The Cedars Academy
Wanlip Lane, Birstall, Leicester, LE4 4GH
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- None
- Trust
- LIONHEART EDUCATIONAL TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mrs Laura Sanchez
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Sponsor
- Lionheart Academies Trust
- SEN provision
- SLCN - Speech, language and Communication
- Constituency
- Mid Leicestershire
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,100
- Pupils on roll
- 985
- URN
- 140787
- Local authority
- Leicestershire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01162677107
About this school
The Cedars Academy is a secondary academy in Leicester. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 985 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected The Cedars Academy, and its latest judgement is set out below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Numbers and a report only go so far, so visit in person before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Confirmed by a short inspection, not a full one
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 22 March 2023, where inspectors confirmed the school remains Good. The school's last full inspection took place before September 2019, so its area grades are not part of Ofsted's current published data. Older reports are on the school's Ofsted page.
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 174 | 186 | 188 |
| Attainment 8 score | 46.9 | 45.7 | 45.1 |
| Progress 8 score | -0.07 -0.28 to +0.14 | -0.32 -0.52 to -0.11 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 48% | 43.5% | 42% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 63% | 67.7% | 61.7% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 46% | 57.5% | 57.4% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 4.1 | 4.2 | 4.2 |
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 The Cedars 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 | Leicestershire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 46.9 | 37.5 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 45.7 | 37.1 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 45.1 | 36.9 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 8.4% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 8.7% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 7.9% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 999 |
| 2023/24 | 994 |
| 2024/25 | 981 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How The Cedars Academy compares
The Cedars Academy ranked 27th of 43 secondary schools in Leicestershire for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 58% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 18% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 45.1 | 7.9% | 22.3% | 985 | — |
| The Roundhill Academy | 45.9 | 9.3% | 21.4% | 686 | 1.2 miles |
| Rushey Mead Academy | 51.6 | 5.7% | 22.4% | 1,804 | 1.7 miles |
| Soar Valley College | 51.5 | 5.4% | 30.5% | 1,564 | 1.9 miles |
| Babington Academy | 38 | 11.2% | 47.9% | 1,339 | 2.4 miles |
| Wreake Valley Academy | 39.7 | 11.4% | 21.4% | 1,148 | 2.5 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)
- 22.3%
- English as an additional language
- 8.5%
- Overall absence
- 7.88%
- Persistent absence
- 20.42%
Location
Nearby schools
-
The Roundhill Academy1.2 miles
Secondary · Leicester
-
Rushey Mead Academy1.7 miles
Secondary · Leicester
-
Soar Valley College1.9 miles
Secondary · Leicester
-
Babington Academy2.4 miles
Secondary · Leicester
-
Wreake Valley Academy2.5 miles
Secondary · Leicester
Other schools in Leicester
The Cedars Academy ranks 23rd of the 33 ranked secondary schools in Leicester.
- Babington Academy Secondary
- Beauchamp College Secondary
- Beaumont Leys School Secondary
- Bosworth Academy Secondary
- Brockington College Secondary
- Brook Mead Academy Secondary
- Brookvale Groby Learning Campus Secondary
- Castle Mead Academy Secondary
- Crown Hills Community College Secondary
- English Martyrs' Catholic School, A Voluntary Academy Secondary
- Fullhurst Community College Secondary
- Gartree High School Secondary
Common questions
- What ages does The Cedars Academy teach?
- The Cedars Academy teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in Leicester.
- Who is the headteacher of The Cedars Academy?
- The headteacher of The Cedars Academy is Mrs Laura Sanchez, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has The Cedars Academy been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected The Cedars 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 many pupils are at The Cedars Academy?
- The Cedars Academy has 985 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is The Cedars Academy full?
- The Cedars Academy has capacity for 1,100 pupils and 985 on roll (90%), so it has space against 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 The Cedars Academy a faith school?
- No. The Cedars Academy has no designated religious character.
- Is The Cedars Academy a selective school?
- No. The Cedars Academy is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Is The Cedars Academy part of an academy trust?
- The Cedars Academy is part of LIONHEART EDUCATIONAL TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- What SEN provision does The Cedars Academy have?
- The schools register lists The Cedars Academy's special educational needs provision as: SLCN - Speech, language and Communication. Contact the school to discuss how it would support a particular child.
- How have The Cedars Academy's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 46.9 in 2022/23 and 45.1 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does The Cedars Academy compare with other schools in Leicestershire?
- The Cedars Academy ranked 27th of 43 secondary schools in Leicestershire for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 58% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 18% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is The Cedars Academy's absence rate?
- The Cedars Academy's overall absence rate is 7.9% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are The Cedars Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, The Cedars 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.