The Halifax Academy, Halifax

In its own words: "Our purpose is to provide young people with a voice to help them change the world. We strengthen our students’ sense of identity, independence, self-esteem and self-worth, providing them with the qualities to make a meaningful difference in the future. We aim to inspire a love of learning and the motivation to achieve academic excellence."

In 2026, pupils at The Halifax Academy averaged an Attainment 8 score of 39.6, the average grade across their best eight GCSEs. The average state school scored 49 in Calderdale and 47 across England.

30% passed English and maths at grade 5 or above, against 51% in Calderdale and 47% in England.

That is down from 44.1 in 2025.

Its most recent Progress 8 score, for 2024, was -0.2: 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 39.1, against 39.9 for other pupils at the school - a gap of 0.8 points.

Pupils sat GCSEs in 16 subjects; after English and maths, the most popular were Art and Design, Combined Science and Geography.

For September 2026 entry, 157 families put The Halifax Academy as their first choice and 246 named it as one of their preferences, for 185 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 nearest other state secondary schools to The Halifax Academy are Trinity Academy Grammar (1 mile, Good, Attainment 8 45.4); The Crossley Heath School (1.1 miles, Good, selective, Attainment 8 73.2); Trinity Academy Halifax (2.1 miles, Outstanding, Attainment 8 49.4); and Ryburn Valley High School (2.1 miles, Good, Attainment 8 48.1).

Each of them had higher 2026 results than The Halifax Academy.

The Halifax Academy is one of 18 schools run by Impact Education Multi Academy Trust, an academy trust.

Across the trust's secondary schools, pupils averaged an Attainment 8 score of 45 in 2024/25.

Of the 199 pupils who finished Year 11 in 2023/24, 87% stayed in education or training for at least two terms, including 41% to a further education college and 2% to an apprenticeship.

41% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well above the average state school (25%), and 71.9% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.

The nearest railway station is Sowerby Bridge Rail Station, about 1.2 miles away in a straight line.

28 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is The Halifax Academy, 150 metres away.

Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood The Halifax Academy stands in is among the 20% most deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.

In August 2026, police recorded 408 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, anti-social behaviour and shoplifting. That is well above the typical figure around schools in Calderdale (102), as is usual near a town centre.

In 2024/25, The Halifax Academy issued 636 suspensions, 43.8 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and 12 permanent exclusions.

The primary schools closest to The Halifax Academy are Ling Bob Junior, Infant and Nursery School (0.3 miles); Christ Church Pellon CofE VC Primary School (0.4 miles); Mount Pellon Primary Academy (0.4 miles); and Warley Road Primary Academy (0.5 miles). Admission does not depend on which primary a child attends unless the school's policy names feeder schools.