Sir Geoffrey Leigh Academy

The Leigh Academy is performing well, continuing to be judged as a good school. Pupils display pride in their school and engage actively in a positive, supportive environment characterized by strong pastoral care. The leadership has embedded high expectations for behavior and learning, creating a culture that fosters resilience, respect, and a desire for academic achievement. The school offers a diverse range of activities and has effectively arranged its curriculum to connect subjects meaningfully, enhancing students' experiences and knowledge.

Strengths

• Pupils enjoy school and have strong friendships.
• Bullying is rare and managed effectively.
• High-quality pastoral care contributes to a safe and happy environment.
• Strong teaching methods engage students and foster understanding.
• Wide range of clubs and extracurricular activities.
• Effective reading support leads to continual improvement in pupils' skills.
• Curriculum connections enhance learning across subjects.
• Proactive SEND support with dedicated provisions for students.
• Well-established safeguarding arrangements.

Areas for Improvement

• Inconsistent checking of pupils' understanding in some classrooms.
• Not all teachers effectively use helpful strategies to support individual needs.

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 Sir Geoffrey Leigh Academy attended 92.0% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 26.4% 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, 7.9% of pupils at Sir Geoffrey Leigh Academy were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). One pupil was 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 Sir Geoffrey Leigh Academy had 21.8 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 16.2% 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, 17.1% of pupils at Sir Geoffrey Leigh Academy were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 3.0% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 3.5%).

The school has resourced provision with 3 pupils.

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 2024–25 Sir Geoffrey Leigh Academy received £8,414 and spent £7,836 for each of its 1,350 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £684,000 (£506 per pupil).

Across all 33 schools of Leigh Academies Trust, income was £8,972 and spending £8,821 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). Academy figures include a share of the trust's central services, shared out by pupil numbers, and are rounded to the nearest £1,000. Premises costs were defined differently from 2024, so compare them across that gap with care.

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Dartford · Kent local authority: places and applications

Sir Geoffrey Leigh Academy is part of Leigh Academies Trust, which runs 33 schools. The nearest others:

• Leigh Academy Dartford Dartford
• Leigh UTC Dartford Dartford
• Leigh Academy Wilmington Wilmington
• Leigh Academy Cherry Orchard Ebbsfleet
• Leigh Academy Ebbsfleet Swanscombe
• Leigh Academy Bexley Erith
• Leigh Academy Longfield Longfield
• Leigh Academy Hartley Longfield
• Leigh Academy Milestone Longfield
• Leigh Stationers' Primary Academy Welling

What is Sir Geoffrey Leigh Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Sir Geoffrey Leigh Academy is Good, from an inspection in June 2023.

When was Sir Geoffrey Leigh Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Sir Geoffrey Leigh Academy was last inspected in June 2023.

How many pupils does Sir Geoffrey Leigh Academy have?

Sir Geoffrey Leigh Academy has 1,318 pupils on roll.

What age range does Sir Geoffrey Leigh Academy cover?

Sir Geoffrey Leigh Academy for pupils aged 11 to 19.

What are Sir Geoffrey Leigh Academy's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 46.5, and 46% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Sir Geoffrey Leigh Academy?

Sir Geoffrey Leigh Academy is at Green Street Green Road, Dartford, Kent, DA1 1QE.