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Congleton High School

Secondary Ages 11-18 1,174 pupils Congleton
Ofsted: Good
All schools in Congleton

Congleton High School is an academy converter in Congleton for pupils aged 11 to 18. It has 1,174 pupils on roll. The latest Ofsted rating for Congleton High School is Good, from an inspection in March 2023. In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 43.5, and 34% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Ofsted inspection: March 2023. GCSE results: 2026. A-level results: 2025.

Type Secondary / Academy converter
Age Range 11-18
Religion Unknown
Address Box Lane
Congleton
Cheshire
CW12 4NS
Phone 01260730123
Reference Number 136655

General Makeup

Number of pupils 1174
Boy/Girl ratio Boys: 48.98%
Girls: 51.02%
Percentage of students eligible for free school meals 17%
Percentage of students where English is not their first language 2.7%

Class Sizes

Average size of one teacher classes 20.3

Year Groups

Year Boys Girls Total
7 80 97 177
8 89 90 179
9 116 105 221
10 96 121 217
11 103 92 195
12 41 53 94
13 50 41 91

Ethnicities

Ethnicity Percentage
White, British 91.7%
White, Other 1.4%
Mixed, Other 1.4%
White & Asian 1.3%
Indian 0.8%
African 0.8%
Unclassified 0.5%
White & Black (African) 0.5%
White & Black (Caribbean) 0.4%
Chinese 0.3%
Irish 0.2%
Pakistani 0.1%
Asian, Other 0.1%

Congleton High School has been confirmed as a good school during its recent inspection, continuing to foster a warm and supportive learning environment. With an ambitious vision that promotes success for all, the school excels in creating strong relationships among pupils and staff, a critical factor contributing to pupils' happiness and security. The curriculum is well-structured, catering to the diverse needs of students, including those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), ensuring academic preparedness for the future.

Overall Ofsted Rating Good
Last Report Date 02 Feb 2023
Date Report
02 Feb 2023 School inspection
10 Jan 2018 Short inspection
16 Dec 2014 Full inspection:
15 Jan 2013 Interim assessment
14 Feb 2012 Academy conversion letter
11 Oct 2010 Curriculum and development visit
Previously as Congleton High School
20 Jan 2010 Full inspection:
25 Sep 2007 Curriculum and development visit
29 Nov 2006 Full inspection:
09 Dec 2002 Full inspection

Strengths

  • Strong relationships between pupils and staff create a supportive environment.
  • Well-structured curriculum enables effective learning across most subjects.
  • High quality of teaching supported by strong subject knowledge and assessments.
  • Extensive enrichment activities foster personal development.
  • Effective safeguarding practices ensure pupil protection.

Areas for Improvement

  • Some subjects lack activities for pupils to practice and consolidate learning.
  • Reading strategy not fully embedded across all subject areas.

Attainment 8 Score

Attaimenment 8 is a measure of a pupil's average grade across a set of 8 subjects. The 8 subjects which make up Attainment 8 are:

  • English
  • Maths
  • 3 subjects from qualifications that count towards the English Baccalaureate (EBacc), like sciences, language and history
  • 3 more GCSE qualifications (including EBacc subjects) or technical awards from a list approved by the Department for Education

Each grade a pupil gets is assigned a point score from 9 (the highest) to 1 (the lowest). These scores are added up, with English and maths counted twice.

School Score Percentile (local) Percentile (nationwide)
43.5

GCSE Results

Metric School Score Percentile (local) Percentile (nationwide)
Grade 5 or above in English and maths 34.4%
5 or more GCSEs at grade 9-4 (or A-C) 54.4%

Attainment 8 Score

Attaimenment 8 is a measure of a pupil's average grade across a set of 8 subjects. The 8 subjects which make up Attainment 8 are:

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GCSE Results

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Grades

School Local Nationwide
Average Grade C+ C+ C+
Average Grade (best 3) C+ B- C+
Percentage Percentile (local) Percentile (nationwide)
Students getting AAB or better 24.4%
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Year 7 admissions, 2026 entry

Number of Applications Number of Offers
First Preference
Second Preference 117 1
Third Preference 44 0
From another Local Authority 24 10

Previous years

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Places and pupil numbers

In 2024–25 Congleton High School had 1,201 pupils for 1,400 places. 199 places (14.2%) were unfilled.

Pupils and places

Year 7 intake in the “Congleton Secondary” planning area

Cheshire East counted 374 Year 7 pupils in this area in 2024–25 and forecasts 441 in 2031–32, up 18%.

20112012201320142015201620172018201920212022202320242025
Places 1,1341,1501,1341,1501,1501,1501,1501,1501,2361,2361,2361,2361,4001,400
Pupils 1,0541,0271,0141,0401,1061,1351,1381,1631,1891,2621,2611,2681,2551,201
Unfilled 7.1%10.7%10.6%9.6%3.8%1.3%1.0%0.0%3.8%0.0%0.0%0.0%10.4%14.2%

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 Congleton High School attended 90.2% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 26.1% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 23.4%).

Sessions missed

Pupils persistently absent

20142015201620172018201920212022202320242025
Authorised absence 3.0%3.4%3.4%3.5%3.3%3.6%3.6%7.9%5.5%5.6%6.6%
Unauthorised absence 1.5%1.2%1.0%1.4%1.6%1.5%1.5%1.9%2.6%3.7%3.2%
Severely absent pupils 0.1%0.3%0.2%1.6%1.0%1.2%1.4%2.5%3.1%3.3%4.6%

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, 5.9% of pupils at Congleton High School were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). 2 pupils were permanently excluded.

Pupils suspended at least once

201120122013201420152016201720182019202020212022202320242025
Suspensions per 100 pupils 5.42.60.11.51.52.61.71.72.92.04.06.813.717.114.2
Permanent exclusions 211115011000012

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 Congleton High School had 16.6 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 10.5% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 14.1%).

