St Aidan's Church of England AcademyLongfield Academy
Inspection, results, pupils and attendance side by side in Darlington.
Summary of the comparison
St Aidan's Church of England Academy and Longfield Academy are secondary schools in Darlington.
St Aidan's Church of England Academy scores 42 out of 100 (grade D, below average) and Longfield Academy scores 51 out of 100 (grade D, below average). Longfield Academy is ahead on our composite score.
St Aidan's Church of England Academy was judged Good and Longfield Academy was judged the expected standard.
On GCSE Attainment 8, the latest published figures are 41.6 for St Aidan's Church of England Academy and 39.8 for Longfield Academy.
GCSE Attainment 8 has held broadly level at St Aidan's Church of England Academy (43.4 in 2021-22, 41.6 in 2025-26) and has fallen at Longfield Academy (48.5 in 2021-22, 39.8 in 2025-26).
Side-by-side comparison
| Measure | DarlingtonSt Aidan's Church of England Academy | DarlingtonLongfield Academy | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overview | |||
| Our score | D42/100 | D51/100Stronger figure | |
| Local ranking | 8th of 8 in Darlington | 5th of 8 in Darlington Stronger figure | |
| Inspection | Ofsted: Good | Ofsted: Good | |
| School type | Academy sponsor led | Academy sponsor led | |
| Phase | Secondary | Secondary | |
| Age range | 11-16 | 11-16 | |
| Gender | Mixed | Mixed | |
| Pupils on roll | 587 | 660 | |
| Capacity | 700 | 900 | |
| Location | Darlington, DL1 1LL | Darlington, DL3 0HT | |
| GCSE results | |||
| Attainment 8 | 41.6 Stronger figure | 39.8 | 46.2 |
| Grade 5+ in English & maths | 41.3% Stronger figure | 33.5% | 46.3% |
| Grade 4+ in English & maths | 59.6% Stronger figure | 50.0% | 64.8% |
| Cohort | 109 | 164 | |
| Pupils | |||
| Pupils in the census | 594 | 721 | |
| Free school meals (ever 6) | 45.5% | 37.2% | |
| English as an additional language | 12.8% | 8.6% | |
| SEN support | 11.3% | 17.5% | |
| SEN with an EHC plan | 2.9% | 1.9% | |
| Attendance | |||
| Overall absence | 11.4% | 10.0% Stronger figure | 6.2% |
| Persistent absence | 35.5% | 32.9% Stronger figure | 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.
St Aidan's Church of England Academy
Longfield Academy
Full profiles: St Aidan's Church of England Academy · Longfield Academy