Outwood Academy Danum Review 2026: A large Doncaster secondary with a strongly structured curriculum and an expanding post-16 offer

A big, busy 11 to 18 academy can either feel anonymous or confidently organised. Here, the evidence points to the second. The published school day structure gives a clear sense of tight routines and deliberate use of time, including a daily personal development slot before lessons begin.

Leadership is stable, with Amanda Crane listed as principal across official records, and the academy has been part of Outwood Grange Academies Trust since 2016, which shapes training, systems, and expectations.

This is not a school where the headline is exam results. On FindMySchool’s GCSE outcomes ranking, it sits below the England average band, and the sixth form results show a similar pattern. The strongest story is about structure, inclusion, and purposeful support, including named internal provisions and an Additional Resource Centre for deaf pupils.

The academy’s published messaging is unambiguous about priorities, students first and a calm learning climate, and the supporting detail comes through in how time and support are organised. The day begins with a dedicated personal development and growth period, followed by five longer teaching periods, suggesting a model that is designed for routines, retrieval, and sustained focus rather than short, chopped-up lessons.

As a large school with a wide local intake, inclusion needs to be more than goodwill. Here, it is formalised through named provisions and teams. The academy describes a Bridge and Personalised Learning Centre alongside its wider inclusion practice, and it also runs an ARC for a small cohort of hearing-impaired students. That combination matters for families weighing mainstream experience with specialist support. It implies access to ordinary lessons and peer groups, with targeted interventions available when barriers appear.

Leadership also sits in a wider trust context. The academy joined Outwood Grange Academies Trust in September 2016, and the trust model tends to bring shared training, common approaches to curriculum planning, and consistent safeguarding systems across schools. For parents, the practical implication is that a lot of the “how” of school life is designed to be predictable, with staff development and quality assurance running beyond the single site.

Amanda Crane is recorded as principal in official records, and the academy site presents her as principal as well. A “new principal” communication was published in early January 2022, which aligns with her taking up the role around that point.

This is a school where outcomes sit below the England average band on FindMySchool’s GCSE rankings, and parents should read results alongside the school’s visible focus on structured teaching and intervention.

GCSE outcomes (FindMySchool ranking)

Ranked 2828th in England and 18th in Doncaster for GCSE outcomes (FindMySchool ranking, based on official data). The position places the academy in line with the lower-performing 40% of schools in England (60th to 100th percentile).

The headline metrics point to a mixed picture. Attainment 8 is 39.3, and Progress 8 is -0.17, indicating that, on average, pupils make slightly below-average progress from their starting points. Entry and performance in the English Baccalaureate subjects is a clear weakness, with 12.6% achieving grades 5 or above in the EBacc compared with an England average of 40.5%. The academy’s EBacc average point score is 3.48, below the England average of 4.08.

For families, the implication is practical. If you want a school where EBacc is a strong pillar for most pupils, this data suggests you should ask direct questions about subject entry choices and how languages and humanities are positioned for different pathways. If your child is more likely to pursue a broad but not strongly EBacc-weighted route, the school’s curriculum design and intervention model may matter more than the EBacc headline.

A-level outcomes (FindMySchool ranking)

Ranked 1670th in England and 6th in Doncaster for A-level outcomes (FindMySchool ranking, based on official data). This again sits in the lower-performing 40% of sixth forms in England (60th to 100th percentile).

The grade distribution reported shows 9.09% at A*, 7.58% at A, and 34.85% at A* to B. The England average for A* to B is 47.2%, and the England average for A* to A is 23.6%, which indicates the sixth form outcomes are below England averages on these headline measures.

One nuance worth noting is that a sixth form can be improving in quality of experience and support while still working through attainment trends. Parents considering post-16 should weigh outcomes against the offer itself, subject fit, group sizes, and progression guidance, especially where a school is expanding technical routes alongside academic ones.

The most convincing evidence for teaching here is the specificity of the approach. Retrieval tasks and regular assessment are part of the learning rhythm, and the academy uses dedicated intervention staff who analyse assessment information and run bespoke small-group sessions. The implication is a model designed to close gaps quickly and prevent pupils from quietly falling behind.

Curriculum design is framed around preparation for next steps, including local labour market awareness. A notable example is the introduction of a Health T Level in the sixth form, explicitly tied to local healthcare opportunities. This is important because it signals a curriculum that includes technical pathways with meaningful placement expectations, not just traditional A-level routes.

Support for different learning needs is not left to generic classroom differentiation. The academy sets out multiple internal provisions, including the Bridge and the Personalised Learning Centre, plus the ARC for deaf pupils. In practice, that suggests a layered system: targeted support for literacy or access issues, additional help for pupils who need re-teaching, and specialist expertise for hearing impairment, while still aiming for inclusion in mainstream lessons where appropriate.

Where Students Go Next

For a school with sixth form, destinations matter, but it is easy for marketing language to crowd out useful information. The most reliable published destination indicators available here come from the dataset and the post-16 programme descriptions.

From the DfE 16 to 18 leaver destinations data provided, the 2023 to 2024 cohort size is 49. Of these leavers, 49% progressed to university, 4% to apprenticeships, and 18% to employment. (Percentages do not necessarily sum to 100% because some categories are not listed or are suppressed.)

