Caister Academy

What Caister Academy does

Caister Academy is an 11-16 co-educational state-funded secondary school located in Caister-on-Sea, Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, UK. It serves approximately 750-825 pupils across Years 7 to 11 with a specialism in Literature and Performing Arts, offering a traditional academic curriculum (English, Science, Mathematics, Humanities, Modern Foreign Languages) alongside extensive co-curricular provision including Combined Cadet Force, Electives, the World Leaders programme, and structured arts and sport enrichment. The school joined the Creative Education Trust in March 2015, gaining access to a 17-school national network while retaining local operational autonomy, and received an Ofsted 'Good' rating across all categories in 2024. It is a major community employer with 80+ staff and is currently undergoing a planned capacity contraction via a phased reduction in Published Admission Number from 165 to 120 by 2028/29 alongside a newly approved 10% aptitude-based selection in Performing Arts.

The school's technology stack is conventional and entirely vendor-supplied, comprising Microsoft 365 and SharePoint for staff and student portals, and Arbor MIS as its management information system. There is no proprietary software, no API surface, no mobile app, and no AI/ML capability disclosed. Operational technology is positioned on ease of use and interoperability rather than differentiation, with the bookable facilities system integrated into the Creative Education Trust lettings portal enabling community use of the Dining Hall, Gym, Large Classroom, and Sports Hall.

Caister Academy operates as a non-commercial public sector entity. Revenue is derived from UK government per-pupil funding administered through the Department for Education's academy funding model, with no tuition fees charged. Its go-to-market is admissions-led and indirect, routed through Norfolk County Council's standard secondary school transfer process, supplemented by community-facing channels (annual Open Evening each September, individual tours, transition events for incoming Year 6 pupils, and a website plus Instagram presence). Customer segments are individual students and their families; pricing signals are not commercially disclosed but ancillary income is generated via pay-as-you-go community facility hire.

Name

Caister Academy

Legal name

Caister Academy

Website

https://caisteracademy.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Caister Academy is a UK state-funded 11-16 co-educational secondary school in Caister-on-Sea, Norfolk, specialising in Literature and Performing Arts. It serves approximately 750-825 pupils as part of the Creative Education Trust's 17-school network, funded through government per-pupil allocations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Caister-on-Sea

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. State Education Funding: As a state-funded Academy, Caister Academy receives government funding through the Academy funding model administered by the Department for Education. Revenue is used to fund educational operations, staff salaries, and facility maintenance.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Caister Academy is a state-funded secondary school for students aged 11-16 (Years 7-11), delivering a traditional academic curriculum across English, Science, Mathematics, Humanities, and Modern Foreign Languages with a specialism in Literature and Performing Arts. The school offers pastoral care, co-curricular activities such as Combined Cadet Force and World Leaders, and bookable community facilities for hire outside school hours. The academy is free to attend, funded through the UK Department for Education's Academy funding model.

Product overview

Caister Academy is an 11-16 co-educational secondary school located in Caister-on-Sea, Norfolk, specializing in Literature and Performing Arts. The academy offers a traditional academic curriculum supplemented by arts, technology, and sport programs. The school operates under the Creative Education Trust network and provides educational services including academic subjects (English, Science, Mathematics, Humanities, Modern Foreign Languages), pastoral care, co-curricular activities, The Arts (Art, Dance, Drama, Music, Technology), Sport, and bookable facilities for community use. The school utilizes Arbor MIS for management information system and provides Microsoft Office 365/SharePoint portals for staff and students.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Secondary Education (Years 7-11) State-funded secondary education for students aged 11-16 (Years 7-11) covering English, Science, Mathematics, Humanities, Modern Foreign Languages, and a specialism in Literature and Performing Arts. Free to attend, delivered as part of the Creative Education Trust.
• Co-Curricular Enrichment Programmes Broad co-curricular enrichment including Combined Cadet Force, Electives programme, World Leaders development programme, Student Leadership, school trips, and Work Experience for secondary school students.
• The Arts Programme (Art, Dance, Drama, Music) Performing and creative arts programme aligned with the academy's Literature and Performing Arts specialism, covering Art, Dance, Drama, Music, and Technology, plus events and partnerships.
• Community Facility Hire Community hire of the academy's Dining Hall, Gym, Large Classroom, and Sports Hall during out-of-school hours, booked through the Creative Education Trust lettings portal.
• Pastoral Care and Wellbeing Support Pastoral support encompassing safeguarding, attendance monitoring (98% target), wellbeing and mental health support, hardship assistance, PSHE, rewards, and provisions for young carers, supporting students and families.

Quantifiable outcome

• 98% attendance target for all students
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Creative Education TrustcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 March 2015Caister Academy joined Creative Education Trust in March 2015, providing immediate access to a national network of support while retaining autonomy to make decisions best for students. The trust comprises 17 schools educating 13,500 children. Caister works closely with other local Creative Education Trust schools with shared resources and support to develop potential of every individual.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves1 record

Expansion highlights4 records

Emerging players

• Reach Academy Feltham: A small UK state secondary free school operating outside the local authority framework. It is comparable to Caister as a non-LA state secondary competing on culture and pastoral care in a constrained catchment.

Broad incumbents

• Nord Anglia Education: A global network of premium K-12 schools delivering arts-rich curricula (notably collaborations with Juilliard and MIT). Useful as a benchmark for how an arts-specialist positioning can be embedded at network scale.
• GEMS Education: A large international K-12 school operator with premium independent schools across multiple geographies. Relevant as a broad incumbent illustrating how school networks can scale specialism, branding, and facilities hire beyond a single site.

Others

• Oasis Community Learning: One of the largest UK multi-academy trusts operating dozens of state secondary schools. Comparable to Creative Education Trust as an alternative MAT operating model that Caister could, in principle, be benchmarked against.
• United Learning: A major UK state and independent schools group with deep pastoral and curriculum infrastructure. Relevant as a broader-sector benchmark for state secondary operating models comparable to Creative Education Trust's network.

Direct peers

• Norwich School: Norfolk's leading independent secondary school serving the same regional parent market as Caister Academy. While funded by fees rather than state grants, it competes for the same secondary-age cohort in the Norwich/Great Yarmouth catchment.
• Framlingham College: A Suffolk independent school with a strong co-curricular and arts provision, comparable to Caister in age range and specialism emphasis. Represents the regional independent alternative for parents considering arts-rich secondary education.
• Felsted School: An Essex independent school offering a broad 11-18 curriculum with strong arts, music, and drama specialisms. Comparable to Caister in specialism mix and target age range, though operating on a fee-paying model.
• Wymondham College: A Norfolk-based state secondary school serving a broadly similar 11-18 catchment with comparable scale and demographic exposure. It is the closest geographic and funding-model comparable to Caister Academy within the same East Anglian market.
• Gresham's School: A Norfolk independent school with a prominent performing arts, music, and creative specialism directly mirroring Caister's arts positioning. It is the most direct local competitor for arts-focused families in the same region.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/caisteracademy
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/caister-academy

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Caister Academy