Leek High School Review 2026: A smaller upper school rebuilding momentum, with sixth form provision re-opening

Leek High School is an upper school for students aged 13 to 18, serving Leek and rural parts of the Staffordshire Moorlands. It is part of The Talentum Learning Trust, and the recent story here is one of stabilisation after a difficult period. The June 2024 inspection judged the school as Requires Improvement overall, but with Good grades for behaviour, personal development, leadership and management, and sixth form provision. Safeguarding was judged effective.

Leadership is clearly defined, with Mr Kevin Graham as Headteacher (substantive from September 2023, having served as interim from January 2023) and Miss Sue Atkinson as Executive Headteacher.

For families, the key question is fit: this is a relatively small roll compared with capacity, which can suit students who benefit from clearer structure and closer monitoring, while also meaning peer group size may feel limited in some year groups.

A strong through-line in the most recent external evaluation is the shift towards calmer, more consistent routines. Boundaries and expectations are clear; students describe a sense of pride in belonging, and staffing stability is highlighted as a practical enabler of improvement.

The school’s values are framed around Inspire, Believe and Achieve, and that messaging is carried consistently across the school’s published materials, including the Headteacher’s welcome and the vision and values statements. The useful lens for parents is not the slogan itself, but what it implies operationally: a focus on aspiration, rebuilding confidence, and creating predictable learning habits for students who are joining at 13 rather than 11.

There is also a practical, student-experience dimension to recent changes. The school has consulted on, and implemented, changes to the structure of the day, explicitly linking timetable design to learning focus and to making more space for extra-curricular activity after taught sessions.

At GCSE, Leek High School is ranked 3,740th in England for GCSE outcomes (FindMySchool ranking based on official data), and 2nd in the Leek local area in the same ranking set. This places results below England average overall, and it is consistent with the school’s wider improvement journey rather than a fully embedded end-state.

The Progress 8 score is -1.1, which indicates that, on average, pupils have made less progress than other pupils nationally with similar starting points across eight subjects. The Attainment 8 score is 31.

At A-level, the school is ranked 1,847th in England (FindMySchool ranking based on official data), and 1st locally in Leek for A-level outcomes. The grade profile shows 4.41% of entries at A*, 16.18% at A, 11.76% at B, and 32.35% at A* to B. The England average for A* to B is 47.2%, so outcomes remain an area to strengthen as sixth form provision expands.

A pragmatic point for parents is that published performance information on the school website also shows year-to-year movement across measures such as Attainment 8, Progress 8, and English and mathematics thresholds, which often happens in smaller cohorts where individual students can have a visible impact on headline percentages.

The curriculum offer is broad for an upper school, including vocational and applied routes alongside GCSEs and post-16 pathways. The school also publishes a combined sixth form offer with Westwood College, which can widen subject choice and better match students to appropriate courses.

The most important implementation message is consistency. The school has identified the key knowledge it expects students to learn in subjects, and routines are established, but classroom practice does not yet translate that intent reliably into lesson design and checking understanding. This matters because students joining at 13 are often consolidating learning habits from different middle school settings, and they benefit from teaching that is explicit about what success looks like, with frequent checks that learning has “stuck” before moving on.

Two curricular signals stand out as strengths to build on. Provision for students with SEND is described as strong, with needs identified quickly and support put in place. Reading is also a clear focus, with a refurbished library positioned as a hub and targeted support for weaker readers designed to help them catch up.

The school does not publish a detailed Russell Group or Oxbridge breakdown in the material reviewed, so the most reliable destination picture here is the 16 to 18 destinations dataset.

For the 2023/24 leavers cohort (30 students), 33% progressed to university, 33% moved into employment, 7% started apprenticeships, and 7% went into further education.

Because these percentages are based on a relatively small cohort, families should treat them as directional rather than definitive. The more actionable step is to ask at open events how destinations support works in practice, for example how personal statements are coached, how vocational routes link to employers, and how students are guided towards apprenticeships as well as university pathways.

