The Halifax Academy

School overview

The Halifax Academy is an all-through school serving Halifax, Calderdale, classified by the DfE as a converter academy. It has 1,451 pupils aged 4 to 16 on roll. At its most recent graded inspection, Ofsted rated The Halifax Academy 'Good'. In the most recent Key Stage 2 SATs, 58% of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined — broadly in line with the national average of 61%. That is down 8.0 percentage points in the proportion reaching the expected standard on the previous year. At GCSE, the school's average Attainment 8 score was 44.1, broadly in line with the national average of 46. On our composite score, The Halifax Academy ranks in the lower half of primary schools nationally for its primary (KS2) results. For its secondary (KS4) results, it ranks in the lower half of secondary schools nationally.

Pupils achieved an average scaled score of 104 in reading and 102 in maths (national averages are about 105 and 104). 2% reached the higher standard across all three subjects (around 8% do so nationally). At Key Stage 4, 32% of pupils achieved a grade 5 or above in both English and maths, well below the national average of about 45%. The Halifax Academy was not oversubscribed for September 2026: all 40 families who put it first were offered a place. Overall pupil absence was 10.0%. There are about 16.9 pupils per teacher. The school serves a community with above-average levels of disadvantage: about 38% of pupils have been eligible for free school meals in the last six years, compared with roughly 24% nationally — useful context when reading the results above. Given the recent dip in results, it may be worth asking the school what is behind the change and what is being done in response. This overview is generated automatically from the latest published DfE performance tables and Ofsted data; figures are rounded, and you can check the originals via the official links above.