Darton Academy - The School Companion

Darton Academy

Barnsley · S75 5EF

General information Secondary School · 11-16 years Who goes here 1099 pupils, 22.2% FSM

Parent score Rate this school No reviews yet - be the first SEN 9.9% on SEN support Behaviour 7.3% absence rate Staff 20.7% turnover Financials £7,321 per pupil Environment Buildings and facilities

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Darton Academy

General Information

Address: Ballfield Lane, Darton, Barnsley, S75 5EF – View on map
Phone: 01226232306
Website: Visit school website
Headteacher: Mr Joseph Spencer
Age range: 11-16 years
Sixth form: No
Intake: Mixed
Religious character: Does not apply
Nursery provision: No

Who goes here

1099 pupils out of 1200 places

Pupils eligible for free school meals: 244
% eligible for free school meals: 22.2%
Pupil mix: 2 in 10 (less mixed than the Barnsley average)
English as an additional language: 4% (England 22%)

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Teacher turnover: 20.7% a year (Barnsley 16%, typical in England 15.5%)
Where they went: about 75% moved to another school, 25% left state schools altogether (retirement, other careers, independent schools, abroad)
Data years: 2022/23 to 2024/25 (average of 3 years, DfE school workforce census)

Teachers who moved school or left state schools in the year after each November, as a share of all the school's teachers. Some turnover is healthy – retirements, promotions, moving house.

Behaviour

Awaiting Data

About this Behaviour status

We've asked this school for real behaviour figures under Freedom of Information and haven't had a response yet.

Across Barnsley: suspensions by reason

Suspensions for sexual misconduct: 33 (2.4 per 1,000 pupils; England 1.7)
Permanent exclusions for sexual misconduct: 2
Suspensions for bullying: 11 (0.8 per 1,000 pupils; England 1.9)
Suspensions for abuse against sexual orientation or gender identity: 24 (1.7 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.8)
Data year: 2024/25 (DfE suspensions and exclusions statistics)

These are figures for all state secondary schools in Barnsley, not this school's own – the government doesn't publish them school by school. A suspension can have up to three reasons. Most sexual harassment between pupils never leads to a suspension, so these figures show only part of the picture.

Attendance

Overall absence: 7.3%
Persistently absent pupils: 21.4%
Data year: 2024/25

About persistent absence

A pupil is counted as "persistently absent" if they miss 10% or more of their possible school sessions - roughly one day in every two weeks. Schools and Ofsted both pay close attention to this figure specifically, since it can highlight a pattern the overall absence rate alone might hide.

SEN

No dedicated Unit or Resourced Provision

SEN Unit and Resourced Provision

Most mainstream schools don't have a dedicated SEN Unit or Resourced Provision - it isn't a mark against a school that doesn't, just a different kind of setup than one that does.

Pupils on SEN Support: 9.9%
Pupils with an EHC Plan: 3.0%
Data year: 2025/26

Most common needs - SEN Support

Social, emotional and mental health: 41 pupils
Moderate learning difficulty: 18 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 17 pupils
Specific learning difficulty: 11 pupils
Speech, language and communications needs: 10 pupils

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Autistic spectrum disorder: 12 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 8 pupils
Moderate learning difficulty: 6 pupils
Speech, language and communications needs: 2 pupils
Physical disability: 1 pupil

These figures show the makeup of the school.

About these SEND figures

These figures give a sense of the makeup of the school - they aren't a judgement on the quality of support provided.

Parent score - no reviews yet –

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Behaviour

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Openness

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Teaching Quality

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School Ethos

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Ability to Deal with Problems

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Headteacher Approval

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SafeguardingSafeguarding (parent rating)How parents rate the school on keeping children safe - how safe their child feels, and how well concerns are listened to and acted on. It's parents' experience, not an inspection result; Ofsted checks safeguarding separately.

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Would recommend –

Educational Attainment

Good 2023 report

About this Ofsted rating

Ofsted changed how it rates schools in the last couple of years, so ratings from different years aren't always on the same scale - that's why we show the year alongside every rating.

Attainment 8 score: 52.1
Compared with the area: 7.3 points above the Barnsley average (44.8)
Compared with schools with similar pupils: Above (+4.7 points against an expected 47.4)
Grade 4+ in English and maths: 79% (Barnsley 65%, England 65%) Broadly steady
Data year: 2024/25

View the School Context Comparator – how this school's results compare with schools teaching similar pupils.

GCSE results over time

This schoolBarnsley averageEngland↗ Improving Up 2.3 points since 2022/23. In 2024/25 this school was 7.3 points above the Barnsley average (44.8).

