School communities in and around Wakefield have plenty to celebrate this year, with many local secondaries and their pupils soaring well above the national average in their GCSE results.
Last month, the Government released the preliminary performance figures for state-funded secondary schools for the most recent, 2024/25 school year. But this year, the usual improvement-based Progress 8 scores were nowhere to be seen - unable to be calculated due to the pandemic disruptions this cohort of learners faced back in primary school.
Instead, the default metric used to compare schools is their Attainment 8 scores - a purely performance-based figure derived from pupils’ results in up to eight GCSEs. These scores go up to 90 and loosely align with GCSE 9-1 number grades. The national average was 45.9 this year, or somewhere between the standard and strong passing grades of 4 to 5.
To recognise the local schools that managed to do particularly well despite the pandemic-era hurdles its pupils experienced, we’ve created a league table of this year’s highest achievers across the Wakefield Council area - featuring only those with scores above the national average. In cases where two schools had the same score, they have been ordered alphabetically.
Of course, grades aren’t the only measure of what sort of learning environment a school provides. That’s why we’ve also checked to make sure each one included on our list had a positive mark in its latest Ofsted inspection. These are set to change this month, but for now, we’ve only made sure schools had either a ‘good’ or ‘outstanding’ overall grade before last September, or positive ratings across all categories if they’ve been inspected since.
Here were the 11 Wakefield schools which made the cut:
1. Ossett Academy
At the top of the list is this secondary academy in Ossett, most recently rated ‘good’ overall by Ofsted. In the 2024/25 school year, it had an Attainment 8 score of 50.9 – compared to a local average of 45 and a national average of 45.9. | Google
2. The King's School
Next up is The King's School, a secondary academy in Pontefract most recently rated ‘good’ overall by Ofsted. In the 2024/25 school year, it had an Attainment 8 score of 49.9 – compared to a local average of 45 and a national average of 45.9. | Google
3. Trinity Academy Cathedral
Trinity is an Anglican secondary academy in Wakefield. It was most recently rated ‘outstanding’ overall by Ofsted. In the 2024/25 school year, it had an Attainment 8 score of 48.6 – compared to a local average of 45 and a national average of 45.9. | Google
4. Castleford Academy
This is a secondary academy out in Castleford. In a recent Ofsted inspection, it was found to be ‘good’ or ‘outstanding’ in all categories. In the 2024/25 school year, it had an Attainment 8 score of 48.4 – compared to a local average of 45 and a national average of 45.9. | Google
5. Horbury Academy
As its name might suggest, this is a secondary academy in Horbury. It was most recently rated ‘good’ overall by Ofsted. In the 2024/25 school year, it too had an Attainment 8 score of 48.4 – compared to a local average of 45 and a national average of 45.9. | Google
6. Carleton High School
This is a secondary academy in Carleton, Pontefract, most recently rated ‘good’ overall by Ofsted. In the 2024/25 school year, it had an Attainment 8 score of 47.5 – compared to a local average of 45 and a national average of 45.9. | Google