St Leonard's Catholic School, Durham

Last updated

St Leonard's Catholic school
Address
St Leonard's Catholic School, Durham
DH1 4NG

County Durham
,
DH1 4NG

England
Coordinates 54°47′06″N1°35′06″W / 54.785°N 1.585°W / 54.785; -1.585
Information
Type Academy
Religious affiliation(s) Roman Catholic
Established1936
Local authority Durham County Council
TrustBishop Wilkinson Catholic Education Trust
Department for Education URN 143583 Tables
Ofsted Reports
HeadteacherChris Hammill
Gender Coeducational
Age11to 18
Enrolment1265
Website http://www.st-leonards.durham.sch.uk/

St Leonard's Catholic School is a coeducational Roman Catholic secondary school and sixth form. It is located in Durham, County Durham, England. [1]

Contents

History

The school was founded in 1936 as the St Leonard's Catholic Central School in the former Springwell Hall, a coalmine owner's house acquired in 1935 by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle. [2]

During the era of the tripartite system, the school became a secondary modern and turned comprehensive in 1970 when the system was abolished by the LEA. The sixth form was opened that same year.

Previously a voluntary aided school administered by Durham County Council, in November 2016 St Leonard's Catholic School converted to academy status. The school is now a part of the Bishop Wilkinson Catholic Education Trust.

New School Building

In November 2024 BAM signed a £71million pound contract with the Department for Education for a new school build for St Leonard's that will open in Easter 2026. [3] The 110,000 sq ft three-storey school will include sports, assembly and dining halls and a wide range of departments, including specialist teaching spaces for art, technology and music at ground floor level. The existing Springwell Hall will be reconfigured, refurbished and utilised as part of the redeveloped campus. The existing Sixth Form building will also be retained.

Ofsted judgements

The school had been judged Good by Ofsted in 2019. [4] In 2022 it was inspected again and judged to Require Improvement. [5] The school was judged Outstanding in all 5 areas of the Ofsted Framework in 2024. [6]

The Prime Minister's Global Fellowship

The school has a record of students attaining places on the Prime Minister's Global Fellowship programme. The school achieved its first student in the inaugural year of the programme, 2008, and in 2009 had 3 successful applicants. [7]

Sport

The school has a rowing club, the St Leonard's School Boat Club. [8]

Notable former pupils

Sources

  1. ↑ "St Leonard's Catholic School".
  2. ↑ History of the school
  3. ↑ "BAM finalises £71m deal to replace first major RAAC school | Construction Enquirer News". www.constructionenquirer.com. Retrieved 14 August 2025.
  4. ↑ Smith, Chris (2019). "Inspection of a good school: St Leonard's Catholic School". Ofsted. Retrieved 11 April 2022.
  5. ↑ Duncan, James (2022). "Inspection of St Leonard's Catholic School". Ofsted. Retrieved 13 April 2022.
  6. ↑ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 November 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  7. ↑ British Council website "Fellows" Archived 2011-09-12 at the Wayback Machine accessed 10 November 2009.
  8. ↑ "Club details". British Rowing.
  9. ↑ Metcalfe, Will (10 August 2015). "GCSE results 2015: Durham schoolboy seals Sunderland football scholarship". Chronicle Live. Retrieved 9 April 2019.


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