Sheffield Springs Academy, Sheffield
Sheffield Springs Academy is a secondary school for pupils aged 11 to 16 in Sheffield, part of United Learning Trust. It has a Christian religious character. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in May 2019. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in October 2024 did not change this grade. Its 2026 GCSE results were the 25th-highest of the 35 schools in Sheffield with published results, and 2,572nd of 3,298 across England. It was 79% full in 2025.
- GCSE results
- Below England average
- Ofsted
- Good (2019)
- Demand
- Every first choice offered
- Attendance
- Below England average
- Progress (2024)
- Well below average
Year 7 applications for September 2027 close in 4 days
Deadline Saturday 31 October 2026. Apply to Sheffield (the council where you live). Offers on 1 March.
Data last updated 26 Oct 2026
Sheffield Springs Academy in detail
Results
In 2026, pupils at Sheffield Springs Academy averaged an Attainment 8 score of 40.4, the average grade across their best eight GCSEs. The average state school scored 45.6 in Sheffield and 47 across England.
43% passed English and maths at grade 5 or above, against 47% in Sheffield and 47% in England.
That is up from 38.9 in 2025.
Its most recent Progress 8 score, for 2024, was -0.62: pupils made well 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 34.8, against 47.9 for other pupils at the school - a gap of 13.1 points.
Pupils sat GCSEs in 23 subjects; after English and maths, the most popular were Combined Science, History and Information and Communication Technology.
Getting a place at Sheffield Springs Academy
For September 2026 entry, 168 families put Sheffield Springs Academy as their first choice and 340 named it as one of their preferences, for 237 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 Sheffield Springs Academy
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state secondary schools to Sheffield Springs Academy are Sheffield Park Academy (1.3 miles, Good, Attainment 8 37.4); Newfield Secondary School (1.4 miles, Good, Attainment 8 52.8); All Saints' Catholic High School (1.5 miles, Good, Attainment 8 51.2); and Outwood Academy City (1.7 miles, Good, Attainment 8 42.1).
Sheffield Springs Academy's 2026 results were higher than 1 of these 4 schools.
Sheffield Park AcademyNewfield Secondary SchoolAll Saints' Catholic High SchoolOutwood Academy City
The trust
Sheffield Springs Academy is one of 98 schools run by United Learning Trust, an academy trust.
Across the trust's secondary schools, pupils averaged an Attainment 8 score of 49 in 2024/25.
What parents say
52 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about Sheffield Springs Academy (as of September 2025): 31% would recommend the school, 40% say their child is happy there and 26% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.
The strongest agreement was that the school has high expectations for their child (46%); the weakest, that the school supports their child's wider development (19%).
Where pupils go next
Of the 196 pupils who finished Year 11 in 2023/24, 76% stayed in education or training for at least two terms, including 54% to a further education college, 2% to an apprenticeship and 1% into work.
Who goes there
60.6% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well above the average state school (25%), and 25.4% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
The largest ethnic groups are White British (50%), Black (16%) and Mixed (14%).
Getting there
The nearest tram or metro stop is Manor Top to City, about 320 metres away (roughly a 4-minute walk).
18 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Hurlfield Road/Gleadless Common (opposite), 30 metres away.
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, Sheffield Springs Academy issued 544 suspensions, 52 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and 10 permanent exclusions.
Primary schools nearby
The primary schools closest to Sheffield Springs Academy are Prince Edward Primary School (0.3 miles), Gleadless Primary School (0.6 miles), Intake Primary School (0.7 miles) and Arbourthorne Community Primary School (0.7 miles). Admission does not depend on which primary a child attends unless the school's policy names feeder schools.
Prince Edward Primary SchoolGleadless Primary SchoolIntake Primary SchoolArbourthorne 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); DfE exclusions statistics
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 2 years agoThis judgement is from May 2019, 7 years ago, longer than Ofsted's usual 4-year cycle: the school may have changed since.
Overall
Quality of Education
Behaviour & Attitudes
Personal Development
Leadership & Management
Ofsted's report, in its own words
What is it like to attend this school?
Pupils experience a culture that stresses the importance of positive relationships. They recognise the recent improvements in the school. The school has high expectations for their behaviour. Many pupils rise to these. Pupils show respect for each other. They feel safe in the school.
Pupils enjoy their learning and are keen to learn about their local area. For example, pupils learn about the city's industrial heritage and recent actions to stimulate regeneration. Pupils explore these themes culturally in visits to the theatre.
What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?
The school has designed the curriculum so that pupils' knowledge builds step by step over time. The school has thought carefully about the vocabulary pupils need to know and makes sure that they learn this. Pupils revisit this key knowledge in lessons and this helps them remember it well. For example, in English Year 11 pupils learn to understand how concepts, such as 'patriarchy', inform their understanding of social structures in 'An Inspector Calls'.
The school effectively checks what pupils remember. Any gaps in knowledge are noted on 'precision seating plans'. These identify the exact area of help that pupils need to help them to progress. Strategies to help pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are well established. For example, pupils are given help to build sentences in extended responses to more complex geography questions. Such tailored support helps pupils access the ambitious curriculum.
