De Warenne Academy Review 2026: A structured, community-focused secondary in Conisbrough

A school day that finishes at 2:30pm signals the operating model here, core learning is protected early, then time is deliberately created for enrichment, sport, and wider development.

De Warenne Academy serves students from Year 7 to Year 11 in Conisbrough, Doncaster, and sits within Delta Academies Trust. The current Principal is John Hall. In official reporting, the academy is described as a secondary comprehensive and its current buildings date from a major move into new accommodation in early 2013, which matters because it shapes facilities, circulation, and the practical feel of daily life.

For performance, the picture is steady rather than headline grabbing. On FindMySchool’s GCSE outcomes ranking, it sits 1,854th in England and 8th in Doncaster, which places it in line with the middle 35% of schools in England (25th to 60th percentile). Attainment 8 is 46.2, while Progress 8 is +0.31, a signal that students tend to make above-average progress from their starting points.

The latest Ofsted inspection (October 2021) judged the academy Good in all areas.

There is a clear emphasis on order, consistency, and relationships. Students are expected to behave well in lessons and to take learning seriously, and the external picture aligns with that, students report feeling safe, and staff-student relationships are described as positive.

The leadership structure is presented in a practical, student-facing way. Tutor groups sit at the centre of day-to-day oversight, supported by a Learning Manager for each year group, which creates two routes for families, a tutor for routine academic and pastoral tracking, and a year lead for issues that need stronger coordination. This is reinforced by a communications pattern of progress reports twice per year and scheduled parents’ evenings.

The academy’s journey is also distinctive in local terms. It opened as an academy in September 2009, replacing its predecessor school, and later moved into new buildings at the end of February 2013. That timeline often correlates with a more standardised site layout and modern teaching spaces, which can make routines easier to run at scale, particularly for a school operating close to capacity.

What you do not see is an attempt to sell a niche identity. Instead, the tone is straightforward, expectations, behaviour, attendance, and participation. The atmosphere is best described as purposeful and structured, with personal development framed as a taught entitlement rather than an optional extra.

On FindMySchool’s GCSE outcomes ranking, De Warenne Academy is ranked 1,854th in England and 8th in Doncaster. These are proprietary FindMySchool rankings based on official data, and the position sits in line with the middle 35% of schools in England (25th to 60th percentile).

The underlying outcomes add nuance. Attainment 8 is 46.2, indicating a broadly typical attainment profile across a student’s best eight GCSE slots. Progress 8 is +0.31, which is the more parent-relevant signal, it suggests students generally achieve better GCSE outcomes than peers nationally with similar starting points.

In the English Baccalaureate (EBacc) space, the average EBacc APS is 4.03, close to the England average of 4.08. The proportion achieving grades 5 or above across EBacc subjects is recorded as 18.3%.

For families comparing local options, the most useful approach is to combine the ranking signal with a closer look at Progress 8 and the curriculum model. FindMySchool’s Local Hub comparison tools can help you view these indicators alongside neighbouring schools without relying on reputation alone.

The curriculum intent is described as ambitious in most subjects, and the 2021 inspection narrative supports that overall shape, leaders have designed curriculum plans to build knowledge over time, with French cited as an example where sequencing and progression (phonics, grammar, vocabulary) are carefully planned.

Classroom practice is framed around clarity and checking understanding. The external picture describes teachers presenting information clearly and using a consistent approach to revisiting previous learning and addressing misconceptions. The key caveat, also evidenced, is that this is not equally strong in every subject, in a small number of areas, subject knowledge and assessment practice are less secure, and that inconsistency is where improvement work tends to concentrate.

Support for students with special educational needs and or disabilities (SEND) is described as planned and specific, staff are expected to understand barriers to learning and adapt work accordingly. For parents, the practical implication is that SEND support is not positioned as a separate track, it is expected to operate inside day-to-day teaching, which usually benefits students who need small adaptations rather than fully separate provision.

Reading is also treated as a whole-school lever. External reporting highlights that staff promote reading and identify students who struggle with fluency, then target additional support.

Where Students Go Next

This is an 11 to 16 academy, so the main destination question is post-16 pathways rather than university pipelines. The most relevant measures for families are therefore, the quality of careers education, the strength of guidance, and the level of ambition students are encouraged to hold.

Careers is presented as a core entitlement, with students described as receiving strong careers information, and the school’s approach explicitly references the statutory provider access expectations that sit behind modern secondary careers programmes.

