St Aidan's Church of England AcademyPolam Hall School
Inspection, results, pupils and attendance side by side in Darlington.
Summary of the comparison
This page compares St Aidan's Church of England Academy and Polam Hall School in Darlington.
St Aidan's Church of England Academy scores 42 out of 100 (grade D, below average) and Polam Hall School scores 58 out of 100 (grade C, average). Polam Hall School is ahead on our composite score.
St Aidan's Church of England Academy was judged Good and Polam Hall School 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 45.9 for Polam Hall School.
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 Polam Hall School (49.8 in 2021-22, 45.9 in 2025-26).
Side-by-side comparison
| Measure | DarlingtonSt Aidan's Church of England Academy | DarlingtonPolam Hall School | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overview | |||
| Our score | D42/100 | C58/100Stronger figure | |
| Local ranking | 8th of 8 in Darlington | 3rd of 8 in Darlington Stronger figure | |
| Inspection | Ofsted: Good | Ofsted: Expected | |
| School type | Academy sponsor led | Free schools | |
| Phase | Secondary | All-through | |
| Age range | 11-16 | 4-16 | |
| Gender | Mixed | Mixed | |
| Pupils on roll | 587 | 842 | |
| Capacity | 700 | 882 | |
| Location | Darlington, DL1 1LL | Darlington, DL1 5PA | |
| GCSE results | |||
| Attainment 8 | 41.6 | 45.9 Stronger figure | 46.2 |
| Grade 5+ in English & maths | 41.3% Stronger figure | 40.4% | 46.3% |
| Grade 4+ in English & maths | 59.6% | 69.2% Stronger figure | 64.8% |
| Cohort | 109 | 104 | |
| Key Stage 2 (SATs) | |||
| Reading, writing & maths at expected standard | Not reported | 59.0% | 62.0% |
| At higher standard | Not reported | 6.0% | 8.0% |
| Reading average scaled score | Not reported | 104.0 | 106.0 |
| Maths average scaled score | Not reported | 105.0 | 105.0 |
| Pupils | |||
| Pupils in the census | 594 | 841 | |
| Free school meals (ever 6) | 45.5% | 29.6% | |
| English as an additional language | 12.8% | 14.3% | |
| SEN support | 11.3% | 11.1% | |
| SEN with an EHC plan | 2.9% | 2.9% | |
| Attendance | |||
| Overall absence | 11.4% | 8.0% Stronger figure | 6.2% |
| Persistent absence | 35.5% | 23.3% 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
Polam Hall School
Full profiles: St Aidan's Church of England Academy · Polam Hall School