Hadleigh High School, Ipswich
Hadleigh High School is a secondary school for pupils aged 11 to 16 in Ipswich, part of Penrose Learning Trust. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in October 2015. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in October 2024 did not change this grade. Its 2026 GCSE results were the 4th-highest of the 12 schools in Ipswich with published results, and 1,720th of 3,298 across England. It was 83% full in 2025.
- GCSE results
- In line with England
- Ofsted
- Good (2015)
- Demand
- Every first choice offered
- Attendance
- Below England average
- Progress (2024)
- Below average
Year 7 applications for September 2027 close in 4 days
Deadline Saturday 31 October 2026. Apply to Suffolk (the council where you live). Offers on 1 March.
Data last updated 26 Oct 2026
Hadleigh High School in detail
Results
In 2026, pupils at Hadleigh High School averaged an Attainment 8 score of 45.6, the average grade across their best eight GCSEs. The average state school scored 43.4 in Suffolk and 47 across England.
40% passed English and maths at grade 5 or above, against 40% in Suffolk and 47% in England.
That is up from 43.6 in 2025.
Its most recent Progress 8 score, for 2024, was -0.16: pupils made below average progress compared with pupils nationally who started secondary school at the same level. Progress 8 was not published for 2026.
Disadvantaged pupils averaged an Attainment 8 of 39.2, against 48.1 for other pupils at the school - a gap of 8.9 points.
Pupils sat GCSEs in 24 subjects; after English and maths, the most popular were Combined Science, Art and Design and Geography.
Getting a place at Hadleigh High School
For September 2026 entry, 120 families put Hadleigh High School as their first choice and 162 named it as one of their preferences, for 128 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. Every family who put it first was offered a place there for 2026 entry.
The trust
Hadleigh High School is one of 9 schools run by Penrose Learning Trust, an academy trust.
Across the trust's secondary schools, pupils averaged an Attainment 8 score of 43.5 in 2024/25.
What parents say
118 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about Hadleigh High School (as of September 2025): 79% would recommend the school, 79% say their child is happy there and 46% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.
The strongest agreement was that their child feels safe (89%); the weakest, that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (46%).
Where pupils go next
Of the 165 pupils who finished Year 11 in 2023/24, 84% stayed in education or training for at least two terms, including 27% to a further education college, 6% to an apprenticeship and 3% into work.
Who goes there
4.5% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
The largest ethnic groups are White British (84%) and Mixed (6%).
Getting there
There is no railway, tram or Underground station within about three miles of Hadleigh High School.
9 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is High School (outside), 70 metres away.
The area around the school
Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood Hadleigh High School stands in is among the 10% least deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.
In August 2026, police recorded 57 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, anti-social behaviour and criminal damage and arson. That is well above the typical figure around schools in Suffolk (32), as is usual near a town centre.
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, Hadleigh High School issued 118 suspensions, 16.1 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.
Primary schools nearby
The primary schools closest to Hadleigh High School are St Mary's Church of England Primary School, Hadleigh (0.2 miles); Hadleigh Community Primary School (0.4 miles); and Beaumont Community Primary School (0.7 miles). Admission does not depend on which primary a child attends unless the school's policy names feeder schools.
St Mary's Church of England Primary School, HadleighHadleigh Community Primary SchoolBeaumont Community Primary School
Sources: DfE school performance data (averages: state mainstream schools); DfE school-level applications and offers; council admissions booklets; DfE appeals statistics; DfE multi-academy trust performance data; Ofsted Parent View; DfE destination measures; DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); data.police.uk street-level crime; DfE exclusions statistics
Location
Every family who put it first was offered a place for 2026 entry, so distance did not limit places that year.
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 2 years agoThis judgement is from October 2015, 11 years ago, longer than Ofsted's usual 4-year cycle: the school may have changed since.
Overall
Latest (ungraded) inspection: Standards have been maintained.
Ofsted's report, in its own words
What is it like to attend this school?
At Hadleigh High School, pupils are polite and respectful. They demonstrate the school's values of 'aim high, work hard and be kind' in their everyday lives.
Lessons are calm and orderly places in which to learn. On the whole, pupils are confident to take part in lessons. This is because the school creates a supportive environment where pupils are helped to understand how to learn effectively.
What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?
The curriculum is broad and designed to build on pupils' prior learning. This helps to make sure that the needs of all pupils are met, including pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) and those who are disadvantaged.
The school has worked hard to ensure that staff use effective teaching approaches. This includes drawing out information from pupils with questions and ensuring pupils demonstrate what they have learned through speaking and writing. Where teachers use effective learning strategies, pupils are fully engaged in lessons and so know and remember more. While effective teaching of the curriculum is increasingly consistent across the school, further work is needed to ensure that pupils get the same high-quality experience from all staff and in all subjects. In a few subjects, teaching is sometimes less effective, meaning pupils do not remember some important knowledge.
From Ofsted's October 2024 ungraded inspection report: the opening paragraphs of each section, quoted word for word. Read the full report Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Ofsted Insights
Ofsted rated this school Good at its October 2015 inspection - unchanged since its previous inspection.
Rated Good for
Leadership & management.