On the most selective university pathway, the Oxbridge data indicates a small but tangible pipeline. In the measurement period, 2 students applied to Oxford or Cambridge, 1 received an offer, and 1 secured a place. For a large 11 to 18 academy, that profile suggests Oxbridge is not a dominant destination, but it is not absent either, and it may reflect targeted support for a small group rather than a whole-cohort culture.

Qualitatively, the sixth form describes a structured university preparation programme and a high-attainment strand called The Elephant Group, which lists collaborative links with universities including Oxbridge and several Russell Group institutions. The implication is that high academic ambition is supported through an organised programme, even if cohort-wide results and destination percentages remain the more mixed part of the overall picture.

For Year 7 entry (September 2026), applications are coordinated through Doncaster Council using the common application process, rather than applying directly to the academy. The published closing date for secondary applications for 2026 to 2027 entry is 31 October 2025, with offers issued on 2 March 2026.

Open evenings are best treated as seasonal. Doncaster’s published schedule lists an open evening date of 23 September 2025 for Year 7 entry information and 4 November 2025 for Year 12, with Year 6 to Year 7 transition days noted as to be confirmed in that schedule. If you are reading this later in the cycle, the pattern still helps, it suggests late September for Year 7 open events and early November for post-16. Always check the academy’s current listings for the latest dates.

For sixth form (September 2026 entry), the academy publishes a clear post-16 timeline: applications open in October 2025, a post-16 open evening on 4 November 2025, interviews in December 2025, conditional offers in January 2026, transition activity in July 2026, and enrolment following GCSE results in August 2026, with induction in September 2026.

A practical suggestion for families comparing options is to use FindMySchool’s Saved Schools feature to keep a shortlist, then map it against open events, application deadlines, and your child’s likely pathway (A-level, T Level, or a blend).

Pastoral strength is hard to judge without visiting, so the safest approach is to focus on what is formally described and independently verified. The academy presents a mental wellbeing offer that links families to wider Outwood support resources and strategy documentation, signalling that wellbeing is treated as a system, not an informal add-on.

The academy is also explicit about safeguarding priorities in its published safeguarding information, and the most recent inspection record states that safeguarding arrangements are effective.

Behaviour is the key tension to understand. Pupils are described as routinely behaving well in lessons and around site, but attendance and suspension patterns are identified as areas needing improvement, and Behaviour and attitudes is the weaker graded judgement. For families, this means asking specific questions: how the behaviour system works day-to-day, what support sits behind sanctions, and how the school is addressing persistent absence, particularly for vulnerable groups.

Extracurricular life is often where a large school becomes personal. Here, the strongest evidence is the specificity of the activities described across official sources.

Students are reported to participate in Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, and clubs named include basketball, oil painting, debating, and journalism. There is also a climate change crew that has influenced policy changes to improve sustainability, and sixth form students are involved in leadership through a school parliament and mentoring. The implication is a programme that mixes sport and arts with student voice and civic participation, rather than relying only on fixtures and performances.

For students with hearing impairment, external reporting from the trust highlights an inclusive ARC model, including staff training and participation in wider school life, and it references a British Sign Language club that helps build wider awareness. That is a concrete example of inclusion extending beyond classroom support into social culture.

Post-16 enrichment also includes continued DofE opportunities, supported by dedicated leaders and volunteers, which signals continuity of personal development into sixth form, not just a narrow exam focus.

The published school day runs from 08:30 arrival, with a daily personal development slot, and teaching periods continuing to 15:00. The academy describes this as 32.5 hours in a typical week.

Term dates are published on the academy site, including dates for the 2026 to 2027 academic year, which is useful for working parents planning childcare and travel across the year.

This is a state school with no tuition fees. Families should still budget for the usual extras such as uniform, educational visits, and optional activities, and should check what financial support is available for any chargeable items.

• Behaviour and attendance are the biggest watch-outs. Behaviour and attitudes is graded Requires improvement and the published improvement priorities include reducing suspensions and improving attendance. For families, this is a prompt to ask how the school balances high expectations with support, particularly for pupils who struggle with routines.

• GCSE outcomes sit below the England average band. The FindMySchool GCSE ranking places the academy in the lower-performing 40% of schools in England, and Progress 8 of -0.17 indicates slightly below-average progress. Families focused primarily on academic results should compare local alternatives carefully using the FindMySchool Local Hub comparison tools.

• EBacc is a weak point on the published data. With a comparatively low EBacc 5+ measure, parents may want clarity on who is entered for EBacc subjects and what academic pathways are encouraged for different starting points.

• Large-school experience is not for every child. Capacity is high, which can suit confident students who like choice and scale, but some pupils do better in smaller settings. The inclusion structures described here help, but they do not remove the realities of a large environment.

Outwood Academy Danum comes across as a strongly organised Doncaster secondary with an explicit focus on structure, targeted intervention, and inclusion, including named internal provisions and specialist support for deaf pupils. The results picture is more mixed, with both GCSE and A-level outcomes sitting below the England average band on FindMySchool rankings, and behaviour and attendance improvement work remains central.

Best suited to families who want a clear routines-led school day, visible academic support systems, and a broad post-16 offer that includes technical routes such as Health T Levels. For students who need consistently calm behaviour across the whole cohort or who prioritise top-end exam outcomes above all else, this is a school to research carefully, ideally by focusing questions on behaviour, attendance, and subject pathway decisions.