SF School Facts UK

Secondary school in Tonbridge, Kent

Leigh Academy Hugh Christie

White Cottage Road, Tonbridge, Kent, TN10 4PU

Ofsted Requires improvement · 2023 Sixth form
School website 01732353544

Ofsted

Requires improvementas at 11 October 2023

Graded Requires improvement at its last graded inspection, on 11 October 2023.

Ofsted stopped awarding single-word overall grades in September 2024. This grade is 2 years old and will not be updated — the school keeps it until its next inspection, which will not produce a replacement grade.

Read the Ofsted report

GCSE results 2024/25

Attainment 8 score

40.5 England 47

The average grade across eight GCSEs, doubling English and maths. 50 is roughly a grade 5 average.

Grade 5+ in English & maths

30% England 46.2%

Grade 4+ in English & maths

55% England 66.2%

EBacc average point score

3.5 England 4.2

Entered the EBacc

50% England 40.8%

On Attainment 8 this school is in the bottom quarter of state-funded secondaries in England.

Compared with the fifth of schools whose intake is second most disadvantaged, which is where this one sits, it is in the lower half.

Progress 8 2023/24

No Progress 8 score published for this school.

Progress 8 measures how far pupils moved between the end of primary and their GCSEs, which makes it far fairer than raw attainment. It is shown for 2023/24 because it could not be calculated for 2024/25: that year group would have sat their key stage 2 tests in summer 2020, when the tests were cancelled, so there is no starting point to measure from. Every school in England is affected, not just this one.

A levels 2024/25

Average grade per entry
C
Average points per entry
29.9

England average 32.3

A level students
38

Pupils

Pupils on roll
688
Places
1226
How full
56% full — 688 of 1226 places taken, so places are likely to be available
Girls / boys
299 / 389
Overall absence
11%

secondary schools average 8.6%

Persistently absent
34%

secondary schools average 23.9% — pupils missing 10% or more of sessions

Free school meals, last 6 years
40%

England 25.7%

English as an additional language
6%

England 18.7%

With an EHC plan
5%

England 3.5%

On SEN support
11%

England 15%

The neighbourhood around the school

Census 2021 figures for Tonbridge and Malling 009A, the statistical neighbourhood the school sits in — roughly 1,500 residents. It describes the area, not the pupils, who may travel in from further away.

Adults with a degree
29%

England 33.8%

Adults with no qualifications
17%

England 18.3%

Households owning their home
82%

England 62.7%

Households in social housing
9%

England 17%

Households with no car
12%

England 21.9%

Adults economically inactive
46%

England 39.9%

School details

Type
Academy sponsor led
Phase
Secondary
Ages
Ages 11–18
Gender
Mixed
Admissions
Non-selective
Religious character
None
Sixth form
Yes
Nursery
No
Boarding
Day school
Trust
LEIGH ACADEMIES TRUST
Headteacher
Headteacher: Palak Shah
Local authority
Kent
Ward
Trench
Constituency
Tonbridge
URN
150743

The unique reference number used in all official school data.

Nearest secondary schools

SchoolOfstedAttainment 8Distance
Tonbridge SchoolOther independent school No grade 1 mi
Hillview School for GirlsAcademy converter Good 2023 48 1.8 mi
Sackville SchoolOther independent school No grade 1.9 mi
The Judd SchoolVoluntary aided school No grade 78.4 1.9 mi
Leigh Academy TonbridgeAcademy converter Good 2022 43.1 2 mi
Tonbridge Grammar SchoolAcademy converter No grade 77.2 2.1 mi
Weald of Kent Grammar SchoolAcademy converter No grade 70 2.1 mi
Hadlow Rural Community SchoolFree schools Requires improvement 2024 36.3 2.1 mi

Schools with a similar intake

State-funded secondary schools nationally whose share of disadvantaged pupils is closest to this school's. This is the fairest like-for-like comparison the published data supports.

SchoolOfstedAttainment 8
Thomas Tallis SchoolCommunity school Good 2024 45.6
Burnside CollegeFoundation school No grade 44.2
Oasis Academy CoulsdonAcademy sponsor led Good 2024 44.8
Bristol Metropolitan AcademyAcademy sponsor led Good 2022 46.9
Barnhill Community High SchoolAcademy converter Outstanding 2024 53.1
Heath Lane AcademyAcademy converter No grade 40
Ark Alexandra AcademyAcademy sponsor led Requires improvement 2024 42.6
Chesterton Community Sports CollegeAcademy converter Good 2022 41.2

Where these figures come from

  • School details, address and pupil numbers — Get Information About Schools, the DfE register, as at 14 August 2026.
  • Exam results — DfE performance tables, 2024/25.
  • Free school meals, EAL and SEN — school census, 2024/25.
  • Ofsted — Ofsted management information, latest inspections as at 30 June 2026.
  • Neighbourhood figures — ONS Census 2021, lower layer super output area.

All published under the Open Government Licence v3.0. If something here looks wrong, the school's own website is the authority on admissions and open days.