Wellfield Academy

Wellfield Academy is improving after a period of significant leadership change and support from the Endeavour Learning Trust. Safeguarding is effective, pupils generally feel safe and happy, and the school has strengthened attendance, behaviour, inclusion and personal development. Pupils benefit from clearer routines, better support for those with additional needs, and a broad enrichment and careers programme. The specially resourced provision for pupils with speech, language and communication needs is playing an important role in helping vulnerable pupils re-engage with school. However, achievement remains uneven and published outcomes are still below national averages in many areas. Teaching is not consistently strong across the curriculum: some tasks lack challenge, assessment is not always used well to identify gaps, and support for pupils with additional needs is not applied routinely in every subject. Persistent absence remains too high, although there are signs of improvement for key groups. Leadership has become clearer and more purposeful since the school joined the trust, and staff generally feel well supported. Trustees provide appropriate oversight. Even so, leaders do not always analyse trends or evaluate the impact of their actions with enough precision, and some improvement work has been slower to take effect than intended. The school is moving in the right direction but still has important work to do to secure consistently good outcomes for all pupils.

Strengths

• Safeguarding is effective, with an open culture and pupils who feel safe.
• Attendance leadership has improved, with coordinated support for vulnerable pupils and signs of sustained improvement.
• Behaviour expectations are clear and consistently reinforced, contributing to calm classrooms and fewer suspensions.
• Inclusion is stronger: staff identify needs better and use additional funding effectively, including for disadvantaged pupils.
• The specially resourced provision provides calm, targeted support that helps pupils with SEND re-engage with learning.
• Personal development is coherent and extensive, with strong enrichment, careers guidance and rising participation.
• Leaders have brought greater clarity and direction since joining the trust, and staff feel supported.
• Trustees and the local academy council provide appropriate challenge and oversight.

Areas for Improvement

• Published outcomes remain below national averages in many areas and achievement is uneven across subjects.
• Some pupils still have gaps in handwriting fluency and number facts, which limit access to the wider curriculum.
• Teaching is inconsistent: some tasks lack challenge or depth, and assessment checks do not identify gaps well enough.
• Support for pupils with additional needs is not applied routinely across all subjects.
• Persistent absence remains too high, although it is reducing for key pupil groups.
• Leaders do not always analyse trends or measure the impact of actions precisely enough, so improvement is variable.
• Some improvement actions have taken time to gain momentum and have not had the intended impact quickly enough.

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 Wellfield Academy attended 89.3% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 33.0% 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, 14.5% of pupils at Wellfield Academy were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). 6 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 Wellfield Academy had 17.1 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 28.8% 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, 26.7% of pupils at Wellfield Academy were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 3.9% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 3.5%).

The school has resourced provision with 1 pupil.

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 Wellfield Academy received £8,757 and spent £8,385 for each of its 525 pupils. It ended the year with a deficit of £193,000 (-£367 per pupil).

Across all 10 schools of Endeavour Learning Trust, income was £7,792 and spending £7,806 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 Leyland · Lancashire local authority: places and applications

Wellfield Academy is part of Endeavour Learning Trust, which runs 11 schools. The nearest others:

• Northbrook Primary Academy Leyland
• Woodlea Junior School Leyland
• Brindle Gregson Lane Primary School Preston
• Tarleton Academy Preston
• Strike Lane Primary School Preston
• Burscough Priory Academy Ormskirk
• Churchtown Primary School Southport
• Ormskirk School Ormskirk
• Linaker Primary School Southport
• Hawes Side Academy Blackpool

What is Wellfield Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Wellfield Academy is Needs attention, from an inspection in October 2026.

When was Wellfield Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Wellfield Academy was last inspected in October 2026.

How many pupils does Wellfield Academy have?

Wellfield Academy has 562 pupils on roll.

What age range does Wellfield Academy cover?

Wellfield Academy for pupils aged 11 to 16.

What are Wellfield Academy's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 34.8, and 22% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Wellfield Academy?

Wellfield Academy is at Yewlands Drive, Leyland, Lancashire, PR25 2TP.