Fulford School
Fulfordgate, Heslington Lane, York, YO10 4FY
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- YORKSHIRE LEARNING TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mr Russell Harris
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Sponsor
- The STAR Multi Academy Trust
- SEN provision
- ASD - Autistic Spectrum Disorder
- Constituency
- York Outer
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,899
- Pupils on roll
- 1,853
- URN
- 144711
- Local authority
- York
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01904633300
About this school
Fulford School is a secondary academy in York. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 1,853 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Fulford 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
- Outstanding
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Outstanding
- Personal development
- Outstanding
- Leadership and management
- Outstanding
- Sixth form
- Outstanding
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 240 | 268 | 254 |
| Attainment 8 score | 58.6 | 58.9 | 55.2 |
| Progress 8 score | +0.67 +0.49 to +0.85 | +0.54 +0.37 to +0.71 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 68% | 70.9% | 63.4% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 88% | 84.7% | 82.3% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 54% | 42.5% | 45.7% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 5.4 | 5.3 | 5.0 |
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 Fulford 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 | York average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 58.6 | 40.5 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 58.9 | 43 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 55.2 | 44.5 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 6.2% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 6.6% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 6.4% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,650 |
| 2023/24 | 1,726 |
| 2024/25 | 1,765 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Fulford School compares
Fulford School ranked 2nd of 9 secondary schools in York for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 87% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 32% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 55.2 | 6.4% | 9.6% | 1,853 | — |
| Millthorpe School | 53.2 | 9.6% | 16.2% | 1,022 | 1.3 miles |
| Archbishop Holgate's School, A Church of England Academy | 56.7 | 8.7% | 23.3% | 1,803 | 1.5 miles |
| All Saints Catholic School York | 53.7 | 8% | 12.4% | 1,392 | 1.5 miles |
| York High School | 41.2 | 15.3% | 39.8% | 750 | 2.7 miles |
| Vale of York Academy | 45.3 | 12.2% | 24.7% | 656 | 3.1 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)
- 9.57%
- English as an additional language
- 10.4%
- Overall absence
- 6.4%
- Persistent absence
- 15.64%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Millthorpe School1.3 miles
Secondary · York
-
Archbishop Holgate's School, A Church of England Academy1.5 miles
Secondary · York
-
All Saints Catholic School York1.5 miles
Secondary · York
-
York High School2.7 miles
Secondary · York
-
Vale of York Academy3.1 miles
Secondary · York
Other schools in York
Fulford School ranks 2nd of the 13 ranked secondary schools in York.
- All Saints Catholic School York Secondary
- Archbishop Holgate's School, A Church of England Academy Secondary
- Boroughbridge High School Secondary
- Huntington School Secondary
- Joseph Rowntree School Secondary
- Manor Church of England Academy Secondary
- Millthorpe School Secondary
- Outwood Academy Easingwold Secondary
- Ryedale School Secondary
- Vale of York Academy Secondary
- Woldgate School and Sixth Form College Secondary
- York High School Secondary
Common questions
- What ages does Fulford School teach?
- Fulford School teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in York.
- Who is the headteacher of Fulford School?
- The headteacher of Fulford School is Mr Russell Harris, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Fulford School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Fulford 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 Fulford School?
- Fulford School has 1,853 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is Fulford School full?
- Fulford School has capacity for 1,899 pupils and 1,853 on roll (98%), 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 Fulford School a faith school?
- No. Fulford School has no designated religious character.
- Is Fulford School a selective school?
- No. Fulford School is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Is Fulford School part of an academy trust?
- Fulford School is part of YORKSHIRE LEARNING TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- What SEN provision does Fulford School have?
- The schools register lists Fulford School's special educational needs provision as: ASD - Autistic Spectrum Disorder. Contact the school to discuss how it would support a particular child.
- How have Fulford School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 58.6 in 2022/23 and 55.2 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Fulford School compare with other schools in York?
- Fulford School ranked 2nd of 9 secondary schools in York for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 87% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 32% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Fulford School's absence rate?
- Fulford School's overall absence rate is 6.4% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Fulford School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Fulford 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 10 July 2026.