Heath Lane Academy

Heath Lane Academy has shown effective progress in maintaining its standards since the last inspection. The school prides itself on creating a happy, safe, and inclusive environment where students feel valued and respected. Recent changes have fostered high expectations for both learning and behavior, encouraging students to engage actively in their education. The curriculum has been significantly enhanced, resulting in a broader range of subjects offered and improved academic outcomes, particularly in language studies. With strong leadership from both the school's headteacher and the overseeing trust, the school is well-supported for continuous improvement.

Strengths

• Pupils feel safe and happy at school.
• The school promotes kindness and respect among students.
• Curriculum is ambitious and broad, ensuring powerful knowledge acquisition.
• Teachers effectively use the 'teaching playbook' for lesson delivery.
• Strong focus on reading and literacy to build student confidence.
• Extracurricular activities enhance personal development and ambition.
• The school has strong leadership support and responsive staff.
• Effective safeguarding arrangements are in place.

Areas for Improvement

• Occasionally, too much information is presented at once during lessons.
• Persistent absence rates among some disadvantaged pupils remain high.

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 Heath Lane Academy attended 89.5% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 28.7% 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, 14.1% of pupils at Heath Lane Academy were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). 5 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 Heath Lane Academy had 22.4 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 23.9% 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, 13.4% of pupils at Heath Lane Academy were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 4.7% 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 2024–25 Heath Lane Academy received £8,040 and spent £8,323 for each of its 676 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £604,000 (£894 per pupil).

Across all 93 schools of United Learning Trust, income was £8,687 and spending £8,616 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 Leicester · Leicestershire local authority: places and applications

Heath Lane Academy is part of United Learning Trust, which runs 98 schools. The nearest others:

• George Eliot Academy Nuneaton
• Hartshill Academy Nuneaton
• Nuneaton Academy Nuneaton
• Montsaye Academy Kettering
• Kettering Buccleuch Academy Kettering
• Campion School Northampton
• Grange Primary Academy Kettering
• Northampton Academy Northampton
• Corngreaves Academy Cradley Heath
• Timbertree Academy Cradley Heath

What is Heath Lane Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Heath Lane Academy is Good, from an inspection in March 2025.

When was Heath Lane Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Heath Lane Academy was last inspected in March 2025.

How many pupils does Heath Lane Academy have?

Heath Lane Academy has 644 pupils on roll.

What age range does Heath Lane Academy cover?

Heath Lane Academy for pupils aged 11 to 16.

What are Heath Lane Academy's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 41.2, and 39% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Heath Lane Academy?

Heath Lane Academy is at Heath Lane, Earl Shilton, Leicester, Leicestershire, LE9 7PD.