Portslade Aldridge Community Academy

What Portslade Aldridge Community Academy does

Portslade Aldridge Community Academy (PACA) is a state-funded secondary school located on Chalky Road, Portslade, Brighton (BN41 2WS), serving approximately 1,100 students aged 11-16 across five year groups (Years 7-11), with a published Pupil Admission Number (PAN) of 220 per year group. The school is a member of the Aldridge Education multi-academy trust — a charitable Private Limited Company by guarantee (Company Number 05670663) established by the Aldridge Foundation in 2016 — which provides shared governance, finance, and an entrepreneurial education framework. Headcount in the available data is 41 staff, though this figure is unusually low relative to school scale and likely reflects only locally captured employees rather than central trust shared-service staff.

PACA's core product is a comprehensive secondary education offering spanning GCSE preparation across STEM, humanities, modern foreign languages (French and Spanish), arts, performing arts, and PE, supplemented by personal development, careers guidance (CEIAG), enrichment through Duke of Edinburgh and other clubs, and pastoral support via a four-house system (Dragon, Delta, Victory, Luna). The school also operates a dedicated SEND Aspirations Centre. Its technology layer is built on third-party platforms — Sparx Maths and Sparx Science for independent study, The National Academy for English remote learning resources, and MCAS (My Child at School) plus Bromcom for parent communication and canteen payments — with no proprietary AI or data assets disclosed.

The business model is fundamentally a state-funded education delivery model under the UK Department for Education's framework, with per-pupil funding routed via the Education Funding Agency and supplemented by ancillary streams including catering commissions (via Aspens Services at "The Oasis"), facilities hire (via edu-lettings.org), and community sports-centre operations (Portslade Sports Centre, run by Freedom Leisure under Brighton & Hove Council). Admissions for Year 7 are processed centrally through Brighton & Hove City Council with a 31 October deadline, alongside mid-year transfers for Years 8-11. PACA operates event-driven go-to-market via open evenings, parent/carer tours, and transition days from feeder primaries; distribution is single-country domestic with no documented internationalisation. Customer concentration is structurally high, with effectively one commissioning counterparty (UK government via Brighton & Hove) for core educational revenue; overall concentration risk is therefore classified as High.

Name

Portslade Aldridge Community Academy

Legal name

Portslade Aldridge Community Academy

Website

https://paca.uk.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Secondary Education

NAICS

Elementary and Secondary Schools (6111)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Public Middle Schools (EDAJAAAC)

Keywords

• Secondary education
• GCSE programmes
• Community academy
• Student enrichment
• SEND support

Headquarters

HQ city

Portslade, Brighton

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Government School Funding: As a community academy, PACA is state-funded through the UK government's Education Funding Agency. Funding is based on student numbers and characteristics (including pupil premium for disadvantaged students). No tuition fees are charged to students.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Portslade Aldridge Community Academy (PACA) is a state-funded secondary school delivering education to students aged 11-16 across Years 7-11, including Key Stage 3 and GCSE-level Key Stage 4 study. The school provides a broad curriculum across STEM, humanities, languages, arts, and PE, alongside enrichment programmes such as Duke of Edinburgh, careers guidance (CEIAG), and pastoral support through a house system, and operates ancillary community services including facilities hire and a co-located sports centre.

Product overview

Portslade Aldridge Community Academy (PACA) is a secondary school operated by Aldridge Education, a multi-academy trust. The school offers a comprehensive educational service for students in Years 7-11, providing academic curriculum across core subjects (English, Maths, Science), humanities, languages (French/Spanish), arts, PE, and STEM. The school structure includes pastoral care through a house system (Dragon, Delta, Victory, Luna houses), a rewards system (Platinum Rewards), and enrichment programs including Duke of Edinburgh awards, clubs, and school trips. PACA operates with a two-week timetable with five lessons daily plus break and lunchtimes. The school maintains community connections through facilities hire and the on-site Portslade Sports Centre operated by Freedom Leisure.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Secondary School Education Services Full-time secondary education for students aged 11-16 across Years 7-11, covering Key Stage 3 and GCSE-level Key Stage 4. Includes a broad academic curriculum (STEM, humanities, modern foreign languages, arts, PE, religious education, English/media, food tech), pastoral care via a house system (Dragon, Delta, Victory, Luna), SEND support through the Aspirations Centre, careers guidance (CEIAG), enrichment clubs, Duke of Edinburgh, and preparation for post-16 pathways. Delivered to families in Brighton & Hove under the council's admissions framework.
• School Facilities Hire

