Eaton Bank Academy

Eaton Bank Academy is performing well. Most pupils benefit from a high-quality, broad and ambitious curriculum, and they respond positively to the school’s high expectations and values of ambition and optimism. Pupils are typically eager learners, behaviour is calm and respectful, and sixth-form students show growing independence and act as positive role models. The school provides a wide range of experiences, strong careers guidance and effective support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities, including targeted help for weaker readers. Safeguarding arrangements are effective. The trust has helped raise aspirations and strengthen curriculum design, teacher subject knowledge and consistency in teaching. Attendance is improving sharply after a small group of disadvantaged pupils had poor attendance that affected recent key stage 4 outcomes. Behaviour has also improved, with incidents and suspensions markedly reduced. However, in a few subjects teachers are not yet fully effective at identifying and addressing pupils’ misconceptions, so some pupils do not embed knowledge as securely as they could. Personal development is mostly comprehensive, with well-established relationships and sex education and strong careers advice. However, anti-bullying education has not fully addressed some pupils’ misconceptions: a minority are not confident that the school will deal with bullying and discrimination effectively and are therefore reluctant to speak out. This inspection was the school’s first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic, and the school is part of the Halliard Trust.

Strengths

• A broad, rich and ambitious curriculum is in place across key stages and the sixth form.
• Curriculum design is meticulous and helps pupils build a firm foundation of knowledge.
• Pupils typically rise to the school’s high expectations and demonstrate ambition and optimism.
• Pupils are eager learners, and sixth-form students show growing independence.
• Pupils treat each other kindly and interact politely with staff.
• The school has a respectful culture in which pupils’ successes are widely celebrated.
• Sixth-form student leaders act as positive role models for younger pupils.
• Pupils know how to seek help and feel happy and safe at school.
• Bullying is dealt with effectively so that it rarely recurs.
• A wide range of experiences, including residentials and the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, builds pupils’ confidence.
• The trust has helped raise aspirations and prioritise teachers’ subject knowledge.
• Teachers in most subjects use consistent teaching approaches and checks on understanding effectively.
• Pupils with SEND are identified rigorously and most receive effective support.
• Well-trained staff provide targeted interventions that help weaker readers catch up.
• The renewed behaviour policy is applied fairly and has created a calm environment for learning.
• Incidents of poor behaviour, including suspensions, have markedly reduced.
• The personal development programme includes well-established relationships and sex education.
• Strong careers advice and guidance prepare pupils well for adulthood.
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective.

Areas for Improvement

• In a few subjects, teachers do not make effective use of assessment strategies to identify and remedy pupils’ misconceptions.
• Some disadvantaged pupils still attend school less often than they should, creating gaps in knowledge and hindering achievement.
• The school needs to strengthen support so disadvantaged pupils attend more regularly and staff address missed learning effectively.
• Anti-bullying education has not successfully addressed some pupils’ misconceptions about bullying.
• A minority of pupils are not confident that the school will deal with bullying and discrimination effectively, making them reluctant to speak out.

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 Eaton Bank Academy attended 90.6% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 23.4% 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, 5.8% of pupils at Eaton Bank Academy 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 Eaton Bank Academy had 15.9 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 15.9% 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, 5.9% of pupils at Eaton Bank Academy were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 5.4% 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 Eaton Bank Academy received £7,620 and spent £7,712 for each of its 1,077 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £1,212,000 (£1,125 per pupil).

Across all 11 schools of Halliard Trust, income was £7,664 and spending £7,704 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 Congleton · Cheshire East local authority: places and applications

Eaton Bank Academy is part of Halliard Trust, which runs 12 schools. The nearest others:

• Gawsworth Primary School Macclesfield
• Broken Cross Primary Academy and Nursery Macclesfield
• Whirley Primary School Macclesfield
• The Fallibroome Academy Macclesfield
• Upton Priory School Macclesfield
• Marlborough Primary School Macclesfield
• Nether Alderley Primary School Macclesfield
• Alderley Edge Community Primary School Alderley Edge
• Adlington Primary School Macclesfield
• Lower Park School Stockport

What is Eaton Bank Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Eaton Bank Academy is Good, from an inspection in April 2025.

When was Eaton Bank Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Eaton Bank Academy was last inspected in April 2025.

How many pupils does Eaton Bank Academy have?

Eaton Bank Academy has 1,062 pupils on roll.

What age range does Eaton Bank Academy cover?

Eaton Bank Academy for pupils aged 11 to 18.

What are Eaton Bank Academy's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 48.0, and 40% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Eaton Bank Academy?

Eaton Bank Academy is at Jackson Road, Congleton, Cheshire, CW12 1NT.