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NCEA Duke's Secondary School

Secondary · Ashington · NE63 9FZ

Data updated

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Needs attention

Report-card inspection (current system, from November 2025)

The headline grade shown is the Achievement area of the school's report card.

Safeguarding: MetCurriculum & teaching: Needs attentionAchievement: Needs attentionAttendance & behaviour: Needs attentionPersonal development: Expected standardInclusion: Expected standardLeadership & governance: Expected standardEarly years: Not applicablePost-16: Expected standard

Inspected 28 April 2026 · report published 8 September 2026

Read the Ofsted report ↗

At a glance

980 pupils · 85% of 1,150 capacity (January 2026 census)

School type
Academy sponsor led
Age range
11–19
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
Church of England
Admissions
Non-selective
Free school meals
50.2% of pupils (January 2026)
English as additional language
3.6% of pupils (2024/2025)
SEN support
18.4% of pupils (2024/2025)
EHC plan
5.8% of pupils (2024/2025)
Sixth form
Yes
Website
http://www.ncea.org.uk/
URN
135886

In figures

For September 2026 entry, 171 families named it first for 170 Year 7 places, 1.01 first choices per place. At its report-card inspection on 28 April 2026, under the system Ofsted introduced in November 2025, the Achievement area was judged Needs attention. In the 2025/26 autumn and spring terms its pupils missed 11.7% of sessions, against 6.6% across England.

Admissions demand: Year 7 entry, September 2026

1.01 first-choice applications per place

170 places offered · 171 first-choice applications · oversubscribed

First-choice applications per place, by entry year

20/21
21/22
22/23
23/24
24/25
25/26
26/27

Source: DfE applications and offers on national offer day · how demand is measured

Admissions demand: Reception entry, September 2018

1.01 first-choice applications per place

191 places offered · 193 first-choice applications · oversubscribed

First-choice applications per place, by entry year

14/15
15/16
16/17
17/18
18/19

Source: DfE applications and offers on national offer day · how demand is measured

Compare admissions across the area: Northumberland school admissions

GCSE results (2024/2025)

188 pupils at the end of key stage 4 in 2024/2025

Attainment 8 score
32
England 46.1
Grade 4 or above in English & maths GCSEs
41.5%
England 64.8%
Grade 5 or above in English & maths GCSEs
20.7%
England 45.4%
EBacc average point score
2.5
England 4.1

Progress 8 is suspended nationally for 2024/25 and 2025/26. These cohorts sat no key stage 2 tests (COVID), so there is no baseline to measure progress from.

A-level results (2024/2025)

A-level points per entry (England: 35 ≈ B-) C-
26.3
England 35

Source: DfE performance tables 2024/2025 · what “suppressed” means

Schools with a similar intake

Attainment 8, 2024/2025

This school32
Median of its 12 closest peers37
Northumberland average44.5
England46.1

On attainment 8, this school is behind the schools that teach a comparable intake.

They are matched on intake, not location, so most are not local: see nearby schools for those you could apply to.

SchoolOfstedAttainment 8
Turner Free SchoolFolkestone · 304 miles awayGood37.6
David Nieper AcademyAlfreton · 144 miles awayGood41
St Mary's Catholic College, A Voluntary AcademyWallasey · 136 miles awayNeeds attention33.2
Halewood AcademyKnowsley · 136 miles awayExpected standard41.6
Oasis Academy WintringhamGrimsby · 127 miles awayGood35.9
Brownhills Ormiston AcademyWalsall · 175 miles awayNo current grade37.1
King's Academy Brune ParkGosport · 302 miles awayInadequate33
Ellesmere Port Catholic High School, a Voluntary AcademyEllesmere Port · 143 miles awayNeeds attention36.9
The Grange SchoolRuncorn · 136 miles awayNeeds attention36.4
Lees Brook AcademyDerby · 155 miles awayGood41.5
Medina CollegeNewport · 309 miles awayRequires improvement35.2
Oasis Academy John WilliamsBristol · 263 miles awayGood46.9

It is not a ranking. Source: DfE performance tables 2024/2025 · how the matching works

Special educational needs

Needs this school records that it caters for, in the order it lists them.