Leek High School operates an upper school entry model, with the main intake point described as Year 9 (students transferring from middle schools). The school explains that parents and carers are contacted by the Local Authority early in the autumn term, and that forms are typically returned by a deadline towards the end of October, with offers communicated at the beginning of March.

For families considering a September 2026 start, Staffordshire’s published open evening listing shows Leek High School’s open evening as Thursday 02 October 2025 at 5:30pm. That date is now in the past, but it is a helpful indicator of the usual timing.

Sixth form admissions are handled directly, and the Local Authority’s admissions arrangements page highlights minimum entry requirements for Year 12. The published minimum is passes at grade 3 or higher in four separate GCSE or equivalent courses, including English and Mathematics. Where places are oversubscribed for new applicants, priority is based on the published criteria, with proximity referenced within the arrangements.

A practical tip for families making high-stakes location decisions is to use FindMySchool’s Map Search to check your home-to-school distance and compare it with historical offer patterns, while remembering that admissions patterns can change year to year based on the applicant pool.

Behaviour and attitudes were graded Good at the most recent inspection, and the report narrative places significant weight on improved expectations for attendance and behaviour. The emphasis is on predictable routines, calmer classrooms, and a culture of mutual respect, which is often the foundation required before academic improvements can be sustained.

The school publishes safeguarding information, including designated safeguarding leadership roles, and safeguarding effectiveness is confirmed in the most recent inspection report. Families who want reassurance should look for how concerns are logged, how students are taught to report worries, and how pastoral staff coordinate with external agencies when needed.

SEND identification and support is described as a strong feature. For parents of students with additional needs, the right question is not only what interventions exist, but also how subject teachers adapt tasks in everyday lessons so students are not reliant on withdrawal support alone.

The school explicitly links its timetable changes to creating more opportunity for extra-curricular participation, including after-school clubs and activities. That intent matters because students joining at 13 often benefit from structured belonging beyond lessons, whether that is sport, arts, or practical leadership roles.

The published extra-curricular overview references inter-house sporting competitions across seasons, plus additional competitions and activities such as cooking, performing arts, quizzes, pool and darts. While the list is broad rather than highly specialised, it signals a participation-first approach, with sixth form students involved in leadership of activities.

Music provision is framed around instrumental tuition across strings, brass, woodwind, guitar and percussion, which can be a meaningful option for students who did not have consistent access earlier in their school journey. Trips are also positioned as a regular feature, including overseas travel in recent years (Barcelona, Berlin, New York and Paris), which suggests an ambition to broaden horizons beyond the local area.

The school consulted on a revised structure to the day from September 2024, with students arriving on site for 08:45 and the core teaching day running to 15:20 in the published “new school day” model.

As an upper school serving a mix of town and rural communities, transport planning is a real consideration. Families should review Local Authority transport eligibility and typical routes, and confirm timings against the current school day, particularly if relying on contracted school transport.

• Requires Improvement overall. The June 2024 outcome confirms the school is improving, but not yet where it wants to be academically. Families should ask how teaching consistency is being strengthened across subjects.

• Upper school entry at 13. Transition into Year 9 can be a good reset for some students, but it also means friendships and routines are being re-formed at a sensitive age. Consider how your child manages change and whether they will engage with new expectations quickly.

• Sixth form capacity and curriculum breadth. The inspection notes that sixth form provision was due to restart in September 2025, and the school promotes a combined offer with Westwood College. Ask what this means day-to-day, including teaching locations, subject availability, and enrichment.

• Small cohorts can swing headline outcomes. With relatively small numbers in some phases, annual results and destination percentages can move materially from one year to the next. Use trends and qualitative evidence, not a single data point.

Leek High School is on a credible improvement path, with calmer culture, clearer routines, and stronger foundations for attendance, behaviour, reading, and SEND support than in the recent past. Academic outcomes remain the key area to strengthen, and the most relevant question for families is how consistently high-quality teaching is now being delivered across subjects. Best suited to students who will respond well to clear boundaries and a rebuilding school culture, and to families who value a smaller setting with a strong pastoral and re-engagement focus at upper school transfer age.