Ballymena Academy

Overview

The inspection was conducted during industrial action, meaning the ETI was “unable to assure the quality of education” and could not fully evaluate teaching, learning, or leadership. Despite these limitations, the report highlights strong examination results, high pupil motivation, and positive feedback from parents and staff regarding the school’s supportive ethos.

Strengths

• Pupils are described as “mature, confident, articulate and highly motivated,” developing leadership skills through peer mentoring and committee roles.
• GCSE and A-level attainment is consistently in line with or above the Northern Ireland average for similar schools, with “very high attainment of the girls.”
• The school offers a “broad and balanced curriculum” enhanced by an extensive co-curricular programme engaging around four-fifths of pupils.
• Parents and staff reported “high levels of satisfaction,” emphasising the encouragement given by staff and the school’s “inclusive ethos.”
• The school received a national award for Careers Education, Information, Advice and Guidance (CEIAG).

Areas to improve

• Action plans would benefit from a “sharper focus on the use of baseline data to set more measurable targets.”
• Governors need to “develop further their knowledge of the quality of learning and teaching in the school.”
• Health and safety risks regarding open access to the site need to be “addressed urgently,” and toilets and changing facilities require improvement.

Safeguarding

The school provided evidence that safeguarding arrangements reflect Department of Education guidance, and pupils reported they “feel safe and are aware of what to do if they have any concerns,” though the ETI could not fully evaluate the outworking of these arrangements due to the industrial action.