About
Hadleigh High School is situated on Highlands Road in Hadleigh, Suffolk, England. It is a secondary school with academy status, and has around 730 pupils aged 11 to 16.
From Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
At a Glance
23.2%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
118 responsesSource: Ofsted Parent View, responses as at September 2025 - % who strongly agree or agree
Secondary Performance (GCSE)
Academic year 2025/26GCSE Results
2025/26 academic year
Progress 8 has declined from -0.01 to -0.16 (2023 to 2024). Attainment 8 has declined from 46.3 to 45.6 (2023 to 2026). GCSE English & Maths 5+ has remained stable at around 40% (2023 to 2026).
Performance by Group
| Group | Progress 8 | Attainment 8 | Eng+Maths 5+ |
|---|---|---|---|
| All pupils | - | 45.6 | 40.1% |
| Disadvantaged(41) | - | 39.2 | 29.3% |
| Not known to be disadvantaged(101) | - | 48.1 | 44.6% |
| Boys(82) | - | 45.4 | 43.9% |
| Girls(60) | - | 45.9 | 35% |
Show more breakdowns (1)
| Non mobile(137) | - | 46.1 | 41.6% |
2025/26 academic year - DfE performance tables data
GCSE Subjects Offered
+ 4 more subjects
2025/26 academic year - entries by number of pupils
After GCSEs - Leaver Destinations
After GCSEs (Year 11) - 165 students
2023/24 data
Exclusions & Suspensions
0
Permanent exclusions
0.00%
Exclusion rate
118
Suspensions
16.14%
Suspension rate
49 pupils received one or more suspensions out of 731 pupils
2024/25 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 1 nearby secondary school
Keep up with Hadleigh High School
Term dates
Hadleigh High School is an academy, so it sets its own term dates: check the school's website. As a guide, see Suffolk's term dates for its community schools.
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Hadleigh High School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Hadleigh High School is in Suffolk; for families living there:
Apply to Suffolk for free school transport. Its policy is on the council's website.
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 2
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 0
- Children hurt
- 1
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 2 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 0 serious and 2 slight.
1 child aged 0 to 15 was hurt.
1 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included.
The typical figure for schools in Suffolk is 4 (the median across 365 schools, same distance and years).
Serious and slight counts use the Department for Transport's severity adjustment, which allows for changes in how police forces record injuries; they are estimates, rounded to whole numbers. Distances are in a straight line. Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19), Open Government Licence v3.0.
Commute and house prices
Your chances of a place at Hadleigh High School
Will you get a place at Hadleigh High School? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against Hadleigh High School's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for Hadleigh High School:
- The straight-line distance from your home to Hadleigh High School.
- We hold no last distance offered figures from Suffolk, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at Hadleigh High School for 2014 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in Suffolk got their first choice, and how often appeals there succeed.
- The nearest state schools to your home, with Ofsted rating, demand and last distance offered where published.
- Key dates for September 2027 entry and how to apply.
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Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
83%
Available places
725 pupils
870 places
145 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Ipswich
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Ipswich
Across Suffolk council
Places available
8,475
Applications
7,204
Got 1st preference
92.7%
Got preferred school
97.7%
All secondary applications across Suffolk council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Every first choice offered
Inspection History(4)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
128
SEN Support
32
EHC Plans
22.5%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
712
Total Pupils
351
Boys
361
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
46
Teachers
15.5:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£47,462
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£6,763
Per pupil
£5218k
Total funding
£166k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
9.6%
Overall absence
25.5%
Persistent absence
761
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
Feeder Primary Schools
Primary schools that likely feed into this school, based on proximity
Questions parents ask about Hadleigh High School
What are GCSE results like at Hadleigh High School?
In the 2026 results, pupils at Hadleigh High School achieved an Attainment 8 score of 45.6. 40% passed GCSE English and maths at grade 5 or above.
What is Hadleigh High School's Ofsted rating?
Hadleigh High School's most recent Ofsted inspection, in October 2024, was ungraded, so it gave no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in October 2015, it was rated Good.
What is the catchment area for Hadleigh High School?
No fixed boundary. When Hadleigh High School is oversubscribed, Suffolk allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at Hadleigh High School?
Hadleigh High School was not full in 2025: it ran at 83% of its 870 places.
How big are the classes at Hadleigh High School?
Classes at Hadleigh High School average 21.5 pupils (2025/26).
How many pupils go to Hadleigh High School?
Hadleigh High School has around 712 pupils on roll. 23% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at Hadleigh High School?
9.6% of sessions were missed at Hadleigh High School in 2024/25. 25.5% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Hadleigh High School?
Apply through Suffolk's coordinated admissions process, naming Hadleigh High School on your application. Applications for Year 7 places starting in September 2027 close on Saturday 31 October 2026, and offers are made on Monday 1 March 2027.
How many road collisions happen near Hadleigh High School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 2 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 0 serious and 2 slight. 1 child aged 0 to 15 was hurt. 1 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included. The typical figure for schools in Suffolk is 4 (the median across 365 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Hadleigh High School?
Hadleigh High School is at Highlands Road, Hadleigh, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP7 5HU.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)