Pupils per teacher

Teachers who left the school within a year

20122013201420152016201720182019202020212022202420252026
Pupils per adult 10.511.010.210.212.011.712.111.612.112.214.711.311.111.7
Teachers who left state teaching 10.9%4.4%8.2%12.6%4.1%7.8%2.0%3.3%8.2%11.2%5.7%6.4%6.6%–
Teachers who took any sick leave 64.9%63.3%67.9%62.0%59.5%57.0%51.9%53.3%–45.7%–73.2%74.3%–
Sick days per teacher 2.94.25.85.43.05.45.55.5–1.5–4.74.4–

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, 11.9% of pupils at Congleton High School were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 4.3% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 3.5%).

Pupils by main type of need

SEN support EHC plan
Social, emotional and mental health 44 19
Specific learning difficulty 39 6
Autistic spectrum disorder 18 10
Moderate learning difficulty 15 5
Speech, language and communication needs 10 3
Physical disability 3 3
Hearing impairment 3 2
Other difficulty or disability 4 1
Vision impairment 3 0
No specialist assessment of need 1 0
Severe learning difficulty 0 1

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 Congleton High School received £7,724 and spent £7,727 for each of its 1,212 pupils. It ended the year with a deficit of £309,000 (-£255 per pupil).

Across all 15 schools of The Learning Partnership Academies Trust, income was £7,536 and spending £7,682 per pupil.

Income per pupil

Spending per pupil

2019202020212022202320242025
Revenue reserve £35,000£314,000£624,000£797,000£144,000-£286,000-£309,000
per pupil £29£260£494£629£113-£226-£255
In-year balance £205,000£312,000£423,000£481,000-£555,000-£534,000-£5,000
per pupil £172£258£335£380-£435-£421-£4

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.

Name Distance
Black Firs Primary School
Longdown Road, Congleton, Cheshire, CW12 4QJ
0.32 miles
The Quinta Primary School
Ullswater Road, Congleton, Cheshire, CW12 4LX
0.36 miles
Astbury St Mary's CofE Primary School
School Lane, Astbury, Congleton, Cheshire, CW12 4RG
1.24 miles
Marlfields Primary School
Waggs Road, Congleton, Cheshire, CW12 4BT
1.26 miles
Saint Mary's Catholic Primary School
Belgrave Avenue, Congleton, Cheshire, CW12 1HT
1.27 miles
Daven Primary School
New Street, Congleton, Cheshire, CW12 3AH
1.77 miles
Buglawton Primary School
Buxton Old Road, Congleton, Cheshire, CW12 2EL
2.21 miles
Havannah Primary School
Malhamdale Road, Congleton, Cheshire, CW12 2DF
2.32 miles
Smallwood CofE Primary School
School Lane, Sandbach, CW11 2UR
2.6 miles
Mossley CofE Primary School
Boundary Lane, Congleton, Cheshire, CW12 3JA
2.74 miles
Marton and District CofE Aided Primary School
School Lane, Marton, Macclesfield, Cheshire, SK11 9HD
3.42 miles
Brereton CofE Primary School
School Lane, Brereton Green, Sandbach, Cheshire, CW11 1RN
3.64 miles
Scholar Green Primary School
Congleton Road, Scholar Green, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, ST7 3HF
3.9 miles
Rode Heath Primary School
Heath Avenue, Rode Heath, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, ST7 3RY
3.97 miles
Woodcocks' Well CofE Primary School
Church Street, Mow Cop, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, ST7 3NQ
4.09 miles
St John's CofE Academy
Heath Road, Sandbach, Cheshire, CW11 2LE
4.15 miles
Wonder Star School
Young People's Community Centre, Chapel Lane, Rode Heath, Stoke-on-Trent, ST7 3SD
4.17 miles
Castle Primary School
Mow Cop Road, Mow Cop, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, ST7 4NE
4.19 miles
Woodhouse Academy
Woodhouse Lane, Biddulph, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, ST8 7DR
4.44 miles
Kingsfield First School
Gunn Street, Biddulph, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, ST8 6AY
4.61 miles
Name Distance
Aidenswood School
48 Parson Street, Congleton, Cheshire, CW12 4ED
1.04 miles
Esland Daven School
Unit 2 Dane Valley Mill, Havannah Street, Congleton, Cheshire, CW12 2AH
1.93 miles
Opal Education
Unit 12, Holland Business Park, Riverdane Road, Congleton, CW12 1PN
1.98 miles
Eaton Bank Academy
Jackson Road, Congleton, Cheshire, CW12 1NT
1.99 miles
Cheshire Hall School
Congleton Road, Cheshire, Sandbach, Cheshire, CW11 4TF
3.63 miles
Church Lawton School
Cherry Tree Avenue, Church Lawton, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, ST7 3EL
4.52 miles
Roaches School
Tunstall Road, Knypersley, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, ST8 7AB
4.81 miles
Kidsgrove Secondary School
Gloucester Road, Stoke-on-Trent, ST7 4DL
4.98 miles

All schools in Congleton · Cheshire East local authority: places and applications

Congleton High School is part of The Learning Partnership Academies Trust, which runs 15 schools. The nearest others:

What is Congleton High School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Congleton High School is Good, from an inspection in March 2023.

When was Congleton High School last inspected by Ofsted?

Congleton High School was last inspected in March 2023.

How many pupils does Congleton High School have?

Congleton High School has 1,174 pupils on roll.

What age range does Congleton High School cover?

Congleton High School for pupils aged 11 to 18.

What are Congleton High School's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 43.5, and 34% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Congleton High School?

Congleton High School is at Box Lane, Congleton, Cheshire, CW12 4NS.

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