Ark The King's SchoolArk Carleton High School
Inspection, results, pupils and attendance side by side in Pontefract.
Summary of the comparison
Ark The King's School and Ark Carleton High School are secondary schools in Pontefract.
Ark The King's School scores 63 out of 100 (grade C, average) and Ark Carleton High School scores 61 out of 100 (grade C, average). Ark The King's School is ahead on our composite score.
Ark The King's School was judged Good and Ark Carleton High School was judged Good.
On GCSE Attainment 8, the latest published figures are 51.8 for Ark The King's School and 44.3 for Ark Carleton High School.
GCSE Attainment 8 has held broadly level at Ark The King's School (52.6 in 2021-22, 51.8 in 2025-26) and has fallen at Ark Carleton High School (50.5 in 2021-22, 44.3 in 2025-26).
Side-by-side comparison
| Measure | PontefractArk The King's School | PontefractArk Carleton High School | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overview | |||
| Our score | C63/100Stronger figure | C61/100 | |
| Local ranking | 3rd of 18 in Wakefield Stronger figure | 8th of 18 in Wakefield | |
| Inspection | Ofsted: Good | Ofsted: Good | |
| School type | Academy converter | Academy converter | |
| Phase | Secondary | Secondary | |
| Age range | 11-16 | 11-16 | |
| Gender | Mixed | Mixed | |
| Pupils on roll | 1,041 | 1,026 | |
| Capacity | 1,050 | 1,050 | |
| Location | Pontefract, WF8 4JF | Pontefract, WF8 3NW | |
| GCSE results | |||
| Attainment 8 | 51.8 Stronger figure | 44.3 | 46.2 |
| Grade 5+ in English & maths | 57.2% Stronger figure | 45.2% | 46.3% |
| Grade 4+ in English & maths | 79.3% Stronger figure | 64.3% | 64.8% |
| Cohort | 208 | 199 | |
| Pupils | |||
| Pupils in the census | 1,038 | 1,021 | |
| Free school meals (ever 6) | 24.4% | 30.1% | |
| English as an additional language | 5.7% | 2.5% | |
| SEN support | 11.8% | 13.5% | |
| SEN with an EHC plan | 2.7% | 2.9% | |
| Attendance | |||
| Overall absence | 6.6% Stronger figure | 7.2% | 6.2% |
| Persistent absence | 16.7% Stronger figure | 18.1% | 15.8% |
marks the stronger figure on measures with a clear direction. Rows describing a school's intake, such as free school meals, English as an additional language and SEN, carry no marker: they describe who a school serves, not how well it serves them.
Historical trends
Each solid line is one school; the dashed line is the national average.
GCSE Attainment 8
GCSE Progress 8
Overall absence
Free school meal eligibility (ever 6)
Pupils on roll
Ethnicity over time
One panel per school: the largest groups across this comparison, one colour per group, on a shared scale.
Ark The King's School
Ark Carleton High School
Full profiles: Ark The King's School · Ark Carleton High School