Atlantic Academy Portland
All-through · Academy sponsor led · Mixed · Dorset
Maritime House, Portland, DT5 2NA
56
headline score
Ranking (England)
—
No ranked results
Ofsted
Good
Graded 19/01/2022
Application demand
100%
1st preference success · Not oversubscribed
Attendance
91.0%
22.2% persistently absent
At a glance
Pupils on roll
769
Capacity used
Has space75%
1,020 places
GCSE rank (England)
—
KS2 rank (England)
—
Application demand
Primary entry · official council applications and offers
100%
1st preference success rate
22 of 22 families who put it first got an offer
22
Places offered
49
Total applications
2.2
Applications per place
| Preference (Sept 2025 entry) | Applications | Offers | Success |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st preference | 22 | 22 | ● 100% |
| 2nd preference | 25 | 0 | ● 0% |
| 3rd preference | 2 | 0 | ● 0% |
| Total | 49 | 22 | 45% |
1st preference success by year
Dorset lets families list 3 preferences. Source: Department for Education, school-level applications and offers. Offers are made on each school's admissions criteria (e.g. siblings, distance, faith), so check the school's policy.
Details
- Type
- Academy sponsor led
- Phase
- All-through
- Age range
- 4–16
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- None
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Sixth form
- Yes
- Nursery
- No Nursery Classes
- Boarding
- No boarders
- Headteacher
- Melissa Heppell
- Address
- Maritime House, Southwell Park, Portland, DT5 2NA
- Phone
- 01305820262
- Local authority
- Dorset
- Ward / constituency
- Portland · South Dorset
- Area
- Larger rural: Further from a major town or city
- URN
- 145119
Pupils
| Measure | School | LA | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free school meals | 35% | — | — |
| English as additional language | 1% | — | — |
| SEN support | 31% | — | — |
Local deprivation (IDACI quintile 4 of 5)
1 = least deprived area, 5 = most deprived. Context only.
Academy trust: ASPIRATIONS ACADEMIES TRUST
769 pupils · 1,020 places. Intake figures describe the school's community — they aren't good or bad.
Ofsted inspections
- 26
24 March 2026
S5 Inspection · report card
Inclusion Needs attention Achievement Needs attention Safeguarding standards Met Curriculum and teaching Needs attention Attendance and behaviour Expected standard Leadership and governance Needs attention Early years Expected standard Personal development and wellbeing Needs attention Post-16 provision Not applicable - 22
19 January 2022
Full graded inspection
Good overall effectivenessEarly years Good Personal development Good Quality of education Good Safeguarding effective Yes Behaviour and attitudes Good Leadership and management Good
Attendance
2024/2025 school year · 747 pupils
Attendance
91.0%
Share of sessions attended · England 91.1%
Overall absence
9.0%
Sessions missed, any reason · England 8.9%
Persistent absence
22.2%
Pupils missing 10%+ of school · England 26.7%
Severe absence
4.7%
Pupils missing 50%+ of school · England 2.3%
Unauthorised absence
3.1%
Absences the school didn't approve
Persistent absence by year
Source: Department for Education, pupil absence by school (pupils aged 5–15). Lower absence is better. England figures are approximate 2023/24 averages.
Primary results (Key Stage 2)
| Measure | School | LA | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Expected standard in reading, writing & maths | 79% | — | — |
| Higher standard | 12% | — | — |
| Reading progress | — | — | 0.0 |
| Writing progress | — | — | 0.0 |
| Maths progress | — | — | 0.0 |
GCSE results
| Measure | School | LA | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Attainment 8 score | 38.9 | — | — |
| Progress 8 score | -0.74 | — | 0.00 |
| Grade 5+ in English & maths | 24% | — | — |
| Grade 4+ in English & maths | 50% | — | — |
| EBacc average point score | 3.46 | — | — |
Progress 8 band
Primary results by subject (SATs)
Year 6 pupils meeting each standard, against England
Reading, writing & maths combined
Reading
Writing
Maths
Grammar, punctuation & spelling
Science
England average · Scaled scores run 80–120 (100 = expected standard).
Primary results over time
Expected standard (RWM) by year (2020 and 2021 exams were cancelled)
| Result | School | England (approx.) |
|---|---|---|
| Expected standard (RWM) | 64% | 61% |
| Higher standard | 8% | 8% |
GCSE results over time
Attainment 8 by year (2020 and 2021 exams were cancelled)
| Result | School | England (approx.) |
|---|---|---|
| Attainment 8 | 34 | 46 |
| Grade 5+ English & maths | 19.2% | 46% |
| Grade 4+ English & maths | 38.5% | 65% |
| Entering EBacc | 32.1% | 40% |
| EBacc average point score | 3.08 | 4.1 |
| Pupils in cohort | 78 | — |
How different pupils progress (GCSE, 2023/2024)
Progress 8 by group. 0 is the national average; above 0 means pupils do better than similar children elsewhere.
Results by subject
Official DfE exam results for summer 2025. Green, amber and red compare against typical results in England; subjects with fewer than 5 entries aren't rated.
GCSE
Grade 4 is a standard pass, 5 a strong pass, 7 equals the old A.
| Subject | Entries | Grade 7+ | Grade 5+ | Grade 4+ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mathematics | 76 | 8% | 28% | 51% | |
| Combined Science | 76 | 7% | 21% | 46% | |
| English Language | 76 | 7% | 36% | 55% | |
| English Literature | 76 | 4% | 20% | 45% | |
| History | 37 | 11% | 22% | 43% | |
| Geography | 35 | 6% | 34% | 40% | |
| French | 28 | 0% | 32% | 36% | |
| Business | 23 | 0% | 13% | 39% | |
| Art and Design | 18 | 6% | 39% | 50% |
House prices near the school
Typical sold prices (Land Registry) within 1 km, last 12 months.
Loading prices…
Key application dates
National deadlines in England. Apply through Dorset council, not the school.
| Entry | Deadline | Offer day |
|---|---|---|
| Reception (primary) | 15 January | 16 April (or next working day) |
| Year 7 (secondary) | 31 October | 1 March (or next working day) |
Admissions policy: Non-selective. Check the school's own admissions rules on its website.
Source: Get Information About Schools and the DfE school and college performance tables (2023-2024); Oxbridge figures from the University of Cambridge's admissions by UCAS apply centre (Oxford doesn't publish per-school figures). Read the method.