Mercia School

Mercia School has shown outstanding performance across all evaluated areas: education quality, behaviour, personal development, and leadership. The school fosters a warm atmosphere with positive relationships, where pupils feel safe and supported. The curriculum goes above national requirements, ensuring all pupils, including those with special educational needs and disabilities, receive expert support and the opportunity to excel. Enrichment activities are abundant, promoting broader student development and engagement.

Strengths

• Exceptional quality of education provided to all pupils.
• Strong support for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities.
• Ambitious and well-structured curriculum that exceeds national expectations.
• Positive school environment with exemplary pupil behaviour.
• Effective leadership and management with high staff morale.

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 Mercia School attended 95.9% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 12.0% 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, 4.0% of pupils at Mercia School were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). 4 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 Mercia School had 13.8 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 14.7% 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, 12.4% of pupils at Mercia School were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 2.0% 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 Mercia School received £7,527 and spent £7,177 for each of its 1,047 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £498,000 (£475 per pupil).

Across all 7 schools of Mercia Learning Trust, income was £7,744 and spending £7,540 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 Sheffield · Sheffield local authority: places and applications

Mercia School is part of Mercia Learning Trust, which runs 8 schools. The nearest others:

• Nether Edge Primary School Sheffield
• Anns Grove Primary School Sheffield
• Newfield Secondary School Sheffield
• Woodlands Primary School Sheffield
• King Ecgbert School Sheffield
• Totley Primary School Sheffield
• Mercia Northridge School Sheffield

What is Mercia School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Mercia School is Outstanding, from an inspection in May 2023.

When was Mercia School last inspected by Ofsted?

Mercia School was last inspected in May 2023.

How many pupils does Mercia School have?

Mercia School has 1,070 pupils on roll.

What age range does Mercia School cover?

Mercia School for pupils aged 11 to 18.

What are Mercia School's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 66.6, and 79% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Mercia School?

Mercia School is at Carter Knowle Road, Sheffield, S7 2DY.