Haydon Bridge High School

Haydon Bridge High School remains in special measures following its January 2026 full inspection, and this July 2026 monitoring inspection focused on attendance and behaviour, and leadership and governance. Safeguarding standards are met, and inspectors found that leaders have acted swiftly with external support from an interim executive board and a local multi-academy trust. Behaviour has improved significantly, pupils feel safer, bullying is rare, and a new attendance approach is beginning to have a positive effect. However, the school is still failing to provide an acceptable standard of education. Achievement remains urgently weak, with results well below national averages over several years and too many pupils leaving with gaps in basic knowledge. Teaching and curriculum implementation are inconsistent, and pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities and disadvantaged pupils are not consistently well supported. Attendance remains well below the national average despite recent improvements, and low-level disruption still occurs occasionally. Other areas also require attention. Inclusion systems are variable, the personal development programme lacks depth in some areas, careers provision is underdeveloped, and post-16 achievement has been weak over time although recent changes are starting to help. Leaders know the school well and have prioritised the right areas, but the school remains reliant on external support to sustain improvement, and governance must ensure there is enough leadership capacity to secure the necessary progress.

Strengths

• Safeguarding standards are met and pupils feel safe.
• Behaviour has significantly improved since the previous inspection.
• Pupils and staff report that behaviour is better and relationships are respectful.
• Bullying is rare and is dealt with effectively when it occurs.
• A new attendance approach is having a positive impact on overall attendance and persistent absence.
• Leaders identify barriers to attendance and offer well-matched support.
• Suspensions have reduced significantly and are now used appropriately.
• Leaders know the school and its context well and prioritise the correct areas for improvement.
• The interim executive board is experienced, meets statutory responsibilities and challenges and supports leaders effectively.
• External support from the local authority and multi-academy trust has helped bring about significant improvements.
• The curriculum is generally well sequenced and ambitious.
• Some teachers check learning well, address misconceptions and adapt teaching to pupils’ needs.
• Recent improvements to post-16 entry requirements and staff expertise are beginning to have a positive impact.
• Pupils appreciate additional pastoral support and say it helps them feel a sense of belonging.

Areas for Improvement

• Pupils do not achieve well, including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities and disadvantaged pupils.
• Achievement in national tests and examinations has been significantly below the national average for several years.
• Too many pupils have gaps in basic knowledge that are not resolved quickly or effectively.
• Pupils who are often absent miss learning, and there is no effective system to help them catch up.
• The quality of teaching is variable and improved training is still in its infancy.
• Teachers do not consistently identify pupils’ starting points or knowledge gaps.
• Opportunities for independent practice and fluency are limited, especially at key stage 3.
• Support for handwriting and spelling is not well developed.
• Inclusion systems are variable and support plans for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities are not implemented consistently.
• Leaders do not monitor the impact of pupil premium strategies and interventions closely enough.
• The personal development and wellbeing programme varies in quality and pupils’ knowledge lacks depth in some areas.
• The programme of extra-curricular clubs is limited and leaders do not track participation well.
• Careers information, education, advice and guidance is underdeveloped and pupils’ knowledge of careers is limited.
• Post-16 achievement in A-level subjects has been significantly below the national average over time.
• Overall attendance remains well below the national average and persistent absence is high.
• Low-level disruption still occurs occasionally and disrupts learning.
• The school is reliant on external support to maintain improvement.
• Governance must ensure the school has the leadership capacity needed to secure essential improvements.

Admissions: local authority offers data from the Department for Education. A school is oversubscribed when at least 5% of the families who put it first were not offered a place, and undersubscribed when everyone who put it first got in but 10% or more of its places were unfilled in the Department's school capacity survey (the latest survey is used for entry years it does not cover). Places: Department for Education, School capacity, from local authorities' annual survey as at 1 May. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024–25); the survey was not run in 2020. Places include sixth form places. Forecasts are the local authority's own for the school's planning area, an area it uses to plan places that is not the school's catchment area. The forecast starts from a head count in 2025; the dashed line is the Department's estimate of places in that area, including those the authority has firm plans for. Planned places are cumulative, and only those with firm plans are counted.

In 2024–25 pupils at Haydon Bridge High School attended 87.4% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 34.5% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 23.4%).

Sessions missed

Pupils persistently absent

Source: Department for Education, Pupil absence in schools in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Persistent absence means missing 10% or more of sessions; severe absence means 50% or more. No figures were published for 2019/20.

In 2024–25, 14.0% of pupils at Haydon Bridge High School were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). 2 pupils were permanently excluded.

Pupils suspended at least once

Source: Department for Education, Suspensions and permanent exclusions in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). A pupil can be suspended more than once, so suspensions per 100 pupils can be higher than the share of pupils suspended. Very small numbers are hidden by the DfE. Exclusion figures dropped in 2020 and 2021 because of school closures.

In 2025–26 Haydon Bridge High School had 14.7 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 18.1% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 14.1%).

Pupils per teacher

Teachers who left the school within a year

Source: Department for Education, School workforce in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Pupils per teacher counts full-time-equivalent pupils and teachers. Turnover is the share of a year's teachers (full-time equivalent) who were not at the school the following year, whether they moved to another school or left state-funded teaching. Turnover and sickness figures run one year behind the ratios. Sick leave is the share of teachers who took at least one day in the year, so it swings widely at small schools, where a few teachers can make it 0% or 100%. The national figures are for all state schools of the same type.

In 2025–26, 19.4% of pupils at Haydon Bridge High School were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 5.9% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 3.5%).

Pupils by main type of need

Source: Department for Education, Special educational needs in England (the 2025–26 school census). SEN support is extra help in school without an EHC plan. National figures are for all state-funded secondary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2025–26 Haydon Bridge High School received £9,186 and spent £10,015 for each of its 392 pupils. It ended the year with a deficit of £530,000 (-£1,352 per pupil).

Income per pupil

Spending per pupil

Source: Department for Education, Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool. Each year is the one the financial year ends in (2024 is 2023–24).

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Hexham · Northumberland local authority: places and applications

What is Haydon Bridge High School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Haydon Bridge High School is Urgent improvement, from an inspection in October 2026.

When was Haydon Bridge High School last inspected by Ofsted?

Haydon Bridge High School was last inspected in October 2026.

How many pupils does Haydon Bridge High School have?

Haydon Bridge High School has 392 pupils on roll.

What age range does Haydon Bridge High School cover?

Haydon Bridge High School for pupils aged 11 to 18.

What are Haydon Bridge High School's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 40.5, and 30% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Haydon Bridge High School?

Haydon Bridge High School is at Haydon Bridge, Hexham, Northumberland, NE47 6LR.