All SEND provision in Northumberland →

Pupils by ethnicity (January 2026)

White British 93% (Northumberland 91%, England 59%) · Black African 3% (Northumberland 1%, England 5%) · Any other ethnic group 1% (Northumberland 1%, England 3%) · other groups together 3%

Source: DfE schools, pupils and their characteristics, January 2026 census · how to read these figures

Attendance (2025/26 autumn and spring terms)

Sessions missed (overall absence)
11.7%
England 6.6%
Pupils missing 10%+ of sessions (persistent absence)
34.9%
England 17.5%

Suspensions and permanent exclusions (2024/25)

92.06 suspensions per 100 pupils and 11 permanent exclusions · England, secondary schools: 21.24 suspensions and 0.23 permanent exclusions per 100 pupils · Northumberland: 29.20 suspensions and 0.38 permanent exclusions per 100 pupils

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Source: DfE pupil absence data, autumn and spring terms, and DfE suspensions and permanent exclusions, school-level file · how absence is measured · how to read exclusions

Staffing

Pupils per qualified teacher
15.3
England 18.5

Full-time-equivalent, 2025/26.

Teacher retention (2024/25)

90% of teachers stayed at the school the following year · 1% moved to another state school · 8% left the state-funded sector

Vacancies (November 2025)

0% of teaching posts vacant, 1.48% filled temporarily · England, secondary academies: 0.45% vacant, 0.33% temporary

Teacher sickness absence (reported in the November 2024 census)

74% of teachers took sickness absence, 14.1 days each on average · England, all state-funded schools: 61.8%, 8.1 days

Teacher pay (November 2025)

Mean salary of full-time qualified teachers £55,620; 11.6% on the leadership pay range · England, secondary schools: £53,766, 11.3%

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Source: DfE School Workforce Census · how these figures are counted

Spending per pupil (2024-25)

This school£7,972
Typical secondary school£7,846

Where the money went (2024-25)

Share of spending, with the median for secondary schools in brackets: Staff 76% (77%) · premises 6% (5%) · occupation (energy, rates, cleaning) 8% (6%) · supplies and services 9% (11%) · educational supplies 6% (6%) · bought-in professional services 1% (1%) · catering 4% (3%)

Reserves (2024-25)

Revenue reserve £6,000; in-year balance +£901,000

Spending and reserves, last three years Premium

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Higher spending is not a measure of quality. Source: academy finance return, 2024-25, DfE · how spending is compared

Where pupils go after GCSEs

In sustained education, work or training
89%
Continuing in education
72%
Apprenticeship
11%
Employment
5%

Where students go after sixth form

To university / higher education
27%
Apprenticeship
16%
Employment
27%
Any sustained destination
80%

Destinations measured the year after leaving, DfE destination measures in the 2024/2025 performance tables.

Inspection history since 2015

Source: Ofsted management information · ungraded visits and the two inspection systems

The area around the school

Child poverty (IDACI)
6/10around the middle for England
Overall deprivation (IMD)
9/10among the least deprived fifth of England
Census 2021This areaEngland
Adults with a degree or higher34.8%33.9%
Adults with no qualifications9.8%18.1%
In managerial or professional work38.8%33.2%
Households deprived in two or more ways7.7%18.1%
Residents in very good health53.5%48.5%
Homes owned by the occupier87.2%62.3%
Social housing4.1%17.1%
Privately rented8.7%20.5%
Detached houses50.1%22.9%
Flats2.6%22.2%
Homes with four or more bedrooms42.6%21.1%
Households with no car or van5%23.5%

These figures describe the area, not the pupils. Source: Census 2021 (ONS) and English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG) for small area E01027549 · how to read area figures

What homes cost nearby

Median sale price
£166,000454 sales within 1 km, January 2024 to September 2026
Typical range
£113,500–£239,500the middle half of sales
England median
£300,000all sales over the same period
Detached (170)£260,000
Semi-detached (108)£162,000
Terraced (162)£105,500
Flat (14)£56,500

Homes around this school are cheaper than three quarters of school neighbourhoods in England, comparing the median within 1 km across every state school.

Source: HM Land Registry sales within 1 km since January 2024 · how sales are counted. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. This data is licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Postcodes located with OS Code-Point Open: contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026; contains Royal Mail data © Royal Mail copyright and database right 2026; contains National Statistics data © Crown copyright and database right 2026.

Roads around the school

Child pedestrian casualties
4an urban school averages 2.0
Collisions at school-run times
4an urban school averages 5.7
All reported collisions
10an urban school averages 30.5
Of those, serious or fatal
4an urban school averages 6.1

A high count usually reflects traffic, not an unsafe school. Source: DfT road casualty statistics (STATS19), collisions within 500 m, 2021–2025 · what is counted

Nearby schools

See all schools run by Northumberland Church of England Academy Trust →