Marine Academy Plymouth

Academy sponsor led·Secondary school Plymouth·PL5 2AF
Composite score
54.5
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#1,978
National rank
#198
In South West
#7
In Plymouth
Top 62%
Nationally

Performance (KS4 GCSE)

Attainment 8 score
43.6
National avg ≈ 46
Progress 8 score
—
% achieving 9–5 in English & Maths
33%
% achieving 9–4 in English & Maths
62%
% EBacc grade 5+
18%
EBacc average points score
3.96

Ofsted judgements

Legacy framework · Read full report ↗

Overall effectiveness
Good
Quality of education
Good
Behaviour and attitudes
Good
Personal development
Good
Leadership and management
Good
Safeguarding effective?
Yes
Sixth form provision
Good

Getting a place

Offered a place after putting it first
100%
174 first choices, 179 places
First choices per place
0.97
fewer first choices than places
Applications naming the school
281
any preference, for 179 places
Applications from another council area
2%
First preferences per place, last five years▲ 0.14
00.511.5
1 per place
0.6420220.6920230.8020240.8420250.972026

Red dashed line = one first choice per place. How to read this

Every child who put Marine Academy Plymouth first was offered a place in 2026, so no distance cut-off applied: living further away did not cost a place that year.

Application figures: DfE, school level applications and offers (2026 intake).

School profile

Age range
11–18
Pupils on roll
975
Gender
Mixed

Pupil background

% FSM ever-6
44.9%
Typical secondary: 27.5%
% EAL
8.4%
Typical secondary: 12.0%

Special educational needs

% SEN support
17.9%
Typical secondary: 13.7%
% with an EHC plan
2.6%
Typical secondary: 2.9%

Attendance

Overall absence
13.6%
Typical secondary: 8.9%
Persistently absent
39.9%
Typical secondary: 25.7%

Staffing & funding

Pupils per teacher
15.8
Typical secondary: 16.7
Spend per pupil
£7,545
Typical secondary: £7,815

“Typical” = the median secondary school in England. What this means

What pupils do next

The share of this school's Year 11 leavers in education, training or employment for at least two terms afterwards.

In education, training or work
86%
139 pupils tracked
Stayed in education
76%
Apprenticeship
8%
Employment
1%

DfE, KS4 destination measures.

Nearby secondary schools

Location

School overview

Marine Academy Plymouth is a secondary school serving Plymouth, classified by the DfE as a sponsor-led academy. It has 975 pupils aged 11 to 18 on roll. At its most recent graded inspection, Ofsted rated Marine Academy Plymouth 'Good'. The school's average Attainment 8 score in the latest GCSE results was 43.6 — broadly in line with the national average (national average: 46). Its Attainment 8 score has risen by 1.5 points year on year. On our composite score, which combines the DfE attainment measures above, this places it in the lower half of secondary schools nationally.

33% of pupils achieved a grade 5 or above in both English and maths, well below the national average of about 45%. 62% achieved a standard pass (grade 4+) in English and maths. Getting a place is straightforward: for the September 2026 intake every family who made Marine Academy Plymouth their first choice was offered one of its 179 Year 7 places. After Year 11, 86% of its leavers went on to education, an apprenticeship or work that they stayed in for at least two terms. Overall pupil absence was 13.6%. There are about 15.8 pupils per teacher. The school serves a community with above-average levels of disadvantage: about 45% of pupils have been eligible for free school meals in the last six years, compared with roughly 24% nationally — useful context when reading the results above. When comparing schools, it is still worth visiting in person to see whether the atmosphere and approach suit your child. This overview is generated automatically from the latest published DfE performance tables and Ofsted data; figures are rounded, and you can check the originals via the official links above.

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