Archbishop Ilsley Catholic School
Academy converter · sixth form · 1,152 pupils
81% stayed in education · Attainment 8 41.7
Free schools
City Academy
- Pupils on roll
- 554of 750 places
- Free school meals
- 57.0%
- Year 11 cohort 2025
- 150
- Ofsted
- Report card, 10 February 2026Read the Ofsted report
Curriculum and teaching Needs attentionAchievement Needs attentionAttendance and behaviour Expected standardPersonal development and wellbeing Expected standardInclusion Expected standardLeadership and governance Expected standardPost-16 provision Not applicableSafeguarding Met
Results below include those reported under the school’s previous registrations: Central Academy (URN 138200, until 1 September 2020); City Academy Birmingham (URN 139797, until 1 September 2020).
What the data says
City Academy has no sixth form. Of the 162 pupils who finished Year 11 there in 2023, 7% moved to a sixth form college, 64% to a further education college and 1% started an apprenticeship.
GCSE results in 2025 were well below the national picture: Attainment 8 of 36.4 against 46.1 across England and 46.6 in Birmingham, with 23% of pupils getting grade 5 or above in both English and maths (England 45%).
Almost nobody goes straight into an apprenticeship or a job: 1% took an apprenticeship and none went into work, against 3% and 3% across England.
As an 11–16 school, City 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 Birmingham and England.
School sixth formSixth form collegeFurther education collegeOther educationApprenticeshipEmploymentNo sustained destination
| Measure | City Academy | Birmingham | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils in the cohort | 162 | 14,526 | 607,348 |
| Any sustained destination | 80% | 90% | 92% |
| Stayed in education | 80% | 88% | 86% |
| — school sixth form | 9% | 33% | 34% |
| — sixth form college | 7% | 13% | 13% |
| — further education college | 64% | 39% | 37% |
| — other education | 0% | 3% | 2% |
| Apprenticeship | 1% | 1% | 3% |
| Employment | 0% | 1% | 3% |
| No sustained destination | 9% | 6% | 6% |
| Destination unknown | 10% | 4% | 3% |
GCSE results 2025
| Measure | City Academy | Birmingham | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Attainment 8 (average points per pupil) | 36.4 | 46.6 | 46.1 |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 23% | 45% | 45% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 41% | 64% | 65% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate subjects | 30% | 48% | 41% |
| EBacc average point score | 3.24 | 4.15 | 4.09 |
| Disadvantaged pupils in the cohort | 69% | 48% | 28% |
| Attainment 8 — disadvantaged pupils | 35.2 | 40.2 | 34.9 |
| Attainment 8 — other pupils | 39.2 | 52.5 | 50.4 |
| Pupils with high prior attainment (Key Stage 2) | — | — | — |
| English as an additional language | 51% | 39% | 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 | 149 | 99% | 89% | 10% | 20% | 49% |
| Mathematics | 148 | 99% | 88% | 12% | 22% | 47% |
| English Literature | 147 | 98% | 86% | 10% | 21% | 59% |
| Combined Science | 99 | 66% | 65% | 1% | 9% | 30% |
| Geography | 84 | 56% | 41% | 5% | 25% | 32% |
| History | 62 | 41% | 41% | 10% | 26% | 35% |
| Biology | 48 | 32% | 23% | 25% | 45% | 77% |
| Physics | 48 | 32% | 23% | 29% | 46% | 69% |
| Chemistry | 47 | 31% | 23% | 26% | 47% | 66% |
| Religious Studies | 33 | 22% | 31% | 15% | 32% | 64% |
| Spanish | 33 | 22% | 19% | 30% | 27% | 70% |
| Computer Science | 20 | 13% | 13% | 10% | 30% | 35% |
| Art and Design | 16 | 11% | 7% | 19% | 24% | 56% |
| 3D Design | 15 | 10% | 2% | 0% | 16% | 67% |
| Arabic | 10 | 7% | 1% | 50% | 47% | 70% |
| Italian | 6 | 4% | 0% | 83% | 53% | 100% |
| French | 3 | 2% | 18% | — | 29% | — |
| Sociology | 1 | 1% | 4% | — | 21% | — |
| Food Preparation and Nutrition | 1 | 1% | 8% | — | 21% | — |
| Citizenship Studies | 1 | 1% | 3% | — | 19% | — |
| Punjabi | 1 | 1% | 0% | — | 48% | — |
| Portuguese | 1 | 1% | 0% | — | 50% | — |
| Chinese | 1 | 1% | 1% | — | 75% | — |
Technical awards and other Key Stage 4 qualifications
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hospitality / Catering Studies | 39 | — | — |
| Sports Studies | 38 | — | — |
| Small Business Management | 29 | — | — |
| Health Studies | 25 | — | — |
Other secondary schools in Birmingham
Arena Academy
Academy sponsor led · 969 pupils
89% stayed in education · Attainment 8 44.5
Ark Boulton Academy
Academy sponsor led · 877 pupils
90% stayed in education · Attainment 8 44.2
Ark Kings Academy
Academy sponsor led · sixth form · 739 pupils
72% stayed in education · Attainment 8 36.5
Ark St Alban's Academy
Academy sponsor led · sixth form · 797 pupils
91% stayed in education · Attainment 8 46.9
Ark Victoria Academy
Free schools · 1,519 pupils
92% stayed in education · Attainment 8 48.4
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.