Lode Heath School, Solihull
Lode Heath School is a secondary school for pupils aged 11 to 16 in Solihull, part of Arden Multi Academy Trust. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in March 2019. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in November 2024 did not change this grade. Its 2026 GCSE results were the 7th-highest of the 8 schools in Solihull with published results, and 1,514th of 3,298 across England. It was full in 2025, at 101% of capacity.
- GCSE results
- In line with England
- Ofsted
- Good (2019)
- Demand
- Every first choice offered
- Attendance
- In line with England
- Progress (2024)
- Above average
Year 7 applications for September 2027 close in 4 days
Deadline Saturday 31 October 2026. Apply to Solihull (the council where you live). Offers on 1 March.
Data last updated 27 Oct 2026
Lode Heath School in detail
Lode Heath School in its own words
In its own words: "Please click the image below to view the Lode Heath School prospectus"
Clubs and activities named on the school's website include football, netball, cricket, athletics, dance, drama, STEM, art and film.
Vision and values (school website)Clubs (school website)
Source: The school's own website
Results
In 2026, pupils at Lode Heath School averaged an Attainment 8 score of 46.7, the average grade across their best eight GCSEs. The average state school scored 46.4 in Solihull and 47 across England.
39% passed English and maths at grade 5 or above, against 44% in Solihull and 47% in England.
That is down from 50.6 in 2025.
Its most recent Progress 8 score, for 2024, was 0.25: pupils made above 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 38.8, against 50 for other pupils at the school - a gap of 11.2 points.
Pupils sat GCSEs in 26 subjects; after English and maths, the most popular were Combined Science, Geography and History.
Getting a place at Lode Heath School
For September 2026 entry, 123 families put Lode Heath School as their first choice and 680 named it as one of their preferences, for 246 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. Every family who put it first was offered a place there for 2026 entry.
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state secondary schools to Lode Heath School are Langley School (1.4 miles, Good, Attainment 8 45.8); St Peter's Catholic School (1.5 miles, Attainment 8 53.7); Alderbrook School (1.6 miles, Good, Attainment 8 52.4); and Tudor Grange Academy, Solihull (1.6 miles, Outstanding, Attainment 8 59.1).
Lode Heath School's 2026 results were higher than 1 of these 4 schools.
Langley SchoolSt Peter's Catholic SchoolAlderbrook SchoolTudor Grange Academy, Solihull
The trust
Lode Heath School is one of 6 schools run by Arden Multi Academy Trust, an academy trust.
Across the trust's secondary schools, pupils averaged an Attainment 8 score of 52.5 in 2024/25.
What parents say
56 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about Lode Heath School (as of September 2025): 80% would recommend the school, 86% say their child is happy there and 67% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.
The strongest agreement was that their child feels safe (91%); the weakest, that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (67%).
Where pupils go next
Of the 230 pupils who finished Year 11 in 2023/24, 79% stayed in education or training for at least two terms, including 40% to a further education college, 4% to an apprenticeship and 5% into work.
Who goes there
In 2026, 160 pupils (14.6%) received SEN support and 15 (1.4%) had an education, health and care plan, against 16.2% and 4.6% at the average state school. The most common need among them is social, emotional and mental health needs.
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Solihull Rail Station, about 0.9 miles away in a straight line.
8 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Lode Heath School (adjacent), 150 metres away.
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, Lode Heath School issued 211 suspensions, 18.3 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and 5 permanent exclusions.
Primary schools nearby
The primary schools closest to Lode Heath School are Greswold Primary School (0.2 miles), Damson Wood Nursery and Infant School (0.6 miles), Tudor Grange Primary Academy Yew Tree (0.7 miles) and Ulverley School (0.8 miles). Admission does not depend on which primary a child attends unless the school's policy names feeder schools.
Greswold Primary SchoolDamson Wood Nursery and Infant SchoolTudor Grange Primary Academy Yew TreeUlverley 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); 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 March 2019, 7 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 Insights
From Ofsted's November 2024 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
Lode Heath is a welcoming, supportive school where your child will feel valued and encouraged to do their best. The school is particularly strong in supporting pupils with additional learning needs, and offers excellent opportunities for personal development through clubs, trips, work experience and careers guidance. Teachers generally teach well and pupils achieve strong results, especially in subjects across the ambitious curriculum including the English Baccalaureate.
