Airedale Academy
Academy converter · sixth form · 1,008 pupils
79% stayed in education · Attainment 8 33.8
Academy converter
Outwood Academy Freeston
- Pupils on roll
- 993of 1,050 places
- Free school meals
- 31.2%
- Year 11 cohort 2025
- 188
- Ofsted
- Inspected, 20 May 2025Read the Ofsted report
Results below include those reported under the school’s previous registration: The Freeston Academy (URN 137655, until 30 April 2018).
What the data says
Outwood Academy Freeston has no sixth form. Of the 131 pupils who finished Year 11 there in 2023, 33% moved to a sixth form college, 47% to a further education college and 4% started an apprenticeship.
Sixth form colleges are the main next step: 33% of leavers went to one, roughly twice the England rate of 13%.
Design and Technology is unusually popular at GCSE: 37% of the year group took it, against 11% of pupils across England.
GCSE results in 2025 were in line with the national picture: Attainment 8 of 44.6 against 46.1 across England and 45.1 in Wakefield, with 40% of pupils getting grade 5 or above in both English and maths (England 45%).
Where pupils went after Year 11
Destinations of the 2023 Year 11 leavers, measured the following year: the share in a sustained place for at least two terms. Compared with all state-funded schools in Wakefield and England.
School sixth formSixth form collegeFurther education collegeOther educationApprenticeshipEmploymentNo sustained destination
| Measure | Outwood Academy Freeston | Wakefield | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils in the cohort | 131 | 3,844 | 607,348 |
| Any sustained destination | 87% | 89% | 92% |
| Stayed in education | 80% | 82% | 86% |
| — school sixth form | 1% | 12% | 34% |
| — sixth form college | 33% | 28% | 13% |
| — further education college | 47% | 41% | 37% |
| — other education | 0% | 2% | 2% |
| Apprenticeship | 4% | 4% | 3% |
| Employment | 3% | 3% | 3% |
| No sustained destination | 8% | 8% | 6% |
| Destination unknown | 5% | 3% | 3% |
GCSE results 2025
| Measure | Outwood Academy Freeston | Wakefield | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Attainment 8 (average points per pupil) | 44.6 | 45.1 | 46.1 |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 40% | 46% | 45% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 67% | 65% | 65% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate subjects | 29% | 33% | 41% |
| EBacc average point score | 3.97 | 3.95 | 4.09 |
| Disadvantaged pupils in the cohort | 25% | 28% | 28% |
| Attainment 8 — disadvantaged pupils | 35.8 | 33.4 | 34.9 |
| Attainment 8 — other pupils | 47.5 | 49.6 | 50.4 |
| Pupils with high prior attainment (Key Stage 2) | — | — | — |
| English as an additional language | 13% | 12% | 19% |
Progress 8 is not available for 2025 and 2026: these cohorts had no Key Stage 2 tests in 2020 and 2021, so there is no baseline. Attainment 8 shows results without taking pupils’ starting points into account.
Subjects taken at GCSE
Entries in 2025 as a share of the Year 11 cohort, and the share of entries graded 7–9 and 4–9, compared with all entries in England.
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England | Grades 7–9 | England | Grades 4–9 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mathematics | 187 | 99% | 88% | 17% | 22% | 70% |
| English Literature | 187 | 99% | 86% | 13% | 21% | 70% |
| English Language | 187 | 99% | 89% | 18% | 20% | 71% |
| Combined Science | 144 | 77% | 65% | 2% | 9% | 60% |
| History | 102 | 54% | 41% | 25% | 26% | 63% |
| Geography | 72 | 38% | 41% | 15% | 25% | 53% |
| Design and Technology | 70 | 37% | 11% | 6% | 23% | 46% |
| Spanish | 46 | 24% | 19% | 22% | 27% | 78% |
| Fine Art | 44 | 23% | 9% | 32% | 28% | 82% |
| Physics | 40 | 21% | 23% | 43% | 46% | 80% |
| Biology | 36 | 19% | 23% | 67% | 45% | 89% |
| Chemistry | 32 | 17% | 23% | 59% | 47% | 100% |
| Computer Science | 19 | 10% | 13% | 5% | 30% | 26% |
| Religious Studies | 15 | 8% | 31% | 27% | 32% | 47% |
| Polish | 10 | 5% | 1% | 70% | 84% | 100% |
| Statistics | 1 | 1% | 5% | — | 20% | — |
| Russian | 1 | 1% | 0% | — | 87% | — |
| Art and Design | 1 | 1% | 7% | — | 24% | — |
| French | 1 | 1% | 18% | — | 29% | — |
Technical awards and other Key Stage 4 qualifications
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small Business Management | 42 | — | — |
| Sports Studies | 41 | — | — |
| Computer Appreciation / Introduction | 25 | — | — |
| Hospitality / Catering Studies | 21 | — | — |
| Speech and Drama | 18 | — | — |
Other secondary schools in Wakefield
Carleton High School
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79% stayed in education · Attainment 8 47.5
Castleford Academy
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81% stayed in education · Attainment 8 48.5
Crofton Academy
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84% stayed in education · Attainment 8 46.5
De Lacy Academy
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70% stayed in education · Attainment 8 45.6
Horbury Academy
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82% stayed in education · Attainment 8 48.7
Sources: Department for Education school and college performance tables 2024/2025 (Key Stage 4 and 16–18 results, subject entries, destination measures for 2023 leavers); Get Information About Schools register as at 19 September 2026; Ofsted management information as at 31 August 2026. Small numbers are suppressed by DfE and shown as “—”. How to read these figures.