Holyrood Academy
Zembard Lane, Chard, TA20 1JL
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- BLACKDOWN EDUCATION PARTNERSHIP
- Headteacher
- Mr Dave Maccormick
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Sponsor
- Blackdown Education Partnership
- Constituency
- Yeovil
- Setting
- Urban: Further from a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,300
- Pupils on roll
- 1,282
- URN
- 136295
- Local authority
- Somerset
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01460260100
About this school
Holyrood Academy is a secondary academy in Chard. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 1,282 pupils on roll.
You can read Ofsted's latest judgement for the school below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Seeing a school for yourself shows what no page can, so arrange a visit before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Overall judgement at the last full inspection
This inspection took place under the previous framework, which gave a single overall grade. Ofsted now publishes report cards instead, so newer inspections of other schools will look different. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Good
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Good
- Personal development
- Good
- Leadership and management
- Good
- Sixth form
- Good
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 225 | 229 | 232 |
| Attainment 8 score | 45.0 | 44.8 | 42.4 |
| Progress 8 score | -0.11 -0.30 to +0.08 | -0.16 -0.35 to +0.03 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 38% | 41.9% | 29.7% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 62% | 62.9% | 56% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 8% | 22.3% | 21.6% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 3.7 | 3.9 | 3.7 |
Progress 8 is paused nationally for the 2024/25 and 2025/26 school years. Those pupils sat no key stage 2 tests during the Covid pandemic, so there is no starting point to measure progress from. A blank figure here is not missing school data.
Trends over time
How Holyrood Academy has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Somerset average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 45 | 36.1 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 44.8 | 34 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 42.4 | 32.3 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 10.2% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 10.1% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 10% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,319 |
| 2023/24 | 1,323 |
| 2024/25 | 1,321 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Holyrood Academy compares
Holyrood Academy ranked 20th of 28 secondary schools in Somerset for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 47% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 8% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 42.4 | 10% | 25.7% | 1,282 | — |
| Axe Valley Academy | 39.2 | 11.7% | 30% | 741 | 6.5 miles |
| Wadham School | 42.3 | 9.7% | 19.2% | 763 | 7.9 miles |
| The Woodroffe School | 51.4 | 9.9% | 18.7% | 886 | 10.1 miles |
| Bishop Fox's School | 46.9 | 7.4% | 22.2% | 1,123 | 10.6 miles |
| Beaminster School | 47 | 8.4% | 22.4% | 673 | 10.7 miles |
Results reflect each school's cohort as much as its teaching, and free school meals share is context, not a judgement. Small gaps between neighbouring schools are rarely meaningful on their own.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 25.72%
- English as an additional language
- 10.7%
- Overall absence
- 9.95%
- Persistent absence
- 25.23%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Axe Valley Academy6.5 miles
Secondary · Axminster
-
Wadham School7.9 miles
Secondary · Crewkerne
-
The Woodroffe School10.1 miles
Secondary · Lyme Regis
-
Bishop Fox's School10.6 miles
Secondary · Taunton
-
Beaminster School10.7 miles
Secondary · Beaminster
Other schools in Chard
- Avishayes Community Primary School Primary
- Buckland St Mary Church of England Primary School Primary
- Combe St Nicholas Church of England VA Primary School Primary
- Manor Court Community Primary School Primary
- Tatworth Primary School Primary
- The Redstart Primary School Primary
- 3 Dimensions Special schools
- Chard School Independent schools
Common questions
- What year groups does Holyrood Academy teach?
- Holyrood Academy teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in Chard.
- Who is the headteacher of Holyrood Academy?
- The headteacher of Holyrood Academy is Mr Dave Maccormick, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Holyrood Academy last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Holyrood Academy, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How big is Holyrood Academy?
- Holyrood Academy has 1,282 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is Holyrood Academy full?
- Holyrood Academy has capacity for 1,300 pupils and 1,282 on roll (99%), so it is close to full. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Holyrood Academy a faith school?
- No. Holyrood Academy has no designated religious character.
- Is Holyrood Academy a selective school?
- No. Holyrood Academy is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Who runs Holyrood Academy?
- Holyrood Academy is part of BLACKDOWN EDUCATION PARTNERSHIP. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Holyrood Academy's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 45 in 2022/23 and 42.4 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Holyrood Academy rank locally?
- Holyrood Academy ranked 20th of 28 secondary schools in Somerset for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 47% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 8% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Holyrood Academy's absence rate?
- Holyrood Academy's overall absence rate is 10% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Holyrood Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Holyrood Academy's key stage results are shown in the results section on this page, with the last three years so you can see the trend rather than a single year.
School details come from the Department for Education's Get Information About Schools register. Inspection outcomes come from Ofsted, and exam results from the Department for Education's school performance service. This page was last updated on 1 July 2026.