Key Strengths
- Excellent provision for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities, with precisely identified needs and systematic curriculum adaptations resulting in very strong achievement
- Ambitious curriculum with clear key knowledge and generally good checking of pupil learning leading to strong overall achievement
- Strong support for pupil behaviour and attendance with clear expectations, effective induction, and personalised support for those who need it
- Well-developed provision for personal development and careers education, including two work experience opportunities
- Positive school culture with supportive relationships where pupils feel valued and seek to do their best
Areas for Improvement
- Inconsistencies in curriculum implementation in some subjects, particularly with task selection and assessment, leading to variable pupil learning in those areas
- Reading strategy is new and not yet fully effective, with some pupils still needing support to read with appropriate fluency to access the curriculum
- Need to embed a wider reading culture throughout the school
Safeguarding
The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
Extracurricular Activities
Sports clubs, performing arts clubs, visits and residential trips in the UK and abroad, homework club, fish and chip suppers, awards celebrations
Lode Heath School is a secondary comprehensive school that has successfully maintained its good standards. The school places significant value on supportive relationships and has high aspirations for all pupils, creating a harmonious community based on its 'Stars' values.
About
Lode Heath School is an Academy secondary school in the Lode Heath district of Solihull, West Midlands, England.
From Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
At a Glance
27.6%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
56 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 improved from 0.11 to 0.25 (2023 to 2024). Attainment 8 has improved from 44.4 to 46.7 (2023 to 2026). GCSE English & Maths 5+ has remained stable at around 39% (2023 to 2026).
Performance by Group
| Group | Progress 8 | Attainment 8 | Eng+Maths 5+ |
|---|---|---|---|
| All pupils | - | 46.7 | 39.1% |
| Disadvantaged(64) | - | 38.8 | 21.9% |
| Not known to be disadvantaged(151) | - | 50.0 | 46.4% |
| Boys(112) | - | 43.1 | 34.8% |
| Girls(103) | - | 50.6 | 43.7% |
Show more breakdowns (2)
| Known or believed to be other than English(30) | - | 55.3 | 60% |
| Non mobile(213) | - | 46.9 | 39% |
2025/26 academic year - DfE performance tables data
GCSE Subjects Offered
+ 6 more subjects
2025/26 academic year - entries by number of pupils
After GCSEs - Leaver Destinations
After GCSEs (Year 11) - 230 students
2023/24 data
Exclusions & Suspensions
5
Permanent exclusions
0.43%
Exclusion rate
211
Suspensions
18.27%
Suspension rate
89 pupils received one or more suspensions out of 1,155 pupils
2024/25 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby secondary schools
Keep up with Lode Heath School
Term dates
Lode Heath School is an academy, so it sets its own term dates: check the school's website. As a guide, see Solihull's term dates for its community schools.
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Lode Heath School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Lode Heath School is in Solihull; for families living there:
Apply to Solihull for free school transport. Its policy is on the council's website.
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 13
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 4
- Children hurt
- 4
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 13 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 4 serious and 9 slight.
4 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 3 on foot and 1 in a vehicle or otherwise.
7 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 Solihull is 12 (the median across 90 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 Lode Heath School
Will you get a place at Lode Heath School? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against Lode Heath School's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for Lode Heath School:
- The straight-line distance from your home to Lode Heath School.
- Solihull publishes last distance offered figures, but none for Lode Heath School that we hold, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at Lode Heath School for 2014 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in Solihull 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
101%
Over capacity
1,143 pupils
1,134 places
9 pupils over capacity in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Solihull
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Solihull
Across Solihull council
Places available
3,299
Applications
2,632
Got 1st preference
79.7%
Got preferred school
97.1%
All secondary applications across Solihull council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Every first choice offered
Inspection History(5)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
160
SEN Support
15
EHC Plans
16.0%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
1,096
Total Pupils
580
Boys
516
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
66
Teachers
16.6:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£56,882
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£6,876
Per pupil
£8493k
Total funding
£304k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
8.5%
Overall absence
23.9%
Persistent absence
1,173
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
Lode Heath School
Showing 10 of 14 linked schools
Questions parents ask about Lode Heath School
What are GCSE results like at Lode Heath School?
In the 2026 results, pupils at Lode Heath School achieved an Attainment 8 score of 46.7. 39% passed GCSE English and maths at grade 5 or above.
What is Lode Heath School's Ofsted rating?
Lode Heath School's most recent Ofsted inspection, in November 2024, was ungraded, so it gave no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in March 2019, it was rated Good.
What is the catchment area for Lode Heath School?
No fixed boundary. When Lode Heath School is oversubscribed, Solihull allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at Lode Heath School?
Lode Heath School was full in 2025, at 101% of its capacity, so places are allocated on the oversubscription criteria.
How big are the classes at Lode Heath School?
Classes at Lode Heath School average 27.4 pupils (2025/26).
How many pupils go to Lode Heath School?
Lode Heath School has around 1096 pupils on roll. 28% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at Lode Heath School?
8.5% of sessions were missed at Lode Heath School in 2024/25. 23.9% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Lode Heath School?
Apply through Solihull's coordinated admissions process, naming Lode Heath 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 Lode Heath School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 13 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 4 serious and 9 slight. 4 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 3 on foot and 1 in a vehicle or otherwise. 7 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 Solihull is 12 (the median across 90 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Lode Heath School?
Lode Heath School is at Lode Lane, Solihull, West Midlands, B91 2HW.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)