The Featherstone Academy

General Information

Address: Pontefract Road, Pontefract, WF7 5AJ
Phone: 01977698000
Website: Visit school website
Headteacher: Mrs Julia McCluskey
Age range: 11-16 years
Intake: Mixed
Religious character: None
Number of pupils: 556
School capacity: 600
Pupils eligible for free school meals: 227
% eligible for free school meals: 40.8%
Nursery provision: No

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.

Behaviour information for this school has not been added yet.

Attendance

Overall absence: 9.6%
Persistently absent pupils: 24.0%
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

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.

SEN provision information for this school has not been added yet.

Pupils on SEN Support: 21.6%
Pupils with an EHC Plan: 10.4%
Data year: 2025/26

Most common needs - SEN Support

Moderate learning difficulty: 30 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 30 pupils
Speech, language and communications needs: 26 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 14 pupils
Specific learning difficulty: 11 pupils

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Autistic spectrum disorder: 30 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 11 pupils
Speech, language and communications needs: 9 pupils
Physical disability: 5 pupils
Moderate learning difficulty: 2 pupils

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 –

Behaviour

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Openness

–

Teaching Quality

–

School Ethos

–

Ability to Deal with Problems

–

Headteacher Approval

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Would recommend –

Give this school your first review

Educational Attainment

Good 2022 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.

Educational attainment data for this school has not been added yet.

Attainment 8 score: 41.6
Data year: 2024/25

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.

Ranked #14 of 18 Attainment 8 schools of this type in the area

#12De Lacy Academy45.6
#13Outwood Academy Freeston44.6
#14The Featherstone Academy41.6
#15Minsthorpe Community College41.3
#16Outwood Academy Hemsworth41.0

Click to see the full ranking

Attainment 8 ranking

Illustrative MVP scores - not based on verified data yet.

#1Ossett Academy and Sixth Form College51.0
#2The King's School49.9
#3Horbury Academy48.7
#4Trinity Academy Cathedral48.7
#5Castleford Academy48.5
#6Carleton High School47.5
#7Outwood Grange Academy47.2
#8Kettlethorpe High School46.9
#9St Wilfrid's Catholic High School & Sixth Form College: A Voluntary Academy46.7
#10Crofton Academy46.5
#11St Thomas 46.3
#12De Lacy Academy45.6
#13Outwood Academy Freeston44.6
#14The Featherstone Academy41.6
#15Minsthorpe Community College41.3
#16Outwood Academy Hemsworth41.0
#17Outwood Academy City Fields38.8
#18Airedale Academy33.8

Leaver Destinations

In education, employment, or training a year later: 93.0%
Went into further education: 86.0%
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
French Language
History
Science Double Award
Sports Studies
Food Technology
Biology
Physics (General)
Chemistry (General)
Media Studies
Business Studies
Geography
Art & Design
Computer Science
Speech & Drama
Portuguese

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

Ranked #12 of 14 Ofsted Rating schools of this type in the area

#10St Thomas Good
#11St Wilfrid's Catholic High School & Sixth Form College: A Voluntary AcademyGood
#12The Featherstone AcademyGood
#13The King's SchoolGood
#14Airedale AcademyRequires improvement

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.

#1De Lacy AcademyOutstanding
#2Trinity Academy CathedralOutstanding
#3Crofton AcademyGood
#4Horbury AcademyGood
#5Kettlethorpe High SchoolGood
#6Minsthorpe Community CollegeGood
#7Ossett Academy and Sixth Form CollegeGood
#8Outwood Academy City FieldsGood
#9Outwood Grange AcademyGood
#10St Thomas Good
#11St Wilfrid's Catholic High School & Sixth Form College: A Voluntary AcademyGood
#12The Featherstone AcademyGood
#13The King's SchoolGood
#14Airedale AcademyRequires improvement

Financials

Financial summary information for this school has not been added yet.

Spending per pupil: £7,998 (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.

Ranked #3 of 19 Spending Per Pupil schools of this type in the area

#1Minsthorpe Community College£8,513
#2Outwood Academy Hemsworth£8,011
#3The Featherstone Academy£7,998
#4Trinity Academy Cathedral£7,964
#5Castleford Academy£7,956

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.

#1Minsthorpe Community College£8,513
#2Outwood Academy Hemsworth£8,011
#3The Featherstone Academy£7,998
#4Trinity Academy Cathedral£7,964
#5Castleford Academy£7,956
#6St Thomas £7,687
#7Outwood Academy City Fields£7,565
#8Crofton Academy£7,519
#9Horbury Academy£7,429
#10Outwood Academy Freeston£7,396
#11De Lacy Academy£7,390
#12St Wilfrid's Catholic High School & Sixth Form College: A Voluntary Academy£7,253
#13Kettlethorpe High School£7,223
#14Ossett Academy and Sixth Form College£6,850
#15Carleton High School£6,787
#16Outwood Grange Academy£6,575
#17The King's School£6,556
#18CAPA College£6,006
#19New College Pontefract£5,215

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

General Information

Behaviour

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