All-throughState · Free schools

Polam Hall School

Grange Road, Darlington, County Durham, DL1 5PA ·

Report card: strong areas· 2025

At a glance

A state all-through free school for ages 4–16 in Darlington. Ofsted report card (November 2025): strong areas. GCSE results are around the England average (Attainment 8: 44.6 vs 46.1, 2024/25). 144 families put it first for 152 places (September 2026 entry).

Ages: 4–16
Pupils: 842
Gender: Mixed
Sixth form: No
Admissions: Non-selective
Local authority: Darlington
Academy trust: WOODARD ACADEMIES TRUST
Headteacher: Principal Kate Reid
Opened: Sept 2015

School website 01325463383 Explore the area

Inspection

Ofsted report card (renewed framework)

Read reports

Inspected 25 Nov 2025Published 18 Jan 2026

SafeguardingMet
InclusionExpected standard
Curriculum and teachingExpected standard
AchievementExpected standard
Attendance and behaviourExpected standard
Personal development and well-beingStrong standard
Early yearsExpected standard
Leadership and governanceExpected standard

Report cards grade each area separately on a five-point scale, from Urgent improvement to Exceptional. There is no single overall grade, and results are not directly comparable with earlier grades such as “Good”.

Inspection reports describe the school on the day. Read the full report and visit the school before deciding.

Exam results

Department for Education performance tables

GCSE results, 2024/25 · 90 pupils

Attainment 8

44.6

England 46.1

Grade 5+ Eng & maths

37.8%

England 45.4%

Grade 4+ Eng & maths

63.3%

England 64.8%

Progress 8

-0.05

2023/24 · CI -0.36 to 0.26

This school

44.6

Darlington

44.3

England

46.1

Attainment 8 over time

Progress 8 isn't published for 2024/25 because those pupils had no KS2 test results (tests were cancelled in 2020). Exams were not held in 2019/20 or 2020/21.

Admissions

Demand for places and how places are allocated

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Year 7 entry, September 2026 (national offer day data)

Offers made

107

1st preferences

101

All applications

287

1st prefs per place

0.94

Fewer first choices than places

98 of 101 first-preference applicants were offered a place (97%). 3 offers went to families living in another council area.

Catchment area

We don't have an official catchment boundary for this school. Many schools don't have one, and few councils publish boundaries as open data. We don't estimate catchments. Check the school's admissions policy or the council's admissions booklet.

Last distance offered

Not published nationally. Many councils publish the furthest distance offered for each school in their annual allocation reports. Past distances vary year to year with demand and sibling numbers, so they are not a guarantee.

How places are allocated: you apply through your home council. When a school has more applicants than places, it applies its published oversubscription criteria in order. These usually start with looked-after children, then siblings, then catchment or distance; faith schools may prioritise church attendance. Children with an EHC plan naming the school are admitted first. Apply on GOV.UK

Pupils

School census 2024/25

Pupils

841

Capacity

882

95% full

Girls / boys

54/46

Mixed

Eligible for free school meals (last 6 years)29.6%
English as an additional language14.3%
SEN support11.1%
Education, Health and Care plan2.9%
The black tick shows the median for state-funded all-through schools in England.