Northgate High School
Cemetery Road, Dereham, NR19 2EU
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- UNITY EDUCATION TRUST
- Head of School
- Mrs Zoe Galley & Dr Duncan Hone
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Sponsor
- Unity Education Trust
- Constituency
- Mid Norfolk
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,280
- Pupils on roll
- 1,203
- URN
- 141268
- Local authority
- Norfolk
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01362697033
About this school
Northgate High School is a secondary academy in Dereham. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 1,203 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Northgate 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. Numbers and a report only go so far, so visit in person 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 | 99 | 160 | 156 |
| Attainment 8 score | 42.6 | 38.9 | 41.0 |
| Progress 8 score | -0.30 -0.59 to -0.02 | -0.32 -0.55 to -0.10 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 31% | 34.4% | 42.3% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 61% | 56.3% | 60.3% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 14% | 10% | 21.8% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 3.5 | 3.2 | 3.4 |
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 Northgate 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 | Norfolk average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 42.6 | 38.8 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 38.9 | 39.2 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 41 | 38.6 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 8.9% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 8.9% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 8.3% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,129 |
| 2023/24 | 1,160 |
| 2024/25 | 1,187 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Northgate High School compares
Northgate High School ranked 40th of 53 secondary schools in Norfolk for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 41% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 15% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 41 | 8.3% | 27.5% | 1,203 | — |
| Dereham Neatherd High School | 47.4 | 9.7% | 20.5% | 1,079 | 0.8 miles |
| Reepham High School and College | 45.5 | 8.9% | 21.2% | 959 | 8.4 miles |
| Wayland Academy | 52 | 5.6% | 25.7% | 564 | 9.8 miles |
| Taverham High School | 49 | 7.9% | 15.6% | 1,254 | 10.3 miles |
| Wymondham High Academy | 52.6 | 9% | 16.8% | 1,686 | 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)
- 27.45%
- English as an additional language
- 6.4%
- Overall absence
- 8.31%
- Persistent absence
- 23.28%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Dereham Neatherd High School0.8 miles
Secondary · Dereham
-
Reepham High School and College8.4 miles
Secondary · Norwich
-
Wayland Academy9.8 miles
Secondary · Thetford
-
Taverham High School10.3 miles
Secondary · Norwich
-
Wymondham High Academy10.7 miles
Secondary · Wymondham
Other schools in Dereham
- Dereham Neatherd High School Secondary
- Bawdeswell Community Primary School Primary
- Brisley Church of England Primary Academy Primary
- Dereham Church of England Infant and Nursery Academy Primary
- Dereham Church of England Junior Academy Primary
- Dereham, Toftwood Community Junior School Primary
- Foulsham Primary School Academy Primary
- Grove House Infant and Nursery School Primary
- Hockering Church of England Primary Academy Primary
- King's Park Infant School, Dereham Primary
- Mattishall Primary School Primary
- North Elmham Church of England Primary Academy & Nursery Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Northgate High School teach?
- Northgate High School teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in Dereham.
- Who is the head of school of Northgate High School?
- The head of school of Northgate High School is Mrs Zoe Galley & Dr Duncan Hone, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Northgate High School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Northgate 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 Northgate High School?
- Northgate High School has 1,203 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is Northgate High School full?
- Northgate High School has capacity for 1,280 pupils and 1,203 on roll (94%), 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 Northgate High School a faith school?
- No. Northgate High School has no designated religious character.
- Is Northgate High School a selective school?
- No. Northgate High School is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Is Northgate High School part of an academy trust?
- Northgate High School is part of UNITY EDUCATION TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Northgate High School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 42.6 in 2022/23 and 41 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Northgate High School compare with other schools in Norfolk?
- Northgate High School ranked 40th of 53 secondary schools in Norfolk for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 41% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 15% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Northgate High School's absence rate?
- Northgate High School's overall absence rate is 8.3% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Northgate High School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Northgate 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 1 July 2026.