Tanfield School

Tanfield School is a strongly performing secondary school within Eden Learning Trust. This was its first routine inspection under section 5 and its first since the COVID-19 pandemic. Inspectors found a strong community ethos, extremely high expectations and a determined focus on helping every pupil achieve their full potential. Pupils, including disadvantaged pupils, achieve very well in public examinations, behaviour is exemplary, and pupils are happy, confident and well cared for. The school is highly inclusive and provides an exceptional personal development programme alongside an ambitious curriculum for all pupils, including those with SEND. Safeguarding is effective and leadership is strong, with high staff morale and committed trustees and governors. The main area for improvement is consistency in curriculum implementation. In some lessons, pupils do not consistently get the opportunity to embed, apply and deepen their learning. The quality of pupil discussion around new concepts varies, and teachers do not always identify and address misconceptions fully. Overall, however, the school’s strengths are considerable and it provides a high-quality education for its pupils.

Strengths

• Strong community ethos with values of hard work, trust and fairness lived out daily.
• Extremely high expectations and a shared determination for every pupil to achieve their full potential.
• Pupils, including disadvantaged pupils, achieve very well in public examinations.
• Exemplary pupil behaviour, maturity and self-control in lessons and around school.
• Pupils are happy, feel safe and are confident the school responds quickly to concerns.
• Ambitious and carefully sequenced curriculum for all pupils, including pupils with SEND.
• Teachers have secure subject knowledge and use retrieval tasks and effective resources well.
• Pupils with SEND are supported well through detailed information about their needs.
• Reading is prioritised, with pupils enjoying reading and effective catch-up support in place.
• High-quality pastoral care, strong family relationships and rigorous attendance tracking.
• Exceptional personal development programme offering wide-ranging opportunities, trips and leadership roles.
• Pupils are taught effectively about healthy relationships and staying safe online.
• Strong leadership with high staff morale, workload support and accurate oversight from trustees and governors.
• Effective safeguarding arrangements.

Areas for Improvement

• Curriculum implementation is inconsistent in some lessons, limiting opportunities for pupils to embed, apply and deepen learning.
• Opportunities for pupils to discuss new concepts deeply vary in effectiveness.
• Teachers do not always identify and address pupils’ misconceptions fully during lessons.

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 Tanfield School attended 93.4% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 18.5% 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, 0.9% of pupils at Tanfield 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 Tanfield School had 16.8 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 12.0% 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, 13.5% of pupils at Tanfield School were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 4.3% 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 Tanfield School received £8,251 and spent £8,212 for each of its 702 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £1,278,000 (£1,821 per pupil).

Across all 10 schools of Eden Learning Trust, income was £8,319 and spending £8,301 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 Stanley · County Durham local authority: places and applications

Tanfield School is part of Eden Learning Trust, which runs 10 schools. The nearest others:

• Woodlea Primary School Houghton Le Spring
• Kepier Houghton Le Spring
• Seaham High School Seaham
• Ferryhill School Ferryhill
• King James I Academy Bishop Auckland Bishop Auckland
• Chilton Academy Ferryhill
• St Helen Auckland Community Primary School Bishop Auckland
• Woodham Academy Newton Aycliffe
• Aycliffe Village Primary and Nursery School Newton Aycliffe

What is Tanfield School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Tanfield School is Good, from an inspection in November 2024.

When was Tanfield School last inspected by Ofsted?

Tanfield School was last inspected in November 2024.

How many pupils does Tanfield School have?

Tanfield School has 739 pupils on roll.

What age range does Tanfield School cover?

Tanfield School for pupils aged 11 to 16.

What are Tanfield School's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 54.4, and 63% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Tanfield School?

Tanfield School is at Tanfield Lea Road, Stanley, County Durham, DH9 8AY.