Ron Dearing UTC Review 2026: A 14 to 19 school built around engineering, digital, and creative careers

This is a school that asks a very specific question of students: are you ready to commit to a longer, more worklike week so you can learn through real projects and industry expectations. Entry is at 14 (Year 10) and 16 (Year 12), so families are choosing a deliberate mid secondary move rather than a standard Year 7 start. That decision will suit some students brilliantly, and it will not suit others.

The model is explicitly employer led, with specialist facilities and a curriculum designed to connect GCSE and A-level study to technical pathways and workplace practice. Ron Dearing UTC opened in September 2017 and is led by Principal Sarah Pashley.

The latest Ofsted inspection report was published in June 2025 and concluded the school had taken effective action to maintain the Outstanding standards identified at the previous inspection.

The tone here is intentionally adult. The school positions relationships as professional and purposeful, aiming to mirror workplace habits rather than a conventional secondary dynamic. That shows up in the language used about students, the emphasis on presentation and communication, and the expectation that students can explain what they are learning and why it matters.

Leadership is visible and structured in a way that fits the UTC format. Sarah Pashley is listed as Principal (also holding SENDCo and medical needs coordination responsibilities), supported by a Head of School, with senior leads for safeguarding, key stage leadership, and sixth form. For families, that clarity matters because a 14 to 19 setting needs strong operational grip across both GCSE and post 16 routes.

The physical environment is a meaningful part of the identity. The core site is designed around specialist learning spaces rather than traditional corridors of general classrooms. There is also a dedicated creative hub, STEAM Studios, which opened in September 2023 and is presented as a creative centre of excellence for sixth form options.

For GCSE outcomes, the school’s attainment 8 score is 50.7 and progress 8 is 0.1, indicating slightly above average progress from students’ starting points. It does not have an English Baccalaureate entry profile in the same way as many mainstream secondaries, which is consistent with a specialist technical model.

Ranked 2,455th in England and 9th in Hull for GCSE outcomes (FindMySchool ranking based on official data), results sit in line with the middle 35% of schools in England (25th to 60th percentile).

At A-level, 52.34% of grades were A* to B, above the England average of 47.2% (A* to B). A* to A grades total 23.36%, broadly in line with the England average of 23.6%.

Ranked 1,046th in England and 5th in Hull for A-level outcomes (FindMySchool ranking based on official data).

The key implication is that academic outcomes are solid rather than headline grabbing, and the differentiator is the way those outcomes are connected to technical specialisms, projects, and destinations.

The curriculum proposition is straightforward: academic qualifications sit alongside technical learning, and that combination is made concrete through employer projects. Students are expected to apply knowledge to real scenarios rather than treating coursework as detached from the workplace. This model tends to suit students who learn best when there is a clear purpose, a real audience, and visible standards.

A strength for many students will be the way specialist facilities pull ambition upwards. Digital labs are set up for computer aided design, 3D and virtual reality software, prototyping via 3D printers, and large format interactive display for group work. On the engineering side, there are multiple mechatronics and engineering workshops, plus science laboratories to support the academic spine.

In STEAM Studios, the offer includes a ceramics studio, print making facilities, Mac suites, film making facilities, and a gallery, plus a renewables laboratory and a creative makerspace. For a student who is serious about design, digital content, or creative production, this is not a generic “art room”, it is an environment built to replicate professional practice.

Destinations data points to a strongly employment and apprenticeship oriented pipeline. For the 2023/24 leavers cohort (160 students), 39% progressed to apprenticeships and 27% moved into employment, while 28% went to university.

For families considering the sixth form, that split is important. It suggests the culture is not narrowly university focused, and that technical pathways are treated as first choice routes rather than a fallback. Students who want apprenticeships with recognised employers, or who prefer a blend of learning and real work, are likely to find a peer group aligned to that goal.

Oxbridge outcomes are necessarily small cohort, but there is evidence of top end academic ambition: two applications are recorded in the measurement period, with one offer and one acceptance, specifically to Cambridge. The implication is not an “Oxbridge machine”, but that highly academic students can be supported when the fit is right.

This is not a standard secondary transfer. The main intake is Year 10, with a smaller external intake into Year 12. Applications are made directly to the school rather than through a Year 7 local authority process.

