Grace Academy, Coventry

This article is about a school in Coventry, England. For other institutions known as Grace Academy, see Grace Academy.

Grace Academy Coventry
Address
Wigston Road Coventry , West Midlands , CV2 2RH England
Coordinates	52°26′17″N1°26′45″W / 52.43817°N 1.44582°W / 52.43817; -1.44582
Information
Type	Academy
Religious affiliation(s)	Christian
Established	September 2008
Founder	Robert Edmiston
Local authority	Coventry City Council
Department for Education URN	135335 Tables
Ofsted	Reports
Principal	Natasha Whiles
Gender	Mixed
Age	11to 18
Enrolment	806
Website	http://coventry.graceacademy.org.uk/

Grace Academy Coventry is a mixed secondary school located in Coventry, England. It was founded in 1968 as Woodway Park School and Community College, and became Grace Academy in 1968.

History

It was formerly Woodway Park School and Community College, and was converted into an academy on 31 August 2008. In February 2010 the school moved into new buildings. ^{[1] [2]}

The academy was operated by Grace Foundation, ^[3] a registered charity founded by Bob Edmiston, entrepreneur and founder of the evangelical international charity Christian Vision; however in April 2019 the Grace Trust closed and the academy became a member of the larger Tove Learning Trust, lead school Sponne School, Towcester, Northamptonshire. According to its Annual Report and Financial Statements to August 2012, the Coventry school received annual government funding of £5,898,000.

On 20 August 2013 the school was among those named by The Independent and the British Humanist Association as adopting a policy similar in wording to the repealed anti-gay legislation Section 28. ^[4] The academy is now fully in line with Coventry LA policies on sex and relationship education, which conform to recent government guidelines.

In October 2013, a letter from John Nash, Baron Nash showed that early access results were below the minimal standard with only 32% of pupils achieving 5 GCSEs at grades A*-C including English and mathematics – an 18% drop from 2012. An external education advisor criticised the quality of both teaching and pupil assessment. ^[5]

In December 2019 the school was rated by Ofsted as requires improvement, the monitoring visit in February 2021 stated the school was making progress to becoming rated good. In January 2024 the school was rated good. ^[6]

See also

• Grace Academy, Darlaston
• Grace Academy, Solihull
• List of schools in Coventry

References

1. "Adjudicator publishes decision on proposal to modify the implementation date for closure of Woodway Park School & community college, Coventry". Government News Network. 17 July 2007. Archived from the original on 9 June 2007. Retrieved 12 January 2008.
2. Schools Adjudicator: Alan Parker (16 July 2007). "To vary the implementation date of a previous decision to close Woodway Park School". Archived from the original on 30 October 2007. Retrieved 12 January 2008.
3. "Grace Academy Coventry, registered charity no. 1117366". Charity Commission for England and Wales.
4. Nigel Morris (20 August 2013). "The return of Section 28: Schools and academies practising homophobic policy that was outlawed under Tony Blair". The Independent. Retrieved 30 December 2014.
5. "Pre-Warning Notice Letter to the Grace Academy Foundation in relation to the Grace Academy Foundation, Coventry" (PDF). 17 October 2013. Retrieved 30 December 2014.
6. Ofsted Communications Team (15 June 2021). "Find an inspection report and registered childcare". reports.ofsted.gov.uk. Retrieved 7 March 2024.