educationApprenticeshipEmploymentNo sustained destination
| Measure | The Portsmouth Academy | Portsmouth | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils in the cohort | 218 | 2,031 | 607,348 |
| Any sustained destination | 85% | 88% | 92% |
| Stayed in education | 79% | 82% | 86% |
| — school sixth form | 1% | 3% | 34% |
| — sixth form college | 2% | 5% | 13% |
| — further education college | 75% | 72% | 37% |
| — other education | 1% | 2% | 2% |
| Apprenticeship | 3% | 3% | 3% |
| Employment | 3% | 3% | 3% |
| No sustained destination | 9% | 8% | 6% |
| Destination unknown | 6% | 4% | 3% |
GCSE results 2025
| Measure | The Portsmouth Academy | Portsmouth | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Attainment 8 (average points per pupil) | 33.5 | 39.5 | 46.1 |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 21% | 35% | 45% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 41% | 56% | 65% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate subjects | 39% | 42% | 41% |
| EBacc average point score | 3.00 | 3.50 | 4.09 |
| Disadvantaged pupils in the cohort | 52% | 39% | 28% |
| Attainment 8 — disadvantaged pupils | 26.5 | 29.8 | 34.9 |
| Attainment 8 — other pupils | 41.0 | 45.6 | 50.4 |
| Pupils with high prior attainment (Key Stage 2) | — | — | — |
| English as an additional language | 32% | 19% | 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 | 237 | 99% | 89% | 8% | 20% | 47% |
| Mathematics | 236 | 99% | 88% | 11% | 22% | 46% |
| English Literature | 228 | 95% | 86% | 8% | 21% | 49% |
| Combined Science | 165 | 69% | 65% | 6% | 9% | 35% |
| History | 128 | 54% | 41% | 17% | 26% | 47% |
| Geography | 122 | 51% | 41% | 5% | 25% | 30% |
| Biology | 56 | 23% | 23% | 16% | 45% | 71% |
| Chemistry | 55 | 23% | 23% | 22% | 47% | 71% |
| Religious Studies | 54 | 23% | 31% | 17% | 32% | 52% |
| Physics | 54 | 23% | 23% | 17% | 46% | 72% |
| Spanish | 50 | 21% | 19% | 8% | 27% | 38% |
| Media Studies | 49 | 21% | 4% | 6% | 20% | 59% |
| Photography | 46 | 19% | 6% | 0% | 19% | 20% |
| French | 44 | 18% | 18% | 5% | 29% | 30% |
| Design and Technology | 42 | 18% | 11% | 2% | 23% | 21% |
| Food Preparation and Nutrition | 37 | 15% | 8% | 3% | 21% | 46% |
| Computer Science | 36 | 15% | 13% | 14% | 30% | 58% |
| Statistics | 27 | 11% | 5% | 22% | 20% | 63% |
| Art and Design | 21 | 9% | 7% | 10% | 24% | 33% |
| Polish | 3 | 1% | 1% | — | 84% | — |
| Turkish | 2 | 1% | 0% | — | 71% | — |
| Portuguese | 2 | 1% | 0% | — | 50% | — |
| German | 1 | 0% | 5% | — | 33% | — |
Technical awards and other Key Stage 4 qualifications
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Personal Health | 55 | — | — |
| Speech and Drama | 28 | — | — |
| Dance: General | 10 | — | — |
Other secondary schools in Portsmouth
Ark Charter Academy
Academy sponsor led · 883 pupils
78% stayed in education · Attainment 8 38.9
Castle View Academy
Academy converter · 757 pupils
74% stayed in education · Attainment 8 35.6
Mayfield School
Academy sponsor led · 1,354 pupils
75% stayed in education
Miltoncross Academy
Academy sponsor led · 983 pupils
82% stayed in education · Attainment 8 36.3
Priory School
Academy sponsor led · 1,278 pupils
89% stayed in education · Attainment 8 44.7
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.