Most young people have big dreams and big plans for the future - and any parent would naturally want to send them to a school that nurtures that.
But not all schools are made equal, and with sometimes overlapping catchment areas, you and your child may be facing a tough choice. Especially so for secondary schools, which will usually see young people through their GCSE and A Level exams, and the university admission process.
We’re taking a look at the top-rated secondary schools around the country to help inform that decision, starting with the North East. While there are plenty of fantastic facilities on offer, we’ve chosen a selection of schools all rated as ‘outstanding’ by Ofsted - meaning the quality of education provided, student behaviour and attitudes, school leadership and management, and student safeguarding have all been found to be excellent.
On top of that, we’ve narrowed it down based on school’s ‘Progress 8’ ratings.
These ratings are based on GCSE results and other student achievements, to determine how quickly students at each school learn and progress compared to a nationwide average.
Any score above 0 is above average, and we’ve only included schools with positive scores overall, according to official government data.
Here’s what we we found:
But not all schools are made equal, and with sometimes overlapping catchment areas, you and your child may be facing a tough choice. Especially so for secondary schools, which will usually see young people through their GCSE and A Level exams, and the university admission process.
![Sacred Heart is a Roman Catholic academy for girls in Newcastle.
It has a Progress 8 Score of 0.21, landing it in the ‘above average’ band.](https://s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/jpim-static/2024/06/27/14/17/sacredheartrc.jpg?crop=3:2&trim=&width=800)
9. Sacred Heart Catholic High School
Sacred Heart is a Roman Catholic academy for girls in Newcastle. It has a Progress 8 Score of 0.21, landing it in the ‘above average’ band. | Google
![North Shore Academy is a mixed academy in Stockton-on-Tees. It doesn’t offer sixth form studies.
It had a Progress 8 score of 0.07 last year, which - while still generally positive - landed it in the ‘average’ band.](https://s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/jpim-static/2024/06/27/14/59/northshore.jpg?crop=3:2&trim=&width=800)
10. North Shore Academy
North Shore Academy is a mixed academy in Stockton-on-Tees. It doesn’t offer sixth form studies. It had a Progress 8 score of 0.07 last year, which - while still generally positive - landed it in the ‘average’ band. | Google
![This school is a mixed academy in Grangefield, Stockton-on-Tees. It doesn’t offer sixth form studies.
It had a Progress 8 score of 0.17 last year, which - while still generally positive - landed it in the ‘average’ band.](https://s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/jpim-static/2024/06/27/14/44/grangefield.jpg?crop=3:2&trim=&width=800)
11. The Grangefield Academy
This school is a mixed academy in Grangefield, Stockton-on-Tees. It doesn’t offer sixth form studies. It had a Progress 8 score of 0.17 last year, which - while still generally positive - landed it in the ‘average’ band. | Google
![Freebrough Academy is a mixed academy in Brotton, Redcar and Cleveland.
It had a Progress 8 score of 0.06 last year, which - while still generally positive - landed it in the ‘average’ band.](https://s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/jpim-static/2024/06/27/14/32/freebrough.jpg?crop=3:2&trim=&width=800)
12. Freebrough Academy
Freebrough Academy is a mixed academy in Brotton, Redcar and Cleveland. It had a Progress 8 score of 0.06 last year, which - while still generally positive - landed it in the ‘average’ band. | GooglePhoto: Google