Cockburn John Charles Academy

About Cockburn John Charles Academy

Cockburn John Charles Academy has been rated Good overall by Ofsted following its most recent inspection in 2022, a significant improvement from its previous Inadequate rating in 2016. The school’s strongest academic metric is its Progress 8 score of 0.47, which is well above the national average and places it in the top 25 per cent of schools nationally. This score means that pupils at the school make, on average, nearly half a grade more progress per subject across eight GCSEs than pupils with similar starting points nationally. In the local authority of Leeds, the school ranks 11th out of 42 secondary schools on this measure, putting it in the top 26 per cent of schools in the area. The school’s Attainment 8 score sits at 41.6, and just under half of pupils (47.9 per cent) achieved a grade 5 or above in English and maths GCSEs. The school does not have a sixth form, so its focus is entirely on Key Stage 4 outcomes.

Ofsted’s breakdown of the inspection is particularly telling. Leadership and management, along with personal development, were both rated Outstanding, while behaviour and attitudes and quality of education were judged Good. The school’s Progress 8 score of 0.47 is significantly above the Leeds local authority average of 0.07, and its open element score — which measures progress in subjects not included in the EBacc — is even stronger at 1.05. Progress in English and maths is more modest, at 0.01 and 0.11 respectively, but the EBacc element score of 0.41 shows solid progress across the suite of EBacc subjects. Only 16.5 per cent of pupils entered the EBacc, and 8.5 per cent achieved a grade 5 or above in it, which is lower than many schools. The school’s progress 8 banding is classed as ‘Above average’, and it ranks 42nd out of 306 schools in Yorkshire and the Humber, placing it in the top 14 per cent regionally.

The school is heavily oversubscribed: for 239 places in the 2025/26 academic year, it received 683 applications, an oversubscription ratio of 2.86, with 177 first-preference applications for just 175 first-preference offers. Over half of pupils (54.5 per cent) are eligible for free school meals, well above the national average, and the school has a broad range of SEND provisions covering dyslexia, moderate learning difficulties, social and emotional needs, speech and language issues, hearing and visual impairments, physical disabilities, and autistic spectrum disorder. Facilities include a swimming pool, astro turf, sports hall, theatre, music rooms, and a chapel. Clubs range from choir and chess to the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award and eco club. This is a school that has turned around its performance dramatically and now offers strong academic progress, particularly for pupils who might otherwise fall behind, making it a compelling choice for families in Leeds who value both pastoral support and measurable academic gains.

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