King's Leadership Academy Bolton

About King's Leadership Academy Bolton

King's Leadership Academy Bolton was rated Good in its most recent Ofsted inspection in 2023, with all five categories — quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, and leadership and management — judged to be Good. The school's most telling academic metric is its Progress 8 score of 0.14, which places pupils' progress well above the local authority average of 0.07. This means that, on average, students at King's achieve nearly a fifth of a grade more per subject than pupils in similar schools nationally. The school ranks 7th out of 19 secondary schools in Bolton on this measure, putting it in the top 40% of schools in the local authority. Its Attainment 8 score of 47 is solid, and 65.1% of pupils achieved a grade 4 or above in both English and maths — a figure that rises to 53.6% when looking at the stronger grade 5 benchmark. English is a particular strength, with a Progress 8 score of 0.49, meaning pupils make nearly half a grade more progress in English than the national average.

The school's EBacc entry rate is notably high at 88.6%, reflecting a strong academic focus, though the proportion of pupils achieving the EBacc at grade 4 or above is 36.1%. The average EBacc APS of 4.44 suggests that while many pupils take the full suite of EBacc subjects, outcomes are broadly in line with expectations. King's does not have a sixth form, so pupils leave at 16, but the school's results position it well for progression to local colleges or sixth forms. In terms of pupil demographics, 32.7% of students are eligible for free school meals, which is above the national average, and the school is operating near full capacity with 899 pupils against a capacity of 900. The school's Progress 8 banding is classified as 'Average', and its national percentile ranking of 38.6 places it in the middle tier of schools across England.

The school is heavily oversubscribed: for 2025/26 entry, there were 487 applications for 186 places, a ratio of 2.62 applicants per place, with 141 of 156 first-preference applicants receiving offers. Facilities include a swimming pool, sports hall, playing fields, science labs, and a library, and the school offers a wide range of sports from rowing to gymnastics. Clubs include the Duke of Edinburgh's Award, Model United Nations, and Young Enterprise. The school's SEND provisions are comprehensive, covering specific learning difficulties like dyslexia, autistic spectrum disorder, and social, emotional and mental health needs. This is a school that suits families looking for a well-subscribed, academically solid secondary with strong progress in English, a broad curriculum, and good pastoral support, particularly for pupils who benefit from the structured environment of a leadership academy.

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