Outwood Academy Newbold

About Outwood Academy Newbold

Outwood Academy Newbold has turned a corner. In its most recent graded inspection, the school earned a Good rating overall, with leadership and management judged Outstanding. That is a significant improvement from its previous inspection in 2013, when it was rated Inadequate. The most telling academic metric is Progress 8, which measures how much pupils improve between the end of primary school and GCSEs compared with pupils nationally. Newbold’s Progress 8 score of 0.38 is well above average, placing it in the top 25 per cent of schools nationally. It also ranks third out of nine secondary schools in Chesterfield and 45th out of 273 in the East Midlands. This positive trajectory is backed by an Attainment 8 score of 48.5, meaning the average pupil achieves just under a grade 5 across their best eight GCSEs. Over 70 per cent of pupils achieved a grade 4 or above in English and maths, and more than half secured a grade 5 or above in those subjects.

The school’s sixth form is also rated Good, though its value-added score of -0.3 is below average, suggesting students make slightly less progress at A-level than peers nationally. The average A-level grade per entry is a C-, with an average points score of 28.1 per entry. Just over 11 per cent of entries achieved AAB or higher. For context, the local authority average Progress 8 score is -0.11, so Newbold’s 0.38 is a strong result by comparison. The school’s EBacc average point score is 4.25, and 38.5 per cent of pupils entered the EBacc combination of subjects. In English and maths specifically, Progress 8 scores are 0.49 and 0.32 respectively, both comfortably above the national average. The school has 1,011 pupils on roll, close to its capacity of 1,028, and 36.3 per cent are eligible for free school meals, which is above the national average.

Newbold is heavily oversubscribed: for 2025/26 entry, it received 403 applications for 172 places, a ratio of 2.34 applicants per place, with 158 offers going to first-preference families. The school has a wide range of facilities including science labs, a swimming pool, a theatre, astro turf, a sports hall, and a sixth form centre. Sports on offer include gymnastics, rugby, swimming, and football, while clubs range from coding and debate to the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award and Young Enterprise. The school also provides for a broad spectrum of SEND needs, including autistic spectrum disorder, speech and language difficulties, and physical disabilities, with a resourced provision on site. This is a school that suits families looking for strong academic progress in a state secondary with a clear upward trajectory, particularly those who value a structured environment with good leadership and a wide choice of extracurricular activities.

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