Highfields School

Derbyshire Dales · DE4 5NA

General information Secondary School · 11-18 years Who goes here 1298 pupils, 26.5% FSM

Educational attainment Ofsted and results

Parent score Rate this school No reviews yet - be the first SEN 9.2% on SEN support Behaviour 7.1% absence rate Staff 9.4% turnover Financials £6,805 per pupil Environment Buildings and facilities

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Highfields School

General Information

Address: Upper Lumsdale, Matlock, DE4 5NA – View on map
Phone: 01629581888
Website: Visit school website
Headteacher: Mr Andrew Marsh
Age range: 11-18 years
Demand for places (Year 7, September 2026): 211 families put it first for 214 places – 10 for every 10 places. Every one of them was offered a place. 2 of the 214 places went to families living outside the council area. Children putting it first, for every 10 places: 2023 10 · 2024 10 · 2025 10 · 2026 10
Sixth form: Yes
Intake: Mixed
Religious character: Does not apply
Nursery provision: No

Who goes here

1298 pupils out of 1394 places

Pupils eligible for free school meals: 291
% eligible for free school meals: 26.5%
Pupil mix: 1 in 10 (similar to the Derbyshire Dales average)
English as an additional language: 3% (England 22%)

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Teacher turnover: 9.4% a year (Derbyshire Dales 12.1%, typical in England 15.5%) Low turnover
Where they went: about 19% moved to another school, 81% 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. "Low turnover" means it's among the quarter of similar schools in England where teachers are most likely to stay.

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 Derbyshire: suspensions by reason

Suspensions for sexual misconduct: 67 (1.5 per 1,000 pupils; England 1.7)
Permanent exclusions for sexual misconduct: 2
Suspensions for bullying: 68 (1.5 per 1,000 pupils; England 1.9)
Suspensions for abuse against sexual orientation or gender identity: 55 (1.2 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 Derbyshire (the council area this school is in), 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: 7.1%
Persistently absent pupils: 14.6%
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: 9.2%
Pupils with an EHC Plan: 2.9%
Data year: 2025/26

Most common needs - SEN Support

Other difficulty or disability: 38 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 29 pupils
Specific learning difficulty: 17 pupils
Moderate learning difficulty: 14 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 8 pupils

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Autistic spectrum disorder: 16 pupils
Other difficulty or disability: 13 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 3 pupils
Moderate learning difficulty: 2 pupils
Vision impairment: 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

No overall grade given 2025 report

About this Ofsted rating

Ofsted stopped giving single overall grades for a period between September 2024 and November 2025 - this school's most recent inspection falls in that window, so there's no single rating to show, even though it was inspected. The full report (linked below) still has the detail.

Attainment 8 score: 47.0
Compared with the area: 1.7 points below the Derbyshire Dales average (48.7)
Compared with schools with similar pupils: As expected (+1.8 points against an expected 45.2)
Grade 4+ in English and maths: 68% (Derbyshire Dales 72%, England 65%) Falling
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 schoolDerbyshire Dales averageEngland↘ Falling Down 3.2 points since 2022/23. In 2024/25 this school was 1.7 points below the Derbyshire Dales average (48.7).

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.

3rd of 4 secondary schools in Derbyshire Dales for Attainment 8

#1Lady Manners School52.2
#2Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School48.2
#3Highfields School47.0
#4Anthony Gell School45.8

Click to see the full ranking

Attainment 8 ranking

Illustrative MVP scores - not based on verified data yet.

Rank School Score

#1Lady Manners School52.2
#2Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School48.2
#3Highfields School47.0
#4Anthony Gell School45.8

Leaver Destinations

In education, employment, or training a year later: 94.0%
Went into further education: 85.0%
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

English Language
Maths (General)
English Literature
Science Double Award
History
Geography
Chemistry (General)
Physics (General)
Biology
Business Studies
Spanish
Photography
Art & Design
Food Technology
German
Computer Science
Sports Studies
French Language
D & T
Media Studies
Music Studies (General)
Speech & Drama
Russian
Chinese

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

Financials

Spending per pupil: £6,805 (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.

4th of 4 secondary schools in Derbyshire Dales for spending per pupil

#2Lady Manners School£7,409
#3Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School£7,062
#4Highfields School£6,805

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

#1Anthony Gell School£7,617
#2Lady Manners School£7,409
#3Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School£7,062
#4Highfields School£6,805

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 Derbyshire: 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 ?

Financials

Spending Per Pupil ranking

Leaver Destinations

GCSE Subjects Offered