The Ferrers School

About The Ferrers School

The Ferrers School in North Northamptonshire is a mixed state secondary with a sixth form, currently educating 940 pupils against a capacity of 1,100. That leaves some headroom, but the school is clearly in demand: for the 2025/26 intake, it received 289 applications for 172 places, an oversubscription ratio of 1.68. Of those, 157 were first-preference applications, and all 157 received offers. The proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals stands at 18.9%, which is notably higher than the national average for secondary schools (typically around 14-15%), suggesting the school serves a community with above-average economic disadvantage. This context matters when interpreting its academic results, as schools with higher FSM percentages often face additional challenges. The school is led by headteacher Clare Raku and has no religious character.

Academically, the school's headline Progress 8 score for 2023/24 is -0.28, which is below the local authority average of -0.02 and places it 14th out of 20 secondary schools in North Northamptonshire. This score is banded as 'Below average' nationally, ranking in the bottom third of schools across England. Breaking it down, the strongest subject area is English, with a Progress 8 score of -0.06 (close to the national average), while maths is weaker at -0.4. Attainment 8 sits at 39.4, and the basics measure (grade 5 or above in English and maths) is 33.3%. At A-level, the picture is more positive: the school's value-added score is 0.01, banded as 'Average', and the average points per entry is 30.69, equivalent to a grade C. The sixth form is small, with just 28 pupils in the data, so results should be interpreted with caution.

The school offers a solid range of facilities including a sports hall, astro turf, tennis courts, science labs, music rooms, art studios, and a dedicated sixth form centre. Sports provision covers gymnastics, swimming, hockey, football, tennis, rugby, and dance, while extracurricular clubs include choir, chess, film club, Duke of Edinburgh, gardening, Young Enterprise, coding, and art club. SEND support is comprehensive, covering specific learning difficulties like dyslexia, moderate and severe learning difficulties, social, emotional and mental health needs, speech and language communication needs, hearing impairment, and physical disability. For families weighing options, The Ferrers School is a genuinely comprehensive secondary that serves a diverse intake and has a sixth form that performs around the national average. Its oversubscription suggests local confidence, but its Progress 8 score indicates that, for the most academically selective families, stronger-performing peers like Bishop Stopford School or Brooke Weston Academy may be worth considering.

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