SCHOOL PROFILE

Ridgewood High School

Secondary Academy converter URN 141712
Open
Pupils 8,834,192 Latest school census
Capacity 900 Published school capacity
Capacity used 71.2% Pupils as a share of capacity
Age range 11 – 16 Statutory age range
OFSTED

Latest graded inspection

3 July 2023
Latest published outcome Good
OEIF
Quality of education Good
Behaviour & attitudes Good
Personal development Good
Leadership & management Good
SCHOOL DETAILS

About this school

School type Academy converter
Phase Secondary
Gender Mixed
Religious character —
Local authority Dudley
Trust STOUR VALE ACADEMY TRUST
Census date 15 January 2026
PUPIL PROFILE

School community

Latest published pupil characteristics for 2025/26.

2025/26
Total pupils 641 641 full-time · 0 part-time
Female pupils 352 54.9% of pupils
Male pupils 289 45.1% of pupils

Free school meals

Pupils eligible for free school meals.

27.8%
3.0 pts above England
School 27.8%
Dudley 27.8%
West Midlands 30.6%
England 24.8%

English as an additional language

Pupils whose first language is not English.

2.0%
18.3 pts below England
School 2.0%
Dudley 13.2%
West Midlands 22.4%
England 20.3%

Young carers

Pupils recorded as young carers.

0.0%
1.0 pts below England
School 0.0%
Dudley 0.2%
West Midlands 0.6%
England 1.0%

Ethnicity

Largest recorded pupil groups.

White British
83.9%
538
Unclassified
7.0%
45
White and Black Caribbean
2.0%
13
Any other Mixed background
1.7%
11
Any other White background
1.1%
7
Pakistani
1.1%
7
Council, regional and national comparisons are pupil-weighted using published school census counts.
ADDITIONAL NEEDS

Special educational needs

Pupils receiving SEN support or with an education, health and care plan.

2025/26
Pupils with SEN 23.9% 153 of 641 pupils
3.0 pts above England England: 20.8%
School 23.9%
Dudley 20.7%
West Midlands 21.1%
England 20.8%
SEN support 19.7% 126 pupils
England 14.8% 4.9 pts above
EHC plans 4.2% 27 pupils
England 6.0% 1.8 pts below
PRIMARY NEEDS

Most common identified needs

Pupils
Moderate learning difficulty 47
Social, emotional & mental health 36
Autistic spectrum disorder 34
Specific learning difficulty 15
Speech, language & communication 9
Vision impairment 5

SEN comparisons are pupil-weighted using published 2025/26 Department for Education school-level data. Primary needs combine pupils receiving SEN support and pupils with EHC plans.

ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE

Key stage 4 outcomes

Published Department for Education results for 2024/25.

2024/25
ATTAINMENT 8

Average attainment score

46.0 6.8 pts above England
School 46.0
Dudley 36.2
West Midlands 38.3
England 39.2
English & maths grade 5+ 41.6% England 36.0% 5.6 pts above England
English & maths grade 4+ 68.3% England 51.4% 16.9 pts above England
EBacc entry 21.8% England 30.6% 8.8 pts below England
EBacc average point score 3.90 England 3.41
Progress 8 Not available for 2024/25

Latest published: 0.06 · 2023/24

Comparisons are averages of published school-level results for open schools. They are not pupil-weighted official local authority attainment rates.

ATTENDANCE & ABSENCE

Attendance profile

Published Department for Education absence data for 2024/25. Lower absence rates are generally better.

2024/25
ABSENCE RATE

Overall absence

8.38%

Percentage of possible sessions missed.

2.16 pts higher than England
School 8.38%
Dudley 6.50%
West Midlands 6.28%
England 6.22%
ABSENCE RATE

Persistent absence

23.13%

Pupils missing 10% or more of sessions.

7.31 pts higher than England
School 23.13%
Dudley 17.87%
West Midlands 16.42%
England 15.82%
ABSENCE RATE

Severe absence

3.99%

Pupils missing 50% or more of sessions.

2.18 pts higher than England
School 3.99%
Dudley 2.10%
West Midlands 1.82%
England 1.80%
Council, regional and national comparisons are averages of published school-level percentages rather than pupil-weighted official absence rates.
HOW DOES IT COMPARE?

School context

Comparison with open secondary schools.

CAPACITY

Capacity utilisation

71.2% 21.1 pts below England
Ridgewood High School
71.2%
Dudley
95.0%
West Midlands
94.1%
England
92.3%
Benchmarks use open schools in the same phase. Capacity utilisation is calculated from published pupil and capacity figures.
Sources: Department for Education · Get Information about Schools · Ofsted monthly management information