Quantifiable outcome

• Students achieve grades at least as good as the top 20% of similar schools — a target that the school consistently achieves.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Aldridge EducationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2016Aldridge Education is the multi-academy trust that PACA belongs to. Established as a national MAT by the Aldridge Foundation in 2016, Aldridge Education supports PACA's Principals and teachers in improving educational quality. PACA benefits from the trust's shared policies, governance, finance, and the Aldridge entrepreneurial education framework. The trust is registered as a Private Limited Company (05670663) with head office at Duke's Aldridge Academy in Tottenham, London.
• Brighton Aldridge Community Academy (BACA)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBACA is PACA's sister school within the Aldridge Education family, also located in Brighton. The two schools share educational resources, and PACA students can progress to BACA's expanding sixth form, which includes Cricket Academy, Football Academy, Construction Academy, and digital media courses.
• Aspens ServicesminorOthersAspens Services is PACA's catering provider, operating the canteen known as The Oasis. Aspens provides fresh, nutritious meals adhering to school-based dietary standards, catering for all dietary needs including vegetarian/vegan, religious, and allergy requirements. They offer a rotating three-week menu themed around global cuisines.
• Freedom LeisurecoreOthersFreedom Leisure operates the Portslade Sports Centre on behalf of Brighton and Hove Council. The facility includes a gym, exercise studio, sports halls, squash courts, two all-weather floodlit football pitches, and a function room. Open to the community Monday-Saturday with extended hours.
• Brighton & Hove City CouncilcoreOthersBrighton & Hove City Council handles admissions for PACA's Year 7 intake and mid-year transfers for Years 8-11. The council's Schools Admissions Team manages the application process, deadlines (31st October), and appeals. The council also governs Freedom Leisure's operation of the Portslade Sports Centre.
• MonkhouseminorOthersMonkhouse is the school's uniform supplier, providing branded items including blazers, ties, PE kits, and optional jumpers/cardigans. All uniform items can be purchased through Monkhouse's website or retail store. PACA also uses Monkhouse for second-hand uniform provision to support sustainability and families in financial hardship.
• What Next Sussex / Get Career ConfidentminorOthersPACA's careers programme (CEIAG) uses the What Next Sussex - Get Career Confident platform to provide students with career information, guidance, and access to post-16 open events across the region. This supports students in Year 9-11 with GCSE options and post-16 pathway planning.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Regional players

• Hove Park School: Large Brighton & Hove secondary and sixth-form school serving a similar age range. Comparable state-funded model and direct local competitor for admissions under the same council catchment.
• Varndean School: Brighton & Hove secondary and sixth-form school operating under the same Brighton & Hove council admissions criteria. Comparable pupil-population scale and curriculum model, making it a relevant regional peer.
• Cardinal Newman Catholic School: Brighton secondary school serving a similar 11-18 age range. Faith-based but competes in the same Brighton & Hove admissions market and is a relevant comparator for parental choice dynamics.
• Longhill High School: Brighton & Hove secondary school in the same local-authority admissions pool. Competes for the same Year 7 cohort and serves a comparable demographic, providing a close regional benchmark.
• Blatchington Mill School & Sixth Form College: Brighton & Hove secondary school serving a comparable 11-18 cohort. Competes with PACA for Year 7 admissions in the same local-authority admissions cycle and is the most direct geographic comparator within the Brighton market.
• Dorothy Stringer School: Brighton & Hove community secondary school competing for the same 11-16 cohort under the Brighton & Hove admissions framework. Comparable scale and curriculum breadth to PACA and a key local competitor for parent choice.

Broad incumbents

• Brighton College: Independent Brighton school operating as a broader incumbent in the same South East education market. Not a direct state-funded peer but competes for high-attaining local families and is the dominant private benchmark for the catchment.

Direct peers

• Duke's Aldridge Academy: Head office school of the Aldridge Education trust in Tottenham, London. Same trust operating model, same multi-academy trust governance and entrepreneurial framework, making it the closest structural analogue to PACA outside Brighton.
• Brighton Aldridge Community Academy (BACA): Sister school to PACA within the Aldridge Education MAT, also located in Brighton. Directly comparable as an Aldridge secondary academy serving a similar post-16 cohort and forming PACA's main sixth-form progression partner.

Others

• Aldridge Education Multi-Academy Trust: Central trust entity providing governance, finance, HR and shared services across all Aldridge schools. PACA operates directly under its oversight, making it a parent/ecosystem peer rather than a competing school.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/PACAcademy
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/portslade-aldridge-community-academy
• Instagraminstagram.com/paca_school

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 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 Portslade Aldridge Community Academy