The Laurel Academy

Doncaster · S64 9SD

General information Secondary School · 11-16 years Who goes here 755 pupils, 47.4% FSM

Parent score Rate this school No reviews yet - be the first SEN 14% on SEN support Behaviour 7.3% absence rate Staff 9.8% turnover Financials £8,978 per pupil Environment Buildings and facilities

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The Laurel Academy

General Information

Address: Maple Road, Mexborough, S64 9SD – View on map
Phone: 01709302244
Website: Visit school website
Headteacher: Mrs Katy Taylor-Clarke
Age range: 11-16 years
Demand for places (Year 7, September 2026): 160 families put it first for 170 places – 9 for every 10 places. Every one of them was offered a place. 7 of the 170 places went to families living outside the council area. Children putting it first, for every 10 places: 2023 9 · 2024 8 · 2025 9 · 2026 9
Sixth form: No
Intake: Mixed
Nursery provision: No

Who goes here

755 pupils on roll

Pupils eligible for free school meals: 358
% eligible for free school meals: 47.4%
Pupil mix: 2 in 10 (less mixed than the Doncaster average)
English as an additional language: 8% (England 22%)

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Teacher turnover: 9.8% a year (Doncaster 15.3%, typical in England 15.5%) Low turnover
Where they went: about 55% moved to another school, 45% 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 Doncaster: suspensions by reason

Suspensions for sexual misconduct: 54 (2.8 per 1,000 pupils; England 1.7)
Permanent exclusions for sexual misconduct: 0
Suspensions for bullying: 32 (1.6 per 1,000 pupils; England 1.9)
Suspensions for abuse against sexual orientation or gender identity: 15 (0.8 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 Doncaster, 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: 21.3%
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: 14.0%
Pupils with an EHC Plan: 2.5%
Data year: 2025/26

Most common needs - SEN Support

Social, emotional and mental health: 28 pupils
Speech, language and communications needs: 28 pupils
Moderate learning difficulty: 20 pupils
Specific learning difficulty: 15 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 8 pupils

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Autistic spectrum disorder: 8 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 4 pupils
Speech, language and communications needs: 4 pupils
Moderate learning difficulty: 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

–

Ability to Deal with Problems

–

Headteacher Approval

–

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: 50.2
Compared with the area: 4.5 points above the Doncaster average (45.7)
Compared with schools with similar pupils: Well above (+9.1 points against an expected 41.1)
Grade 4+ in English and maths: 83% (Doncaster 66%, England 65%) Improving
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 schoolDoncaster averageEngland↗ Improving Up 7.7 points since 2022/23. In 2024/25 this school was 4.5 points above the Doncaster average (45.7).

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.

2nd of 20 secondary schools in Doncaster for Attainment 8

#1The Hayfield School52.6
#2The Laurel Academy50.2
#3Ridgewood School49.5
#4Hungerhill School49.2

Click to see the full ranking

Attainment 8 ranking

Illustrative MVP scores - not based on verified data yet.

Rank School Score

#1The Hayfield School52.6
#2The Laurel Academy50.2
#3Ridgewood School49.5
#4Hungerhill School49.2
#5De Warenne Academy48.9
#6Doncaster UTC48.6
#7Don Valley Academy48.0
#8Hall Cross Academy47.8
#9Rossington All Saints Academy47.4
#10Ash Hill Academy46.9
#11Outwood Academy Adwick43.7
#12Sir Thomas Wharton Academy43.3
#13Outwood Academy Danum42.8
#14The McAuley Catholic High School42.5
#15Trinity Academy42.4
#16Campsmount Academy41.5
#17XP School39.8
#18Armthorpe Academy39.5
#19XP East36.9
#20Astrea Academy Woodfields36.8

Leaver Destinations

In education, employment, or training a year later: 80.0%
Went into further education: 76.0%
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

Science Double Award
Maths (General)
English Language
English Literature
Geography
History
French Language
Art & Design
Photography
Computer Science
Polish
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

12th of 17 secondary schools in Doncaster for Ofsted rating

#10Rossington All Saints AcademyGood
#11The Hayfield SchoolGood
#12The Laurel AcademyGood
#13The McAuley Catholic High SchoolGood
#14Trinity 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

#1Ash Hill AcademyGood
#2Astrea Academy WoodfieldsGood
#3Campsmount AcademyGood
#4Don Valley AcademyGood
#5Doncaster UTCGood
#6Hall Cross AcademyGood
#7Outwood Academy AdwickGood
#8Outwood Academy DanumGood
#9Ridgewood SchoolGood
#10Rossington All Saints AcademyGood
#11The Hayfield SchoolGood
#12The Laurel AcademyGood
#13The McAuley Catholic High SchoolGood
#14Trinity AcademyGood
#15XP SchoolGood
#16Armthorpe AcademyRequires improvement
#17XP EastRequires improvement

Financials

Spending per pupil: £8,978 (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.

2nd of 20 secondary schools in Doncaster for spending per pupil

#1Astrea Academy Woodfields£9,007
#2The Laurel Academy£8,978
#3Outwood Academy Danum£8,794
#4Sir Thomas Wharton Academy£8,385

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

#1Astrea Academy Woodfields£9,007
#2The Laurel Academy£8,978
#3Outwood Academy Danum£8,794
#4Sir Thomas Wharton Academy£8,385
#5Campsmount Academy£8,193
#6De Warenne Academy£7,822
#7Doncaster UTC£7,810
#8The McAuley Catholic High School£7,792
#9Outwood Academy Adwick£7,790
#10Ash Hill Academy£7,548
#11The Hayfield School£7,448
#12Armthorpe Academy£7,394
#13Rossington All Saints Academy£7,374
#14Don Valley Academy£7,366
#15Trinity Academy£7,345
#16Hall Cross Academy£7,087
#17Ridgewood School£7,003
#18Hungerhill School£6,893
#19XP School£5,936
#20XP East£5,284

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 Doncaster: 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