King James's School
St Helen's Gate, Almondbury, Huddersfield, HD4 6SG
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 11 to 16
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- KING JAMES'S SCHOOL
- Principal
- Mr Ian Rimmer
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Constituency
- Huddersfield
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,050
- Pupils on roll
- 1,055
- URN
- 138706
- Local authority
- Kirklees
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01484412990
About this school
King James's School is a secondary academy in Huddersfield. It teaches children aged 11 to 16 and has 1,055 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
- Safeguarding
- Effective
A short monitoring inspection followed on : inspectors found that standards have been maintained.
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 191 | 211 | 210 |
| Attainment 8 score | 48.2 | 46.8 | 48.5 |
| Progress 8 score | -0.12 -0.32 to +0.08 | 0.00 -0.19 to +0.19 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 52% | 50.7% | 47.1% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 71% | 64.9% | 69% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 50% | 46% | 50.5% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 4.5 | 4.4 | 4.6 |
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 King James's 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 | Kirklees average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 48.2 | 40.3 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 46.8 | 41 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 48.5 | 42.7 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 7.2% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 7.2% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 7.2% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,030 |
| 2023/24 | 1,054 |
| 2024/25 | 1,064 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How King James's School compares
King James's School ranked 6th of 25 secondary schools in Kirklees for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 71% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 24% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 48.5 | 7.2% | 27.5% | 1,055 | — |
| Netherhall Learning Campus High School | 41 | 10.1% | 52.2% | 823 | 1.9 miles |
| Newsome Academy | 44.1 | 6.9% | 46.1% | 824 | 1.9 miles |
| Honley High School | 50.6 | 9.1% | 23% | 1,240 | 2.2 miles |
| North Huddersfield Trust School | 35.7 | 9.5% | 52.8% | 995 | 2.7 miles |
| Moor End Academy | 45.9 | 6.7% | 47.9% | 1,053 | 2.9 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.
Inspection history
-
Ungraded inspection report12 February 2025
- 5 November 2019
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 27.54%
- English as an additional language
- 10.4%
- Overall absence
- 7.16%
- Persistent absence
- 18.36%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Netherhall Learning Campus High School1.9 miles
Secondary · Huddersfield
-
Newsome Academy1.9 miles
Secondary · Huddersfield
-
Honley High School2.2 miles
Secondary · Holmfirth
-
North Huddersfield Trust School2.7 miles
Secondary · Huddersfield
-
Moor End Academy2.9 miles
Secondary · Huddersfield
Other schools in Huddersfield
King James's School ranks 3rd of the 10 ranked secondary schools in Huddersfield.
- All Saints Catholic College Secondary
- Colne Valley High School Secondary
- Moor End Academy Secondary
- Netherhall Learning Campus High School Secondary
- Newsome Academy Secondary
- North Huddersfield Trust School Secondary
- Royds Hall, A Share Academy Secondary
- Salendine Nook High School Secondary
- Shelley College, A Share Academy Secondary
- All Hallows' CofE (VA) Primary School Primary
- Ashbrow School Primary
- Beaumont Primary Academy Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does King James's School teach?
- King James's School teaches children aged 11 to 16. It is a secondary school in Huddersfield.
- Who is the principal of King James's School?
- The principal of King James's School is Mr Ian Rimmer, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was King James's School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected King James's 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 big is King James's School?
- King James's School has 1,055 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 16.
- Is King James's School full?
- King James's School has capacity for 1,050 pupils and 1,055 on roll (100%), 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 King James's School a faith school?
- No. King James's School has no designated religious character.
- Is King James's School a selective school?
- No. King James's School is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Who runs King James's School?
- King James's School is part of KING JAMES'S SCHOOL. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have King James's School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 48.2 in 2022/23 and 48.5 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does King James's School rank locally?
- King James's School ranked 6th of 25 secondary schools in Kirklees for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 71% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 24% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is King James's School's absence rate?
- King James's School's overall absence rate is 7.2% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are King James's School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, King James's 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 1 July 2026.