John Smeaton Academy
John Smeaton Academy is a co-educational secondary school located in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England.
| John Smeaton Academy | |
|---|---|
 The school in 2021 | |
| Address | |
 | |
Smeaton Approach Barwick Road , , LS15 8TA England | |
| Coordinates | 53.8142°N 1.4346°W |
| Information | |
| Type | Academy |
| Local authority | Leeds City Council |
| Trust | The Gorse Academies Trust |
| Department for Education URN | 139282 Tables |
| Ofsted | Reports |
| Gender | Co-educational |
| Age | 11 to 16 |
| Website | http://www.johnsmeatonacademy.org.uk/ |
The school educates children aged 11–16 from across Leeds and its surrounding villages including Scholes, Cross Gates, Barwick-in-Elmet, Pendas Fields and Swarcliffe.
The school is part of The Gorse Academies Trust.
History
The school was previously called John Smeaton Community High School, named after 18th-century civil engineer John Smeaton of Austhorpe, and its buildings occupied the site of the current school playing fields.
Until August 1992, a middle school occupied one of the buildings on the school site.
The original school buildings were demolished in 2007 to make way for a new school, built by Carillion, at cost of £100 million.
The school was called John Smeaton Community College for a short time.
The school became an academy in 2014 and joined multi-academy trust United Learning. In 2021 the school became part of The Gorse Academies Trust.
The school has been attempting to improve the students attendance by implementing the "100% club".
Academic performance
Prior to joining United Learning and converting to an academy, the school was rated 'Inadequate' by Ofsted and placed in Special Measures.[1]
In December 2016, Ofsted inspectors concluded that the school 'Requires Improvement', praising the capacity of leaders to improve further.[2]
In August 2017, 46% of students achieved five or more A*-C grades including 4 or above in English and maths – an increase from the previous year. There were also improvements in the number of students achieving at least a grade 4 – equivalent to the old 'C' grade – in English and maths respectively.[3][4]
Notable former pupils and staff
- Phil, Lord Willis - Head Teacher at the school from 1983-1997 and then Liberal Democrat politician.
- Josh Warrington - English professional Featherweight boxer.
References
- "Leeds secondary school blasted by inspectors". The Yorkshire Evening Post. Retrieved 16 January 2018.
- "Ofsted report". Retrieved 29 May 2016.
- "John Smeaton Academy - GOV.UK - Find and compare schools in England". Find and compare schools in England. Retrieved 16 January 2018.
- "Students at John Smeaton Academy Celebrate GCSE Results". United Learning. Retrieved 16 January 2018.