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 May 2019 inspection - up from Requires Improvement.
Rated Good for
Leadership & management.
At a Glance
60.6%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
52 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 -0.42 to -0.62 (2023 to 2024). Attainment 8 has improved from 33.6 to 40.4 (2023 to 2026). GCSE English & Maths 5+ has improved from 22% to 43% (2023 to 2026).
Performance by Group
| Group | Progress 8 | Attainment 8 | Eng+Maths 5+ |
|---|---|---|---|
| All pupils | - | 40.4 | 43.2% |
| Disadvantaged(109) | - | 34.8 | 37.6% |
| Not known to be disadvantaged(81) | - | 47.9 | 50.6% |
| Boys(107) | - | 39.0 | 43.9% |
| Girls(83) | - | 42.2 | 42.2% |
Show more breakdowns (2)
| Known or believed to be other than English(56) | - | 48.4 | 55.4% |
| Non mobile(180) | - | 41.5 | 45% |
2025/26 academic year - DfE performance tables data
GCSE Subjects Offered
+ 3 more subjects
2025/26 academic year - entries by number of pupils
After GCSEs - Leaver Destinations
After GCSEs (Year 11) - 196 students
2023/24 data
Exclusions & Suspensions
10
Permanent exclusions
0.96%
Exclusion rate
544
Suspensions
51.96%
Suspension rate
116 pupils received one or more suspensions out of 1,047 pupils
2024/25 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby secondary schools
Keep up with Sheffield Springs Academy
Term dates
Sheffield Springs Academy is an academy, so it sets its own term dates: check the school's website. As a guide, see Sheffield's term dates for its community schools.
Getting There
Tube / Metro / Tram
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Sheffield Springs Academy from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Sheffield Springs Academy is in Sheffield; for families living there:
- Sheffield's school travel policy: Home to School Travel and Transport Policy September 2023
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 44
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 8
- Children hurt
- 12
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 44 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 8 serious and 36 slight.
12 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 7 on foot, 2 on a bicycle and 3 in a vehicle or otherwise.
13 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 Sheffield is 17 (the median across 193 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 Sheffield Springs Academy
Will you get a place at Sheffield Springs Academy? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against Sheffield Springs Academy's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for Sheffield Springs Academy:
- The straight-line distance from your home to Sheffield Springs Academy.
- We hold no last distance offered figures from Sheffield, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at Sheffield Springs Academy for 2014 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in Sheffield 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.
£9.99 once
One school, inc. VAT. Or £19.99 for up to three schools.
Pro £9 a month, every report included, cancel any time
A report for any school, plus everything else in Pro.
Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
79%
Available places
1,032 pupils
1,313 places
281 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Sheffield
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Sheffield
Across Sheffield council
Places available
6,421
Applications
6,416
Got 1st preference
88.7%
Got preferred school
96.6%
All secondary applications across Sheffield council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Every first choice offered
Inspection History(19)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
215
SEN Support
59
EHC Plans
25.3%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
1,083
Total Pupils
527
Boys
556
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
57
Teachers
19.0:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£48,813
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£8,369
Per pupil
£9625k
Total funding
£658k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
13.2%
Overall absence
38.3%
Persistent absence
1,201
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
Sheffield Springs Academy
Showing 10 of 14 linked schools
Questions parents ask about Sheffield Springs Academy
What are GCSE results like at Sheffield Springs Academy?
In the 2026 results, pupils at Sheffield Springs Academy achieved an Attainment 8 score of 40.4. 43% passed GCSE English and maths at grade 5 or above.
What is Sheffield Springs Academy's Ofsted rating?
Sheffield Springs Academy's most recent Ofsted inspection, in October 2024, was ungraded, so it gave no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in May 2019, it was rated Good.
What is the catchment area for Sheffield Springs Academy?
No fixed boundary. When Sheffield Springs Academy is oversubscribed, Sheffield allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at Sheffield Springs Academy?
Sheffield Springs Academy was not full in 2025: it ran at 79% of its 1313 places.
How big are the classes at Sheffield Springs Academy?
Classes at Sheffield Springs Academy average 27.1 pupils (2025/26).
How many pupils go to Sheffield Springs Academy?
Sheffield Springs Academy has around 1083 pupils on roll. 61% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at Sheffield Springs Academy?
13.2% of sessions were missed at Sheffield Springs Academy in 2024/25. 38.3% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Sheffield Springs Academy?
Apply through Sheffield's coordinated admissions process, naming Sheffield Springs Academy 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 Sheffield Springs Academy?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 44 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 8 serious and 36 slight. 12 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 7 on foot, 2 on a bicycle and 3 in a vehicle or otherwise. 13 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 Sheffield is 17 (the median across 193 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Sheffield Springs Academy?
Sheffield Springs Academy is at Hurlfield Road, Sheffield, South Yorkshire, S12 2SF.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)