Ibstock School

Ibstock School is a mixed 11–16 academy within the LiFE Multi-Academy Trust. This was its first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic, and it took place after a recent change of headteacher and several senior leadership changes. Inspectors found a school that is improving but not yet consistently good, with much of the recent work too new to have had the intended impact. Many pupils are positive, feel safe and supported, and benefit from a broad, well-planned curriculum and extensive extra-curricular opportunities. Safeguarding is effective, careers provision is positive, reading support is beginning to help, and behaviour and suspension rates have moved in the right direction. However, curriculum delivery, support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), and behaviour management are inconsistent. Attendance remains too low for some groups, and personal development is uneven. Leaders are making appropriate decisions and most staff feel supported, but communication with staff and parents needs to improve because some do not share the school’s aims or feel their views are considered. The school knows what needs to change; the priority is to implement agreed approaches consistently so that all pupils, including disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND, achieve and attend well.

Strengths

• Pupils generally feel safe and supported in a caring school environment.
• The curriculum is well designed and carefully sequenced across a wide range of subjects.
• Staff build positive relationships with pupils and help inspire them for the future.
• Recent reading support is beginning to improve pupils’ reading skills.
• The needs of pupils with SEND are now identified accurately.
• Behaviour is improving, and suspension numbers have fallen substantially over time.
• There is a strong commitment to pupils’ personal development.
• Careers education is positive and prepares pupils for their next steps.
• A broad extra-curricular programme includes trips, clubs, The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award and sport.
• Leaders make appropriate improvement decisions and consider staff workload.
• Most staff feel well supported.
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective.
• Many parents recognise recent positive steps taken to improve the school.

Areas for Improvement

• Curriculum delivery is inconsistent, so some pupils do not secure or apply new knowledge well.
• Support for pupils with SEND is not consistently matched to their needs or used well by staff.
• Behaviour management is applied inconsistently, leading to disruption and variable attitudes to learning.
• Suspension rates remain too high, particularly for disadvantaged pupils, and suspended pupils are not supported well enough.
• Attendance is not high enough, especially for disadvantaged pupils, and some pupils miss lessons.
• Personal development is at an early stage, with pupils’ understanding of British values and different faiths variable.
• Communication with stakeholders is not effective enough, leaving some staff and parents lacking confidence in changes.
• Some pupils do not value their education sufficiently or take enough pride in their work.
• Some pupils struggle to work effectively without close adult supervision.

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 Ibstock School attended 88.1% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 29.7% 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, 14.9% of pupils at Ibstock 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 Ibstock School had 17.6 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 17.0% 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, 18.0% of pupils at Ibstock School were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 5.2% 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 Ibstock School received £9,853 and spent £9,932 for each of its 741 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £393,000 (£530 per pupil).

Across all 10 schools of Life Multi-Academy Trust, income was £8,357 and spending £8,230 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 North West Leicestershire · Leicestershire local authority: places and applications

Ibstock School is part of Life Multi-Academy Trust, which runs 10 schools. The nearest others:

• Dove Bank Primary School Nuneaton
• Ashby School Ashby-De-La-Zouch
• Ivanhoe School Ashby-De-La-Zouch
• Desford Community Primary School Leicester
• Bosworth Academy Leicester
• Braunstone Frith Primary Academy Leicester
• Kingsway Primary School Leicester
• The Winstanley School Leicester
• Countesthorpe Academy Countesthorpe

What is Ibstock School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Ibstock School is Requires Improvement, from an inspection in June 2025.

When was Ibstock School last inspected by Ofsted?

Ibstock School was last inspected in June 2025.

How many pupils does Ibstock School have?

Ibstock School has 689 pupils on roll.

What age range does Ibstock School cover?

Ibstock School for pupils aged 11 to 16.

What are Ibstock School's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 37.3, and 25% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Ibstock School?

Ibstock School is at Central Avenue, Ibstock, Leicestershire, LE67 6NE.