Ofsted: Good trending_up Popular emoji_events #4 in Darlington public Top 25% UK

Polam Hall School

verifiedData: DfE 2024/25–2025/26 · Ofsted

personPrincipal Kate Reid

corporate_fareWOODARD ACADEMIES TRUST

location_onDarlington, DL1 5PA

language Visit Website phone 1325463383

verified

Ofsted

Good

Inspected 2021

groups

Students

787

trending_up

Attainment 8

44.6

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GCSE Rank

#4 in Darlington

#1,806 of 3,216 nationally

summarize

Polam Hall School is a Free schools secondary school in Darlington, serving ages 4-16. Rated Good by Ofsted. Demand is above capacity (1.0×) — apply through your local authority on time.

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School Summary

Polam Hall School is a free schools in Darlington, admitting pupils aged 4-16. It is part of WOODARD ACADEMIES TRUST. The school has approximately 841 pupils on roll, of whom 30% are eligible for free school meals.

In 2025, pupils achieved an Attainment 8 score of 44.6, placing the school #4 in Darlington and #1,806 of 3,216 nationally. 37.80% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in English and Maths. 16.0% of all GCSE entries were graded 9–7.

In 2025, 59% of pupils met the expected standard in Reading, Writing and Maths combined, with 6% achieving the higher standard. The school ranks #14 of 8 primaries in Darlington and #6,347 of 3,216 nationally.

Ofsted last inspected the school in 2021. The school's current overall rating is Good. Inspectors assessed quality of education as Good, behaviour and attitudes Good, personal development Good, and leadership and management Good.

The school is oversubscribed — in the most recent cycle, there were 1.0× as many applications as places, making a successful application competitive.

The pupil-to-qualified-teacher ratio is 19.5:1. There are no current teaching vacancies.

In the 2024/25 academic year, there were 4 permanent exclusions. The average suspension rate was 8.9 per 1,000 pupils per term.

verified Source: DfE 2024/25–2025/26 · Ofsted

Academic Performance

verified Data: UK Gov 2024/25

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Secondary Performance Trends (KS4)

2025

Progress 8 Score

Attainment 8

44.6

Grade 5+ E&M

37.80%

Grade 9–7 (all GCSEs)16.0%

Entering EBacc33.30%

EBacc APS4.03

2024

Progress 8 Score

-0.05

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc36.50%

EBacc APS3.77

2023

Progress 8 Score

-0.34

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

42.7

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc34%

EBacc APS3.80

2022

Progress 8 Score

0.15

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

49.8

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc39%

EBacc APS4.35

2021

Progress 8 Score

Attainment 8

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc75%

EBacc APS-

2019

Progress 8 Score

-0.07

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

48.6

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc80%

EBacc APS4.49

2018

Progress 8 Score

-0.58

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

43.4

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc69%

EBacc APS3.95

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Student Destinations (After Secondary)

This module shows what students did after finishing Key Stage 4 (GCSEs). It reflects how well the school prepares pupils for the real world.

2025

Stayed in Education / Employment

94%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)85%

Apprenticeships4%

Employment4%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)3%

2024

Stayed in Education / Employment

90%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)86%

Apprenticeships1%

Employment3%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)8%

2023

Stayed in Education / Employment

93%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)90%

Apprenticeships0%

Employment3%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)6%

2022

Stayed in Education / Employment

97%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)93%

Apprenticeships3%

Employment1%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)1%

2021

Stayed in Education / Employment

90%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)90%

Apprenticeships0%

Employment0%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)4%

school

Primary Performance Trends (KS2)

2025

R/W/M Expected Standard

59%

LA 60%

Reading69% LA 70%

Writing71% LA 70%

Maths80% LA 71%

Read SS

104

Maths SS

105

GPS SS

104

Progress (0 = national avg)

Read

Write

Maths

2024

R/W/M Expected Standard

63%

LA 56%England 61%

Reading81% LA 69% · Eng 74%

Writing79% LA 69% · Eng 72%

Maths81% LA 68% · Eng 73%

Read SS

106

Maths SS

107

GPS SS

107

Progress (0 = national avg)

Read

Write

Maths

2023

R/W/M Expected Standard

58%

LA 55%England 60%

Reading65% LA 70% · Eng 73%

Writing71% LA 68% · Eng 71%

Maths69% LA 67% · Eng 73%

Read SS

105

Maths SS

104

GPS SS

106

Progress (0 = national avg)

-1.1

Read

LA -0.4

-2.9 to 0.7

-1.0

Write

LA 0.1

-2.7 to 0.8

-0.4

Maths

LA -0.6

-2.2 to 1.3

2019

R/W/M Expected Standard

50%

LA 65%England 65%

Reading72% LA 73% · Eng 73%

Writing68% LA 78% · Eng 78%

Maths68% LA 80% · Eng 79%

Read SS

102

Maths SS

102

GPS SS

104

Progress (0 = national avg)