About the Attainment 8 score

Attainment 8 measures a pupil's average result across 8 GCSE-equivalent qualifications (English and maths count double). It shows how pupils performed, not how much progress they made getting there - a school with a higher score doesn't necessarily add more value, since pupils often arrive with different starting points. Progress 8 is the measure designed to account for that, but it currently can't be calculated for any school for the two most recent academic years, due to a nationwide gap in the data caused by COVID-19 disruption to Key Stage 2 testing.

2nd of 10 secondary schools in Barnsley for Attainment 8

#1Penistone Grammar School53.6
#2Darton Academy52.1
#3Horizon Community College49.8
#4Kirk Balk Academy46.0

Click to see the full ranking

Attainment 8 ranking

Illustrative MVP scores - not based on verified data yet.

Rank School Score

#1Penistone Grammar School53.6
#2Darton Academy52.1
#3Horizon Community College49.8
#4Kirk Balk Academy46.0
#5Barnsley Academy45.1
#6Netherwood Academy42.6
#7Outwood Academy Shafton42.0
#8Outwood Academy Carlton41.5
#9Astrea Academy Dearne40.2
#10Holy Trinity Catholic and Church of England School37.5

Leaver Destinations

In education, employment, or training a year later: 90.0%
Went into further education: 82.0%
Data year: 2024/25

About leaver destinations

This shows where a school's Year 11 leavers were recorded the following year - in a "sustained" destination means in education, an apprenticeship, or employment for at least 6 months, not just enrolled briefly. It's a different picture from exam results alone, and can highlight schools that support pupils well beyond just their GCSE grades.

GCSE Subjects Offered

Maths (General)
English Language
English Literature
Science Double Award
History
Geography
Art & Design
Biology
Chemistry (General)
Physics (General)
Food Technology
Photography
Spanish
French Language
Computer Science
Dance: General
Music Studies (General)
Religious Studies
D & T
Polish
Turkish

About this subject list

This isn't the school's own description of its curriculum - it's real DfE exam entry data, showing which GCSE subjects this school's pupils were actually entered for in 2024/25. A subject not appearing here may still be taught but had no pupils entered that year, so treat this as a helpful guide rather than a complete guarantee - it's worth confirming directly with the school for the year your child would actually study.

View full Ofsted inspection report

4th of 9 secondary schools in Barnsley for Ofsted rating

#2Astrea Academy DearneGood
#3Barnsley AcademyGood
#4Darton AcademyGood
#5Horizon Community CollegeGood
#6Kirk Balk AcademyGood

Click to see the full ranking

Ofsted Rating ranking

Based on real Ofsted ratings (via official DfE data) for schools on the same four-word grading scale.

Rank School Score

#1Trinity Academy St. EdwardsOutstanding
#2Astrea Academy DearneGood
#3Barnsley AcademyGood
#4Darton AcademyGood
#5Horizon Community CollegeGood
#6Kirk Balk AcademyGood
#7Netherwood AcademyGood
#8Outwood Academy ShaftonGood
#9Penistone Grammar SchoolGood

Financials

Spending per pupil: £7,321 (2024-25)

About this spending figure

A higher or lower position here isn't a sign of a better or worse school - schools have different needs and circumstances - but it can help reassure you that a school has sufficient funding behind your child's education.

11th of 11 secondary schools in Barnsley for spending per pupil

#9Penistone Grammar School£7,503
#10Trinity Academy St. Edwards£7,423
#11Darton Academy£7,321

Click to see the full ranking

Spending Per Pupil ranking

Based on official DfE financial return data (Consistent Financial Reporting / Academies Accounts Return) - not a ranking of school quality.

Rank School Score

#1Horizon Community College£8,603
#2Outwood Academy Carlton£8,602
#3Astrea Academy Dearne£8,445
#4Barnsley Academy£8,444
#5Holy Trinity Catholic and Church of England School£8,087
#6Outwood Academy Shafton£7,850
#7Netherwood Academy£7,814
#8Kirk Balk Academy£7,632
#9Penistone Grammar School£7,503
#10Trinity Academy St. Edwards£7,423
#11Darton Academy£7,321

View on the Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool (GOV.UK)

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General Information

Who goes here

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Behaviour

Across Barnsley: suspensions by reason

Attendance

SEN

Most common needs - SEN Support

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Educational Attainment

Attainment 8 ranking

Leaver Destinations ?

GCSE Subjects Offered ?

Ofsted Rating ranking

Financials

Spending Per Pupil ranking

Leaver Destinations

GCSE Subjects Offered