Leigh Academy Hugh Christie, Tonbridge
Leigh Academy Hugh Christie is a secondary school for pupils aged 11 to 18 in Tonbridge, part of Leigh Academies Trust. Its 2026 GCSE results were the 7th-highest of the 7 schools in Tonbridge with published results, and 2,868th of 3,298 across England. It was 62% full in 2025.
- GCSE results
- Below England average
- Demand
- Every first choice offered
- Attendance
- Below England average
Year 7 applications for September 2027 close in 6 days
Deadline Monday 2 November 2026. Apply to Kent (the council where you live). Offers on 1 March.
Data last updated 27 Oct 2026
Leigh Academy Hugh Christie in detail
Results
In 2026, pupils at Leigh Academy Hugh Christie averaged an Attainment 8 score of 38.2, the average grade across their best eight GCSEs. The average state school scored 48.1 in Kent and 47 across England.
20% passed English and maths at grade 5 or above, against 49% in Kent and 47% in England.
That is down from 40.5 in 2025.
Disadvantaged pupils averaged an Attainment 8 of 32.9, against 40.8 for other pupils at the school - a gap of 7.9 points.
Pupils sat GCSEs in 22 subjects; after English and maths, the most popular were Combined Science, History and Business Studies.
Getting a place at Leigh Academy Hugh Christie
For September 2026 entry, 83 families put Leigh Academy Hugh Christie as their first choice and 242 named it as one of their preferences, for 160 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. Every family who put it first was offered a place there for 2026 entry.
Admissions history and your chances at Leigh Academy Hugh Christie
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state secondary schools to Leigh Academy Hugh Christie are Hillview School for Girls (1.8 miles, Good, Attainment 8 49.1); The Judd School (1.9 miles, Outstanding, selective, Attainment 8 78.3); Leigh Academy Tonbridge (2 miles, Good, Attainment 8 43.9); and Tonbridge Grammar School (2.1 miles, Outstanding, selective, Attainment 8 77).
Each of them had higher 2026 results than Leigh Academy Hugh Christie.
Hillview School for GirlsThe Judd SchoolLeigh Academy TonbridgeTonbridge Grammar School
The trust
Leigh Academy Hugh Christie is one of 33 schools run by Leigh Academies Trust, an academy trust.
Across the trust's secondary schools, pupils averaged an Attainment 8 score of 47.4 in 2024/25.
Who goes there
36.6% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well above the average state school (25%), and 6.3% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
Leigh Academy Hugh Christie has a resourced provision for autism: 22 places, 18 pupils on roll.
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Tonbridge Rail Station, about 1.6 miles away in a straight line.
10 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is White Cottage Road (adjacent), 60 metres away.
The area around the school
Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood Leigh Academy Hugh Christie stands in is among the 20% least deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, Leigh Academy Hugh Christie issued 130 suspensions, 16.7 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and 3 permanent exclusions.
Primary schools nearby
The primary schools closest to Leigh Academy Hugh Christie are Cage Green Primary School (0.1 miles), Long Mead Community Primary School (0.4 miles), St Margaret Clitherow Catholic Primary School (0.5 miles) and Woodlands Primary School (0.5 miles). Admission does not depend on which primary a child attends unless the school's policy names feeder schools.
Cage Green Primary SchoolLong Mead Community Primary SchoolSt Margaret Clitherow Catholic Primary SchoolWoodlands 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; 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
Leigh Academy Hugh Christie has not been inspected by Ofsted since it took its current form in April 2024. Before that, as Hugh Christie School (URN 118903), it was rated Requires Improvement in October 2023.
At a Glance
36.6%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
Yes
Sixth Form
Resourced provision: Autism
SEN Provision
No
Special Measures
Secondary Performance (GCSE)
Academic year 2025/26GCSE Results
2025/26 academic year
Attainment 8 has declined from 40.5 to 38.2 (2025 to 2026), while gCSE English & Maths 5+ has declined from 30% to 20% (2025 to 2026).