Read

LA 0.5

Write

LA 1.0

Maths

LA 0.9

2018

R/W/M Expected Standard

55%

LA 64%

Reading85% LA 77%

Writing64% LA 80%

Maths77% LA 75%

Read SS

107

Maths SS

104

GPS SS

107

Progress (0 = national avg)

Read

LA 0.7

-1.9 to 1.9

-7.1

Write

LA 0.7

-8.9 to -5.3

-1.8

Maths

LA 1.0

-3.5 to -0.1

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Report Archive

05 October 2021

Inspection Report

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18 April 2018

Inspection Report

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Inspection Report

Inspection History

2 Evaluations

2021-10-05

Requires Improvement S5 Reinspection Visit 1 EIF

Good

Education

Good

Behaviour

Good

Development

Good

Leadership

Good

2018-04-18

S5 Inspection Legacy

Requires improvement

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Requires improvement

Wellbeing, SEN & Pastoral Care

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Behaviour & Discipline (Suspensions & Exclusions)

Official Department for Education (DfE) data. Suspensions measure temporary removals due to behavior, while exclusions represent permanent removals.

Suspension Rate

10.0%per term

warning Above Average

National average: 7.3% for this term (secondary).

Pupils Suspended 1+ Times

4.4%(37 pupils)

Spring term 2025

Represents the proportion of unique students suspended at least once in this term.

Permanent Exclusions

3pupils

gavel Exclusion recorded

National average: 7.398% of pupils excluded per term.

Pastoral Context: In the Spring term of 2025, this school served a headcount of 841 pupils. During this period, there were 84 temporary suspensions. The school's suspension rate was 10.0%, which is above the termly national average of 7.3%.

View Historical Disciplinary Records (2017–2025)keyboard_arrow_down

Year / Term	Headcount	Suspensions	Susp. Rate	Nat. Avg	Perm. Excl.
2024/25 (Spring term)	841	84	10.0%	7.3%	3
2024/25 (Autumn term)	835	65	7.8%	7.8%	1
2023/24 (Summer term)	818	66	8.1%	7.4%	0
2023/24 (Spring term)	816	54	6.6%	7.1%	1
2023/24 (Autumn term)	824	44	5.3%	8.2%	3
2022/23 (Summer term)	788	52	6.6%	6.6%	1
2022/23 (Spring term)	787	59	7.5%	6.4%	2
2022/23 (Autumn term)	793	39	4.9%	5.9%	0
2021/22 (Summer term)	750	41	5.5%	4.7%	0
2021/22 (Spring term)	741	28	3.8%	4.9%	0
2021/22 (Autumn term)	744	23	3.1%	4.4%	1
2020/21 (Summer term)	721	20	2.8%	3.6%	1
2020/21 (Spring term)	720	6	0.8%	1.0%	0
2020/21 (Autumn term)	722	19	2.6%	3.9%	1
2019/20 (Summer term)	744	0	0.0%	0.0%	0
2019/20 (Spring term)	744	17	2.3%	3.2%	1
2019/20 (Autumn term)	754	27	3.6%	4.2%	1
2018/19 (Summer term)	740	19	2.6%	3.1%	1
2018/19 (Spring term)	739	10	1.4%	3.8%	2
2018/19 (Autumn term)	741	22	3.0%	3.8%	1
2017/18 (Summer term)	719	7	1.0%	3.4%	0
2017/18 (Spring term)	717	6	0.8%	3.0%	0
2017/18 (Autumn term)	719	5	0.7%	3.7%	0
2016/17 (Summer term)	692	0	0.0%	3.0%	0
2016/17 (Spring term)	692	0	0.0%	3.3%	0
2016/17 (Autumn term)	685	0	0.0%	3.1%	0

Source: DfE Suspensions and Permanent Exclusions in England. Data represents termly statistics as published by the Department for Education.

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Supported Special Educational Needs (SEN)

Primary areas of need currently supported by the school. A high number often indicates specialized internal units or high staff experience in these areas.

Social, Emotional & Mental Health 34 pupils

Autistic Spectrum Disorder 25 pupils

Specific Learning Difficulty 21 pupils

Speech, Language & Communication 11 pupils

Moderate Learning Difficulty 4 pupils

Multi-Sensory Impairment 2 pupils

Physical Disability 2 pupils

Other Difficulty/Disability 2 pupils

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Polam Hall School

School Summary

Academic Performance

Secondary Performance Trends (KS4)

Student Destinations (After Secondary)

Primary Performance Trends (KS2)

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Inspection History

Admissions Insight

How Places Are Allocated

Distance to School

School Capacity

Primary Admission Trends

Secondary Admission Trends

Students & School Environment

School Size

Language Diversity

Inclusive Support

Attendance

Ethnicity Breakdown

Wellbeing, SEN & Pastoral Care

Behaviour & Discipline (Suspensions & Exclusions)

Supported Special Educational Needs (SEN)

Funding & Staffing

School Funding Allocation

Funding Breakdown

Staffing

Teacher Turnover

Top Secondary Schools in Darlington

Carmel College

Hummersknott Academy

Hurworth School

Longfield Academy

St Aidan's Church of England Academy

Haughton Academy