Northampton School

Northampton School is performing at a strong standard across the board following its June 2026 full inspection. Safeguarding standards are met, and achievement, attendance and behaviour, curriculum and teaching, inclusion, leadership and governance, and personal development and wellbeing are all graded strong. Pupils achieve highly, produce consistently high-quality work, read fluently and enthusiastically, and are well prepared for the next stage of education. Attendance is above the national average and persistent absence is low, while behaviour is calm and respectful. The school's leadership is a significant strength, with a clear ambitious vision, effective professional development and strong trust support. Pupils, including those with SEND and disadvantaged pupils, are well supported and fully included in lessons and the wider life of the school. Pupils participate extensively in clubs, sport, music, drama and leadership, and they feel safe, valued and proud of their school. Parents hold the school in very high regard. No areas of concern were identified in this inspection. The next steps ask leaders to maintain consistently expert curriculum implementation, including adaptive teaching for pupils with SEND, and to sustain a consistently high-quality PSHE curriculum. The school is part of the NSB Trust.

Strengths

• Pupils achieve highly across an ambitious curriculum and produce consistently high-quality work.
• Reading is a notable strength, with pupils reading fluently and enthusiastically.
• Attendance is above the national average and persistent absence is low.
• Pupils behave very well, show respect and kindness, and bullying is rare.
• The curriculum is rich, well sequenced and continuously refined.
• Teaching is expert, with clear explanations and strong checks for understanding.
• Pupils with SEND and disadvantaged pupils are very well supported and fully included.
• Leadership has a clear ambitious vision and is a significant strength.
• Staff development and leadership development are highly effective.
• The trust provides strong strategic direction, support and challenge.
• Pupils benefit from a rich personal development programme and high participation in enrichment.
• Pupils feel safe, valued and have a strong sense of belonging.
• Parents hold the school in very high regard.

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 Northampton School attended 95.1% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 9.3% 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 Northampton School were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). No 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 Northampton School had 17.7 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 2.1% 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, 9.8% of pupils at Northampton School were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 3.2% 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 Northampton School received £8,098 and spent £7,617 for each of its 428 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £445,000 (£1,040 per pupil).

Across all 2 schools of The Nsb Trust, income was £8,123 and spending £7,925 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 Northampton · West Northamptonshire local authority: places and applications

Northampton School is part of The Nsb Trust, which runs 2 schools. The nearest others:

• Northampton School for Boys Northampton

What is Northampton School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Northampton School is Strong standard, from an inspection in September 2026.

When was Northampton School last inspected by Ofsted?

Northampton School was last inspected in September 2026.

How many pupils does Northampton School have?

Northampton School has 650 pupils on roll.

What age range does Northampton School cover?

Northampton School for pupils aged 11 to 16.

Where is Northampton School?

Northampton School is at Thorpeville, Moulton, Northampton, Northamptonshire, NN3 7TR.