For September 2026 Year 10 places, the school states that families should attend an open event, then have an information, advice and guidance meeting with a senior leader before applying. Meetings are expected to start in October. This is designed to ensure the move at 14 is an informed choice, and it is a sensible safeguard given the specialist nature of the provision.

Deadlines matter. The published admissions policy states that to receive an offer of acceptance before 31 March 2026, applications must be made by 31 January 2026, and acceptance is confirmed by 31 March 2026.

Capacity and oversubscription are clear. The published admission number is 150 in Year 10. For Year 12, the published admission number is 75 for external applicants, with internal Year 11 students guaranteed a Year 12 place if they meet the minimum entry requirements.

Oversubscription criteria include looked after and previously looked after children first, then a defined geographic split: 90% of remaining places are allocated to students living in specified Hull and East Riding postcode areas, with 10% allocated to students outside those areas, with random allocation used as a tie break where needed.

Parents weighing distance should still use the FindMySchool Map Search to sense check travel time and realism for a long school day, even though the admissions process is not expressed as a simple “distance from the gate” criterion in the same way as many Year 7 intakes.

Pastoral structures are designed around the reality that students may be arriving at 14 from other schools, and then moving again into post 16 routes. The staffing structure includes a senior safeguarding lead and a senior lead focused on destinations, which aligns to a setting where employability and next steps are core, not peripheral.

The June 2025 Ofsted report states that safeguarding arrangements are effective.

The approach will suit students who respond well to being trusted and held to clear standards. Students who need a more traditional, softer transition into adolescence may prefer a mainstream secondary with a broader general offer and a shorter day.

Extracurricular life is organised through an enrichment programme designed to build employability skills, and it takes place within the extended day. For Year 10, enrichment runs between 4.30pm and 5.15pm Monday to Thursday, aligning with the wider “working week” model.

The most distinctive activities are those that mirror the school’s specialist direction. Examples include a STEM Racing Club focused on designing and racing a miniature Formula 1 style car, an Engineering Design Club centred on CAD and 3D printing, and an Engineering Manufacturing Club using workshop machinery such as lathes and milling machines.

There is also breadth for students whose interests are less narrowly technical, including an Eco Club focused on a school eco garden, a Poetry Club, and a Duke of Edinburgh’s Award programme.

If your child needs a large on site sports culture with extensive fields and fixtures, this is worth interrogating carefully at open events. The enrichment model does include fitness and sport options, but the identity is clearly built around industry linked learning.

This is a state school with no tuition fees. Families should budget for the usual secondary costs such as uniform, trips, and optional extras.

The longer day is a defining practical consideration. The admissions policy sets the school day as 9.15am to 5.15pm Monday to Thursday, with a shorter finish on Friday (9.15am to 4.30pm).

Travel is workable for many city centre routes. The school states it is around a ten minute walk from Hull train station and the interchange. Sixth form students may apply for a travel bursary if travel costs exceed £13.50 per week.

• A move at 14 is a big call. Year 10 entry means changing peer group and curriculum mid secondary. The school mitigates this by requiring an information, advice and guidance meeting before application, but the transition still needs maturity.

• The longer day changes family logistics. Finishing at 5.15pm most days is manageable for some, and hard for others, especially with travel. It can reduce homework pressure, but it increases time on site.

• Specialism is the point, and the trade off. Students who are undecided, or who want the broadest subject spread, may feel constrained compared with a mainstream school. Those with clear interests in engineering, digital, or creative pathways are more likely to thrive.

• Admissions is not a simple postcode check. The 90% and 10% split across defined areas is clear, but there is also a random allocation tie break. Families should treat entry as competitive and make sure alternatives are in place.

Ron Dearing UTC is a specialist 14 to 19 setting built around employer expectations, industry grade facilities, and routes into apprenticeships, employment, and university. It is not designed to be a general purpose secondary, and it does not need to be. Best suited to students who want a purposeful, career shaped education, are ready for a longer week, and are motivated by practical projects alongside GCSEs and A-levels. The challenge lies in fit rather than headline results, and the admission process is best approached early and deliberately.