Airedale Academy
Academy converter · sixth form · 1,008 pupils
79% stayed in education · Attainment 8 33.8
Academy converter
Horbury Academy
- Pupils on roll
- 1,070of 1,059 places
- Free school meals
- 27.9%
- Year 11 cohort 2025
- 196
- Ofsted
- Report card, 6 January 2026Read the Ofsted report
Curriculum and teaching Strong standardAchievement Strong standardAttendance and behaviour Needs attentionPersonal development and wellbeing Expected standardInclusion Expected standardLeadership and governance Expected standardPost-16 provision Not applicableSafeguarding Met
Results below include those reported under the school’s previous registration: Horbury School - A Specialist Language College (URN 108280, until 1 September 2012).
What the data says
Horbury Academy has no sixth form. Of the 198 pupils who finished Year 11 there in 2023, 29% moved to a sixth form college, 43% to a further education college and 6% started an apprenticeship.
Art and Design is unusually popular at GCSE: 30% of the year group took it, against 7% of pupils across England.
GCSE results in 2025 were above the national picture: Attainment 8 of 48.7 against 46.1 across England and 45.1 in Wakefield, with 53% of pupils getting grade 5 or above in both English and maths (England 45%).
As an 11–16 school, Horbury Academy is judged on where pupils go at 16 rather than on A level results.
Where pupils went after Year 11
Destinations of the 2023 Year 11 leavers, measured the following year: the share in a sustained place for at least two terms. Compared with all state-funded schools in Wakefield and England.
School sixth formSixth form collegeFurther education collegeOther educationApprenticeshipEmploymentNo sustained destination
| Measure | Horbury Academy | Wakefield | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils in the cohort | 198 | 3,844 | 607,348 |
| Any sustained destination | 92% | 89% | 92% |
| Stayed in education | 82% | 82% | 86% |
| — school sixth form | 10% | 12% | 34% |
| — sixth form college | 29% | 28% | 13% |
| — further education college | 43% | 41% | 37% |
| — other education | 0% | 2% | 2% |
| Apprenticeship | 6% | 4% | 3% |
| Employment | 4% | 3% | 3% |
| No sustained destination | 6% | 8% | 6% |
| Destination unknown | 2% | 3% | 3% |
GCSE results 2025
| Measure | Horbury Academy | Wakefield | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Attainment 8 (average points per pupil) | 48.7 | 45.1 | 46.1 |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 53% | 46% | 45% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 76% | 65% | 65% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate subjects | 24% | 33% | 41% |
| EBacc average point score | 4.27 | 3.95 | 4.09 |
| Disadvantaged pupils in the cohort | 20% | 28% | 28% |
| Attainment 8 — disadvantaged pupils | 38.3 | 33.4 | 34.9 |
| Attainment 8 — other pupils | 51.4 | 49.6 | 50.4 |
| Pupils with high prior attainment (Key Stage 2) | — | — | — |
| English as an additional language | 10% | 12% | 19% |
Progress 8 is not available for 2025 and 2026: these cohorts had no Key Stage 2 tests in 2020 and 2021, so there is no baseline. Attainment 8 shows results without taking pupils’ starting points into account.
Subjects taken at GCSE
Entries in 2025 as a share of the Year 11 cohort, and the share of entries graded 7–9 and 4–9, compared with all entries in England.
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England | Grades 7–9 | England | Grades 4–9 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| English Language | 194 | 99% | 89% | 24% | 20% | 79% |
| Mathematics | 193 | 98% | 88% | 24% | 22% | 80% |
| English Literature | 189 | 96% | 86% | 16% | 21% | 83% |
| Combined Science | 168 | 86% | 65% | 14% | 9% | 71% |
| History | 128 | 65% | 41% | 38% | 26% | 78% |
| Geography | 68 | 35% | 41% | 28% | 25% | 71% |
| Art and Design | 58 | 30% | 7% | 22% | 24% | 81% |
| Business Studies | 51 | 26% | 18% | 10% | 20% | 49% |
| Photography | 40 | 20% | 6% | 23% | 19% | 80% |
| Spanish | 28 | 14% | 19% | 50% | 27% | 89% |
| Biology | 23 | 12% | 23% | 39% | 45% | 91% |
| Physics | 22 | 11% | 23% | 50% | 46% | 95% |
| Chemistry | 22 | 11% | 23% | 41% | 47% | 86% |
| Music | 21 | 11% | 5% | 5% | 33% | 48% |
| French | 19 | 10% | 18% | 26% | 29% | 84% |
| Computer Science | 17 | 9% | 13% | 12% | 30% | 41% |
| Polish | 3 | 2% | 1% | — | 84% | — |
| Italian | 2 | 1% | 0% | — | 53% | — |
| Arabic | 1 | 1% | 1% | — | 47% | — |
| Design and Technology | 1 | 1% | 11% | — | 23% | — |
Technical awards and other Key Stage 4 qualifications
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hospitality / Catering Studies | 66 | — | — |
| Engineering Studies | 64 | — | — |
| Sports Studies | 49 | — | — |
| Computer Appreciation / Introduction | 23 | — | — |
| Sports / Movement Science | 23 | — | — |
| Small Business Management | 13 | — | — |
| Speech and Drama | 12 | — | — |
Other secondary schools in Wakefield
Carleton High School
Academy converter · 1,026 pupils
79% stayed in education · Attainment 8 47.5
Castleford Academy
Academy converter · 1,480 pupils
81% stayed in education · Attainment 8 48.5
Crofton Academy
Academy converter · 1,045 pupils
84% stayed in education · Attainment 8 46.5
De Lacy Academy
Academy converter · 853 pupils
70% stayed in education · Attainment 8 45.6
Kettlethorpe High School
Community school · 1,616 pupils
86% stayed in education · Attainment 8 46.9
Sources: Department for Education school and college performance tables 2024/2025 (Key Stage 4 and 16–18 results, subject entries, destination measures for 2023 leavers); Get Information About Schools register as at 19 September 2026; Ofsted management information as at 31 August 2026. Small numbers are suppressed by DfE and shown as “—”. How to read these figures.