St Edward's Church of England Academy

St Edward’s Church of England Academy is a standalone Church of England academy for pupils aged 9 to 13 that has made rapid improvements under new senior leadership since its previous inspection. Pupils are happy, feel safe and behave consistently well, and they have very positive attitudes to learning. Inspectors found an ambitious, well-sequenced curriculum, specialist teaching and facilities in many subjects from Year 5, and effective support for pupils with SEND. Safeguarding arrangements are effective. Personal development is a particular strength: pupils take part in an extensive range of clubs, trips and wider activities, and take-up is strong, including among disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND. Reading is promoted through challenging texts, and staff support pupils who find reading difficult to catch up. Trustees know the school well and act strategically, staff well-being is considered, and most parents would recommend the school. The main concerns are that disadvantaged pupils do not achieve as well as their peers in standards, progress and attendance, and persistent absence for this group remains too high and is slow to close. Some pupils do not take enough care with the presentation of written work, and teachers’ expectations of presentation are not consistently applied. Leaders have identified both areas as priorities for improvement.

Strengths

• Pupils are happy, feel safe and behave consistently well
• Pupils have very positive attitudes to learning
• The curriculum is ambitious and well sequenced
• Specialist teaching and facilities are used in many subjects from Year 5
• Pupils read challenging texts and receive effective support to catch up
• Pupils with SEND are well supported and staff know their needs
• Personal development is exceptional, with an extensive range of clubs and trips
• Take-up of wider activities is strong, including for disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND
• Trustees know the school well and act strategically
• Staff well-being is carefully considered
• Most parents would recommend the school
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective

Areas for Improvement

• Disadvantaged pupils’ standards and progress are not as high as their peers’
• Persistent absence for disadvantaged pupils remains too high
• The gap for disadvantaged pupils is slow to close
• Expectations for presentation of written work are inconsistent
• Some pupils do not take enough care with their written work

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 St Edward's Church of England Academy attended 93.7% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 14.3% 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, 2.3% of pupils at St Edward's Church of England 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 St Edward's Church of England Academy had 18.9 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 9.4% 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, 17.7% of pupils at St Edward's Church of England Academy were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 2.7% 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 St Edward's Church of England Academy received £6,329 and spent £6,265 for each of its 695 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £625,000 (£899 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 Leek · Staffordshire local authority: places and applications

What is St Edward's Church of England Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for St Edward's Church of England Academy is Good, from an inspection in November 2024.

When was St Edward's Church of England Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

St Edward's Church of England Academy was last inspected in November 2024.

How many pupils does St Edward's Church of England Academy have?

St Edward's Church of England Academy has 662 pupils on roll.

What age range does St Edward's Church of England Academy cover?

St Edward's Church of England Academy for pupils aged 9 to 13.

What are St Edward's Church of England Academy's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 59% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is St Edward's Church of England Academy?

St Edward's Church of England Academy is at Westwood Road, Leek, Staffordshire, ST13 8DN.