Skipton Girls' High School
Gargrave Road, Skipton, BD23 1QL
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Girls
- Religious character
- None
- Trust
- NORTHERN STAR ACADEMIES TRUST
- Headteacher
- Ms Martha Featherstone
- Admissions policy
- Selective
- Sponsor
- Northern Star Academies Trust
- Constituency
- Skipton and Ripon
- Setting
- Urban: Further from a major town or city
- Capacity
- 744
- Pupils on roll
- 862
- URN
- 136664
- Local authority
- North Yorkshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01756707600
About this school
Skipton Girls' High School is a girls' secondary academy in Skipton. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 862 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Skipton Girls' High School, and its latest judgement is set out 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
- Outstanding
- 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 | 139 | 112 | 115 |
| Attainment 8 score | 68.7 | 66.9 | 69.7 |
| Progress 8 score | +0.62 +0.38 to +0.86 | +0.45 +0.18 to +0.71 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 90% | 89.3% | 89.6% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 98% | 97.3% | 99.1% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 96% | 95.5% | 94.8% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 6.5 | 6.3 | 6.6 |
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 Skipton Girls' High School has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | North Yorkshire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 68.7 | 41.9 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 66.9 | 41.8 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 69.7 | 40.4 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 6.6% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 6.1% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 6% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 889 |
| 2023/24 | 884 |
| 2024/25 | 855 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Skipton Girls' High School compares
Skipton Girls' High School ranked 2nd of 41 secondary schools in North Yorkshire for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 97% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 40% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 69.7 | 6% | 7.1% | 862 | — |
| Ermysted's Grammar School | 67.3 | 6.3% | 6.5% | 836 | 0.2 miles |
| The Skipton Academy | 41.6 | 7.8% | 26.3% | 736 | 0.4 miles |
| South Craven School | 47.5 | 8.1% | 16.8% | 1,936 | 4.7 miles |
| West Craven High School | 37.4 | 12.6% | 28.6% | 528 | 7.2 miles |
| Carlton Keighley | 38.6 | 8.2% | 32.8% | 809 | 7.3 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)
- 7.11%
- English as an additional language
- 11.9%
- Overall absence
- 5.98%
- Persistent absence
- 15.91%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Ermysted's Grammar School0.2 miles
Secondary · Skipton
-
The Skipton Academy0.4 miles
Secondary · Skipton
-
South Craven School4.7 miles
Secondary · Keighley
-
West Craven High School7.2 miles
Secondary · Barnoldswick
-
Carlton Keighley7.3 miles
Secondary · Keighley
Other schools in Skipton
- Ermysted's Grammar School Secondary
- The Skipton Academy Secondary
- Upper Wharfedale School Secondary
- Brougham Street Nursery School Nursery
- Otley Street Community Nursery School Nursery
- Burnsall Voluntary Aided Primary School Primary
- Carleton Endowed CofE Primary School Primary
- Christ Church Church of England Primary School Primary
- Cracoe and Rylstone Voluntary Controlled Church of England Primary School Primary
- Embsay Church of England Primary School Primary
- Gargrave Church of England Primary School Primary
- Grassington Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Skipton Girls' High School teach?
- Skipton Girls' High School teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in Skipton.
- Who is the headteacher of Skipton Girls' High School?
- The headteacher of Skipton Girls' High School is Ms Martha Featherstone, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Skipton Girls' High School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Skipton Girls' High School, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How many pupils are at Skipton Girls' High School?
- Skipton Girls' High School has 862 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is Skipton Girls' High School full?
- Skipton Girls' High School has capacity for 744 pupils and 862 on roll (116%), so it is at or above its published capacity. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Skipton Girls' High School a faith school?
- No. Skipton Girls' High School has no designated religious character.
- Is Skipton Girls' High School a selective school?
- Yes. Skipton Girls' High School is recorded as Selective in the schools register, so entry involves selection.
- Is Skipton Girls' High School part of an academy trust?
- Skipton Girls' High School is part of NORTHERN STAR ACADEMIES TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Skipton Girls' High School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 68.7 in 2022/23 and 69.7 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Skipton Girls' High School compare with other schools in North Yorkshire?
- Skipton Girls' High School ranked 2nd of 41 secondary schools in North Yorkshire for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 97% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 40% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Skipton Girls' High School's absence rate?
- Skipton Girls' High School's overall absence rate is 6% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Skipton Girls' High School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Skipton Girls' High School'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 3 July 2026.