Performance by Group
| Group | Progress 8 | Attainment 8 | Eng+Maths 5+ |
|---|---|---|---|
| All pupils | - | 38.2 | 20.2% |
| Disadvantaged(41) | - | 32.9 | 17.1% |
| Not known to be disadvantaged(83) | - | 40.8 | 21.7% |
| Boys(77) | - | 37.4 | 20.8% |
| Girls(47) | - | 39.6 | 19.1% |
Show more breakdowns (2)
| Known or believed to be other than English(9) | - | 47.6 | 44.4% |
| Non mobile(121) | - | 38.2 | 19.8% |
2025/26 academic year - DfE performance tables data
GCSE Subjects Offered
+ 2 more subjects
2025/26 academic year - entries by number of pupils
Exclusions & Suspensions
3
Permanent exclusions
0.39%
Exclusion rate
130
Suspensions
16.69%
Suspension rate
58 pupils received one or more suspensions out of 779 pupils
2024/25 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby secondary schools
Keep up with Leigh Academy Hugh Christie
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Leigh Academy Hugh Christie from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Leigh Academy Hugh Christie is in Kent; for families living there:
Apply to Kent for free school transport. Its policy is on the council's website.
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 11
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 3
- Children hurt
- 2
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 11 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 3 serious and 8 slight.
2 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 1 on foot and 1 on a bicycle.
4 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 Kent is 11 (the median across 711 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 Leigh Academy Hugh Christie
Will you get a place at Leigh Academy Hugh Christie? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against Leigh Academy Hugh Christie's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for Leigh Academy Hugh Christie:
- The straight-line distance from your home to Leigh Academy Hugh Christie.
- We hold no last distance offered figures from Kent, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at Leigh Academy Hugh Christie for 2025 and 2026 entry.
- How many families in Kent 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
62%
Available places
777 pupils
1,248 places
471 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Tonbridge
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Tonbridge
Across Kent council
Places available
19,539
Applications
18,644
Got 1st preference
78.9%
Got preferred school
96.2%
All secondary applications across Kent council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Every first choice offered
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
92
SEN Support
32
EHC Plans
18.0%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Leigh Academy Hugh Christie has a resourced provision for autism: 22 places, 18 pupils on roll.
Source: GIAS, Department for Education.
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
688
Total Pupils
389
Boys
299
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
41
Teachers
16.8:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£56,917
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£9,150
Per pupil
£6524k
Total funding
£286k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
10.7%
Overall absence
34.0%
Persistent absence
712
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 Leigh Academy Hugh Christie
What are GCSE results like at Leigh Academy Hugh Christie?
In the 2026 results, pupils at Leigh Academy Hugh Christie achieved an Attainment 8 score of 38.2. 20% passed GCSE English and maths at grade 5 or above.
What is Leigh Academy Hugh Christie's Ofsted rating?
Leigh Academy Hugh Christie has not been inspected by Ofsted since it took its current form in April 2024. Before that, as Hugh Christie School (URN 118903), it was rated Requires Improvement in October 2023.
What is the catchment area for Leigh Academy Hugh Christie?
No fixed boundary. When Leigh Academy Hugh Christie is oversubscribed, Kent allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at Leigh Academy Hugh Christie?
Leigh Academy Hugh Christie was not full in 2025: it ran at 62% of its 1248 places.
How big are the classes at Leigh Academy Hugh Christie?
Classes at Leigh Academy Hugh Christie average 20.3 pupils (2025/26).
How many pupils go to Leigh Academy Hugh Christie?
Leigh Academy Hugh Christie has around 688 pupils on roll. 37% are eligible for free school meals.
Does Leigh Academy Hugh Christie have specialist SEN provision?
Leigh Academy Hugh Christie has a resourced provision for autism: 22 places, 18 pupils on roll.
What is attendance like at Leigh Academy Hugh Christie?
10.7% of sessions were missed at Leigh Academy Hugh Christie in 2024/25. 34% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Leigh Academy Hugh Christie?
Apply through Kent's coordinated admissions process, naming Leigh Academy Hugh Christie on your application. Applications for Year 7 places starting in September 2027 close on Monday 2 November 2026, and offers are made on Monday 1 March 2027.
How many road collisions happen near Leigh Academy Hugh Christie?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 11 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 3 serious and 8 slight. 2 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 1 on foot and 1 on a bicycle. 4 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 Kent is 11 (the median across 711 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Leigh Academy Hugh Christie?
Leigh Academy Hugh Christie is at White Cottage Road, Tonbridge, Kent, TN10 4PU.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)