Find the best secondary schools in Leeds. Compare Ofsted ratings, catchment areas, GCSE results and Progress 8.
Leeds has 45 secondary schools, all in Leeds council's area. Most state schools here offer places by distance from home once children in care and siblings of current pupils have been admitted, so how close you live decides your chances at any school with more applicants than places. Some councils draw a fixed catchment boundary instead, and the distance at which the last place went changes every year. Of the 45, 7 are faith schools that can put children of their faith first, so distance counts for less there.
Use the distance checker to measure your home's straight-line distance to any Leeds secondary school, and each school's page for its Ofsted report, results and admissions details. Check your distance to a school or try the admissions calculator.
| School | Type | Our rating |
|---|---|---|
| Trinity Academy Leeds | Mixed | 4.6 / 5 |
| Roundhay School | all-through, sixth form | 4.5 / 5 |
| Boston Spa Academy | sixth form | 4.4 / 5 |
| Cardinal Heenan Catholic High School | Roman Catholic | 4.4 / 5 |
| The Morley Academy | Mixed | 4.3 / 5 |
| Abbey Grange Church of England Academy | Church of England, sixth form | 4.1 / 5 |
| Horsforth School | sixth form | 4.1 / 5 |
| The Ruth Gorse Academy | Mixed | 4.1 / 5 |
There are 45 secondary schools in Leeds. Of those, 4 are all-through schools, teaching both primary and secondary years.
Apply by 31 October in your child's Year 6, for a place starting the following September. You apply to the council where you live, even if the school is in another council's area, and can usually list between 3 and 6 schools in order of preference. Offers are sent on 1 March, or the next working day.
No. None of the 45 secondary schools in Leeds selects pupils by ability.
Of the 45 secondary schools in Leeds, 22 have a sixth form. Students at a school that stops at 16 apply separately for sixth form, either at another school or at a college.
Of the 45 secondary schools in Leeds, 7 have a religious character: 4 Roman Catholic, 2 Church of England and 1 Jewish. When a faith school has more applicants than places, it can give priority to children of its faith. Many ask for a supplementary form, sometimes signed by a religious leader, so read the school's admissions policy before you apply.
On our star rating, the highest rated are Trinity Academy Leeds (4.6), Roundhay School (4.5), Boston Spa Academy (4.4), Cardinal Heenan Catholic High School (4.4) and The Morley Academy (4.3). The rating is our own, out of 5. It combines Parent View survey results, the latest Ofsted inspection and GCSE results, with the parent survey carrying the most weight. Of the 45 schools here, 44 have enough published data for a rating.
| sixth form |
| 4.1 / 5 |
| Allerton High School | sixth form | 4.0 / 5 |
| Garforth Academy | sixth form | 4.0 / 5 |
| Cockburn School | Mixed | 3.9 / 5 |
| Oulton Academy | Mixed | 3.9 / 5 |
| St. Mary's Menston, a Catholic Voluntary Academy | Roman Catholic, sixth form | 3.9 / 5 |
| Mount St Mary's Catholic High School | Roman Catholic | 3.8 / 5 |
| Leeds Jewish Free School | Jewish | 3.8 / 5 |
| Woodkirk Academy | sixth form | 3.8 / 5 |
| Cockburn John Charles Academy | Mixed | 3.8 / 5 |
| Allerton Grange School | sixth form | 3.8 / 5 |
| Cockburn Laurence Calvert Academy | Mixed | 3.7 / 5 |
| Carr Manor Community School | all-through, sixth form | 3.7 / 5 |
| University Technical College Leeds | sixth form | 3.7 / 5 |
| Wetherby High School | Mixed | 3.7 / 5 |
| Guiseley School | sixth form | 3.6 / 5 |
| Dixons Trinity Chapeltown | all-through | 3.6 / 5 |
| Rodillian Academy | sixth form | 3.4 / 5 |
| Co-op Academy Priesthorpe | Mixed | 3.4 / 5 |
| Brigshaw High School | sixth form | 3.4 / 5 |
| Pudsey Grammar School | sixth form | 3.3 / 5 |
| The Farnley Academy | sixth form | 3.3 / 5 |
| Temple Moor High School | sixth form | 3.2 / 5 |
| Bruntcliffe Academy | Mixed | 3.2 / 5 |
| Dixons Unity Academy | Mixed | 3.2 / 5 |
| John Smeaton Academy | sixth form | 3.2 / 5 |
| Leeds West Academy | Mixed | 3.2 / 5 |
| Crawshaw Academy | Mixed | 3.1 / 5 |
| Lawnswood School | sixth form | 3.1 / 5 |
| Bishop Young Church of England Academy | Church of England | 3.0 / 5 |
| Co-op Academy Leeds | Mixed | 3.0 / 5 |
| Ralph Thoresby School | sixth form | 2.9 / 5 |
| Corpus Christi Catholic College, A Voluntary Academy | Roman Catholic | 2.9 / 5 |
| Leeds East Academy | Mixed | 2.5 / 5 |
| Temple Learning Academy | all-through | 2.2 / 5 |
| Leeds City Academy | Mixed | 2.1 / 5 |
| Benton Park School | sixth form | Not yet rated |
Our rating is out of 5 and combines Parent View survey results, the latest Ofsted inspection and published results. Source: Department for Education (GIAS) and Ofsted.
Only when you qualify for more than one school. Each school ranks applicants against its own admission criteria without knowing where you placed it. If you qualify for several, the council offers the one you ranked highest, so putting a popular school first does not lower your chances at your second choice.
No. Distance only matters when a school has more applicants than places, and then it offers places in the order its admission criteria set out. Children in care or adopted from care come first by law. Most schools put brothers and sisters of current pupils next, then distance or catchment area. Faith schools and grammar schools use different criteria. How far away the last place went changes every year, depending on who applies.
The council offers a place at another school with room, which may be further from home. You can accept it and still join the waiting lists for the schools you preferred. Waiting lists are ranked by the admission criteria, not by how long a child has been on them. You can also appeal to an independent panel for any school that refused you.