About The Organisation
London South Bank University (LSBU) Group is an innovative family of educational institutions with over 31,000 students. Originally founded as the Borough Polytechnic Institute in 1892, it has been improving the lives of students, businesses and the community in south London and beyond ever since. The Group was established in 2019 and includes London South Bank University Southwark and London South Bank University Croydon, South Bank Colleges which consists of London South Bank Technical College and Lambeth College, South Bank University Sixth Form and South Bank University Academy. A benefit of the Group is to offer professional and technical educational pathways at all levels to help learners and students meet their full potential in their chosen discipline. LSBU Group has over 31,000 students, including 15,760 at LSBU, 797 academy students, 8,650 in further education and over 6,000 transnational students. With a new Vice-Chancellor recently appointed, Paul Kett, this is an exciting time for the Group as the University launches its new Strategy 2030 which has a strong focus on partnerships, technology, its London presence and its pathway programme which enhances social mobility and economic opportunity.
South Bank Academies Trust
South Bank Academies is a small, thriving multi-academy trust based in South London and sponsored by London South Bank University. Being part of the LSBU Group adds a unique dimension to the Trust, be it academic input, enrichment support, advice and guidance, pathways, networks, expertise or back office.
What South Bank Academies seeks to do is to provide excellent education for our learners in its widest sense, securing excellent outcomes, providing unrivalled care, advice and guidance and supporting high value pathways into higher education, employment or apprenticeships. Its mission is powerful and aligned with the needs of the community as well as the regional economy.
South Bank University Sixth Form
Based in Brixton, South Bank University Sixth Form (SBUSixth) has a focus on technical and practical education, specialising in Engineering and Health. Its curriculum has been created with industry partners to ensure students get real-world experience and skills to prepare them for future employment.
SBUSixth offers entry into Year 12 for those with a passion for Engineering, Business & Finance, Science or Health and the drive to receive a specialist education alongside traditional GCSEs, A Levels, T-Levels and BTECs.
South Bank University Sixth Form benefits from sponsorship from university and employer partners, who work closely with leaders to support and enrich the curriculum. The benefit is that students develop technical and employability skills as well as professional networks to supplement their academic qualifications. Consequently, SBUSixth students are well-placed to access high quality pathways, whether into university, apprenticeships or employment, within or beyond the LSBU Group. Its values are Innovation, Integrity and Intent.
South Bank University Academy
Based in Walworth, Southwark, South Bank University Academy is a happy school with high standards of behaviour where students feel safe and secure. Its teachers build strong relationships with every student, they nurture their personal growth and through carefully designed experiences support them to become the changemakers in their world, live a good life and improve the lives of others.
Everything South Bank University Academy does is true to its values of social justice, endeavour, kindness and empathy, and community. Its vision and values are bold and distinctive. They are about much more than examination results and they are tangible to all those who study and work there.
Through its curriculum, students explore a rich body of knowledge across a broad range of subjects. It supplements this with an extensive enrichment curriculum of contextualised projects, educational visits, lectures, community work and a range of additional clubs and societies. Access to technology brings opportunities for powerful learning. South Bank University Academy recognises that each subject has a unique pedagogical approach which is closely tied to the curriculum that is created for students. Therefore it never prescribes particular methods of teaching.
Looking ahead
The Trust is entering an important and exciting phase of transformation, moving to a dual sixth-form model from 1 September. This will see South Bank University Academy in Walworth transition from secondary provision to sixth-form only, while teaching out its remaining Year 11 students through 2026–27. Alongside this, South Bank University Sixth Form, formally a University Technical College, is now operating as a sixth-form academy with 330 students and a clear ambition to grow to 440.
Both academies will offer a distinctive blend of vocational and technical education alongside A-levels, with focused pathways in areas such as engineering, business and health. The transformation is supported by strong leadership across both sites. From September, governance will also be streamlined, with local advisory boards removed and a single Trust Board overseeing both academies under a new governance framework. Financially, the Trust is stable, with reserves in place and the sixth-form model expected to underwrite the academy during transition, ensuring independence and resilience as the organisation enters its next chapter.
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