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The Bolsover School

Secondary · Chesterfield · S44 6XA

Data updated

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Expected standard

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: Expected standardAchievement: Expected standardAttendance & behaviour: Expected standardPersonal development: Expected standardInclusion: Expected standardLeadership & governance: Expected standardEarly years: Not applicablePost-16: Not applicable

Inspected 11 November 2025 · report published 11 January 2026

Read the Ofsted report ↗

At a glance

911 pupils · 107% of 850 capacity (over capacity) (January 2026 census)

School type
Academy converter
Age range
11–16
Gender
Mixed
Admissions
Non-selective
Free school meals
39.2% of pupils (January 2026)
English as additional language
2.9% of pupils (2024/2025)
SEN support
15.1% of pupils (2024/2025)
EHC plan
3% of pupils (2024/2025)
Website
http://www.thebolsoverschool.org
URN
138836

In figures

For September 2026 entry, 209 families named it first for 174 Year 7 places, 1.20 first choices per place. We hold one Year 7 admissions round for it, 2026 entry, and it was not decided by a published distance. At its report-card inspection on 11 November 2025, under the system Ofsted introduced in November 2025, the Achievement area was judged Expected standard. In the 2025/26 autumn and spring terms its pupils missed 9.1% of sessions, against 6.6% across England.

Admissions demand: Year 7 entry, September 2026

1.20 first-choice applications per place

174 places offered · 209 first-choice applications · oversubscribed

First-choice applications per place, by entry year

19/20
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

Catchment area

Catchment area: not named in the council's figures.

Admissions cutoff distance: Year 7

Cutoff by admission criterion (2026 entry)

Normal area
2.89 miles

Source: the admissions authority's published figures · how cutoffs work

GCSE results (2024/2025)

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

Attainment 8 score
45
England 46.1
Grade 4 or above in English & maths GCSEs
72%
England 64.8%
Grade 5 or above in English & maths GCSEs
42.7%
England 45.4%
EBacc average point score
4.1
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.

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

Schools with a similar intake

Attainment 8, 2024/2025

This school45
Median of its 12 closest peers44.1
Derbyshire average44.8
England46.1

On attainment 8, this school is in line with 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
Wellfield SchoolWingate · 104 miles awayExpected standard47.8
Easington AcademyPeterlee · 107 miles awayGood51.8
Meden SchoolMansfield · 5 miles awayGood44
Baxter CollegeKidderminster · 71 miles awayRequires improvement36.6
Granville AcademySwadlincote · 33 miles awayGood46.5
Heritage High SchoolChesterfield · 4 miles awayGood40
Bedminster Down SchoolBristol · 137 miles awayRequires improvement41.7
Outwood Academy NewboldChesterfield · 7 miles awayGood48.9
Tanfield SchoolStanley · 115 miles awayGood57.5
The Stourport High School and Sixth Form CollegeStourport-on-Severn · 74 miles awayGood39.7
St John Fisher Catholic High SchoolWigan · 61 miles awayNeeds attention41.3
Lynn Grove AcademyGreat Yarmouth · 132 miles awayGood44.2

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

Pupils by ethnicity (January 2026)

White British 90% (Derbyshire 88%, England 59%) · Any other White background 2% (Derbyshire 3%, England 7%) · Mixed White and Black Caribbean 2% (Derbyshire 1%, England 2%) · Black African 1% (Derbyshire 1%, England 5%) · Any other ethnic group 1% (Derbyshire 0%, England 3%) · Asian Indian 1% (Derbyshire 1%, England 4%) · Mixed White and Asian 1% (Derbyshire 1%, England 2%) · other groups together 2%

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)
9.1%
England 6.6%
Pupils missing 10%+ of sessions (persistent absence)
26.4%
England 17.5%

Suspensions and permanent exclusions (2024/25)

39.65 suspensions per 100 pupils and 4 permanent exclusions · England, secondary schools: 21.24 suspensions and 0.23 permanent exclusions per 100 pupils · Derbyshire: 24.25 suspensions and 0.24 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
16.9
England 18.5

Full-time-equivalent, 2025/26.

Teacher retention (2024/25)

93% of teachers stayed at the school the following year · 4% moved to another state school · 3% left the state-funded sector

Vacancies (November 2025)

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

Teacher sickness absence (reported in the November 2024 census)

77.6% of teachers took sickness absence, 7 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 £51,701; 11.9% 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£8,341
Typical secondary school£7,846

Where the money went (2024-25)

Share of spending, with the median for secondary schools in brackets: Staff 72% (77%) · premises 16% (5%) · occupation (energy, rates, cleaning) 5% (6%) · supplies and services 7% (11%) · educational supplies 4% (6%) · bought-in professional services 0% (1%) · catering 2% (3%)

Reserves (2024-25)

Revenue reserve -£899,000; in-year balance +£134,000

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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
90%
Continuing in education
79%
Apprenticeship
6%
Employment
5%

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)
4/10more deprived than most of England
Census 2021This areaEngland
Adults with a degree or higher23.1%33.9%
Adults with no qualifications26.9%18.1%
In managerial or professional work27.9%33.2%
Households deprived in two or more ways26.3%18.1%
Residents in very good health39%48.5%
Homes owned by the occupier60%62.3%
Social housing23.5%17.1%
Privately rented16.6%20.5%
Detached houses25.3%22.9%
Flats7%22.2%
Homes with four or more bedrooms13.4%21.1%
Households with no car or van22.3%23.5%

These figures describe the area, not the pupils. Source: Census 2021 (ONS) and English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG) for small area E01019485 · how to read area figures

What homes cost nearby

Median sale price
£230,000294 sales within 1 km, January 2024 to September 2026
Typical range
£172,500–£295,000the middle half of sales
England median
£300,000all sales over the same period
Detached (142)£297,500
Semi-detached (104)£191,500
Terraced (46)£148,500

Homes around this school are cheaper than most 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
0an urban school averages 2.0
Collisions at school-run times
3an urban school averages 5.7
All reported collisions
5an urban school averages 30.5
Of those, serious or fatal
0an 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