About Us

Lydiard Park Academy is the founding school of The Park Academies Trust.

Lydiard Park Academy (LPA) is a thriving 11-18 mixed comprehensive academy serving West Swindon and surrounds. It is consistently one of the highest achieving schools in the area for the amount of progress made by pupils of all abilities and backgrounds.

It has held an Ofsted rating of ‘Good’ for over twelve years and is consistently oversubscribed for entry into Year 7. As an inclusive school, LPA also includes a Special Resource Provision for 15 pupils with mild autism.

We develop strong relationships with other organisations to offer our pupils the education they need; groups like Villiers Park to support high achieving children from disadvantaged backgrounds; PiXL and TEEP to support our teachers with a variety of strategies and resources and our pupils with additional resources and experiences.

As a school in The Park Academies Trust, we aim to be a centre of educational excellence that inspire all pupils to turn their potential into performance.

Developing and supporting pupils to fulfil their potential and perform at their highest level is at the heart of Lydiard Park Academy. This occurs through high quality, engaging teaching, delivered by a professional and experienced teaching team. A combination of innovative and well established teaching methods and technology, are harnessed to personalise learning experiences. We balance our high expectations of all our pupils with the support of an experienced pastoral team.

We are proud of the excellent progress that our pupils make while they are with us. Whether it is through our innovative Gifted and Talented Academy and Sports Academy Programmes, our effective Curriculum Support Unit, or our Autistic Spectrum Centre we have high expectations of every child and support this ethos through rewards and celebrations.

Achievements are not only academic - whether it be through cheerleading, rugby, dancing, acting, the Duke of Edinburgh Award scheme or ‘Young Musician of the Year’, there is opportunity for everyone to fulfil their potential.

As an innovative and creative academy, we work in partnership with the global community. Our links with local organisations, businesses, further and higher education institutions and wider links, such as with a link school in Gambia, help raise the aspirations of our pupils and open their eyes to the wider world.

The work that takes place in the classroom is the cornerstone of the academy’s success and our staff are well qualified, enthusiastic, skilled, dedicated and consistent. Our involvement in teacher training and teacher professional development ensures that we stay on our toes when it comes to providing outstanding learning opportunities.

Our pupils are enthusiastic, motivated and ambitious to succeed, and maintain very high standards of behaviour and engagement in their studies. They are encouraged to become increasingly independent learners as they progress through the academy and are well supported by intervention programmes and individual mentoring.

Add in the support of parents, good attendance, and a committed and experienced teaching staff then our pupils are sure to do well, whatever their starting point. This is reflected in the high progress levels that our pupils obtain.

There are many opportunities for pupils to take part in extra curricular activities at LPA. A large number of clubs and activities take place after formal lessons during our Session 6 programme. Staff are committed to providing different opportunities to enrich the lives of our pupils. Subject based clubs, such as those in Art, Drama, Music, Science, Sport and Technology enhance the curriculum and many trips and visits support classroom learning.

In recent years groups from Lydiard Park Academy have visited the following countries; USA, Iceland, Spain, France, Italy and Belgium. Pupils are encouraged to enter competitions whether that is through our House system or as representative of an academy team. The Academy has a strong community focus and works with a number of local groups to help improve the local environment and LPA pupils participate in a number of local social events. Our academy council and house system helps develop leadership skills and provide opportunities for pupils’ views to be heard. A core aim of the House system is promoting awareness of their chosen charity. Pupils are keen to educate others about their nominated charity whilst raising money and having a great deal of fun too!

There are Music concerts, a Young Musician of the Year competition, Battle of the Bands and a number of Drama productions each year which help pupils develop their performance skills and their self-confidence.

The P.E. department run many academy teams and the academy has a formidable reputation for the success of our teams in local competitions.