The implication for families is that the academy aims to keep options open, especially for students who might be uncertain about A-levels, vocational routes, or apprenticeships at 16. If you are comparing schools primarily on progression, ask practical questions about how option choices at Key Stage 4 are guided, how students are counselled on post-16 entry requirements, and what the school does for students whose initial plans do not work out in Year 11.

Admissions operate through the local authority’s coordinated system for Year 7 entry in Doncaster. The local timetable published for secondary transfer indicates that applications for September 2026 entry should be submitted by 31 October 2025, with allocation decisions issued on 2 March 2026.

For families thinking ahead, that timetable tends to repeat annually, deadline at the end of October in Year 6, offers released in early March. The practical step is to treat September and October as the decision window, shortlist, attend open events, and finalise preferences early enough to avoid last-minute errors.

Open events appear to run in the autumn term, including a Year 5 and Year 6 open evening listed in October 2025. For 2026 entry and beyond, expect a similar timing, but rely on the school’s published calendar for the exact dates.

Parents who want a realistic sense of admission competitiveness should focus on published oversubscription criteria and, where available, distance-based allocation patterns. Where distance data is relevant, FindMySchool’s Map Search is the most reliable way to sanity check travel assumptions, because small differences in route or measurement point can change outcomes.

Pastoral systems are designed to be visible and predictable. Tutor groups anchor day-to-day support, and Learning Managers provide year-level oversight on attendance, behaviour, and progress. That structure helps students who benefit from routine and clear escalation routes, and it also helps parents who want to know who to speak to first.

Safeguarding is treated as a practical, student-facing topic. Ofsted also confirmed safeguarding arrangements were effective, and the report highlights that students trust adults to help when problems arise.

Personal development content is framed around resilience, mental and physical health, and relationships education, which is an increasingly important differentiator between schools that treat wellbeing as assemblies only, and schools that build it into the taught offer.

The most useful way to understand enrichment here is to see it as a planned extension of the school day. With a 2:30pm finish, after-school time is explicitly positioned as space for clubs, activities, and events. The implication is simple, participation becomes more realistic for students who rely on public transport or have caring responsibilities, because activities can start earlier than in schools finishing closer to 3:15pm.

Clubs are described with some specificity. The enrichment offer includes a Performing Arts club that runs productions during the year, a STEM club, a cookery club, and a creative writing group. For a mainstream 11 to 16 school, that mix matters, it signals that provision is not limited to sport, and that students who prefer practical or creative pathways have named options rather than generic promises.

Sport also has a clear place in the culture. Students are described as competing in local tournaments, including Delta Games and School Games competitions. A competition pathway is not only about elite performance, it also creates regular milestones and belonging for students who may otherwise disengage from school life.

If your child is quieter, ask about how club participation is encouraged in Year 7, whether staff actively steer students towards a first activity, and how transport home is handled after events. If your child is highly motivated, ask about leadership roles within clubs and whether students can build a portfolio of responsibilities across Key Stage 4.

The school day is stated as finishing at 2:30pm, which creates capacity for after-school enrichment and events. Specific start-of-day timings are not consistently published in accessible text formats, so families should confirm arrival and line-up expectations directly with the academy, particularly if travel arrangements are tight.

For students commuting from across Doncaster, the practical question is consistency of travel time across seasons. A short school day can still become stressful if transport is unreliable, so it is worth testing the route at the relevant times. Open evenings are typically scheduled in the autumn term, which gives a useful chance to trial the journey.

• Performance profile is steady rather than headline-led. The GCSE ranking sits in line with the middle 35% of schools in England, which will suit many students, but families seeking a strongly academic, exam-heavy peer group may want to compare Progress 8 and curriculum offer carefully across alternatives.

• Consistency between subjects is a key improvement theme. External reporting highlights that some subjects are less ambitious or have weaker subject expertise than others. This can matter for students whose strengths sit in particular departments.

• Early finish changes the rhythm of family life. A 2:30pm finish is helpful for enrichment, but it can create childcare pressure for families who do not use clubs or who cannot pick up until later, particularly in winter.

De Warenne Academy offers a structured, community-focused secondary experience, with a clear pastoral spine and a deliberate approach to enrichment built into the day. Results are broadly typical by national comparison, with a positive Progress 8 signal that suggests students often do better than peers with similar starting points.

It suits families who want a predictable routine, visible behaviour expectations, and accessible clubs after school, particularly if a 2:30pm finish aligns well with travel and activities. The main decision point is fit, if your child needs a highly academic culture across every subject, you should compare departmental strength and curriculum ambition carefully during visits and open events.