Peak School
Buxton Road, Chinley, High Peak, SK23 6ES
- Phase
- Academies
- School type
- Academy special converter
- Ages
- 2 to 19
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- ESTEEM MULTI-ACADEMY TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mrs Jo Howarth
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Sponsor
- Esteem Multi-Academy Trust
- SEN provision
- VI - Visual Impairment, HI - Hearing Impairment, SLCN - Speech, language and Communication, ASD - Autistic Spectrum Disorder, SEMH - Social, Emotional and Mental Health, MSI - Multi-Sensory Impairment, PD - Physical Disability, SLD - Severe Learning Difficulty, PMLD - Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulty
- Constituency
- High Peak
- Setting
- Larger rural: Further from a major town or city
- Capacity
- 90
- Pupils on roll
- 86
- URN
- 146053
- Local authority
- Derbyshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01663750324
About this school
Peak School is a special academy in High Peak. It teaches children aged 2 to 19 and has 86 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Peak 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
Ofsted did not give an overall grade. Between September 2024 and September 2025 inspections graded each area of a school's work without a single overall judgement, ahead of the move to report cards. 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 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 5 | 5 | 6 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | - | - | 0% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | - | - | 0% |
| Expected standard in reading | - | - | 0% |
| Expected standard in maths | - | - | 0% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | - | - | 0% |
| Average scaled score in reading | - | - | - |
| Average scaled score in maths | - | - | - |
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 3 | 7 | 7 |
| Attainment 8 score | - | - | - |
| Progress 8 score | - | - | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | - | - | - |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | - | - | - |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | - | - | - |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | - | - | - |
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 Peak 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 | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 13.6% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 12% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 14.8% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 79 |
| 2023/24 | 81 |
| 2024/25 | 89 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 69.44%
- English as an additional language
- 3.4%
- Overall absence
- 14.78%
- Persistent absence
- 39.73%
Location
Nearby schools
-
High Peak School3.8 miles
Special schools · Cheshire
-
Oaklands Manor School5.0 miles
Special schools · Buxton
-
Buxton and Leek College5.5 miles
Other types · Buxton
-
Pinc Woodlands College5.7 miles
Other types · Buxton
-
Windlehurst School6.0 miles
Special schools · Stockport
Other schools in High Peak
- New Mills Nursery School Nursery
- Buxworth Primary School Primary
- Chapel-en-le-Frith CofE VC Primary School Primary
- Furness Vale Primary and Nursery School Primary
- Hague Bar Primary School Primary
- Hayfield Primary School Primary
- New Mills Primary School Primary
- St George's CofE Primary School Primary
- St Mary's Catholic Voluntary Academy Primary
- Taxal and Fernilee CofE Primary School Primary
- Thornsett Primary School (High Peak Federation) Primary
- Whaley Bridge Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Peak School teach?
- Peak School teaches children aged 2 to 19. It is a special school in High Peak.
- Who is the headteacher of Peak School?
- The headteacher of Peak School is Mrs Jo Howarth, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Peak School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Peak 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 Peak School?
- Peak School has 86 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 2 to 19.
- Is Peak School full?
- Peak School has capacity for 90 pupils and 86 on roll (96%), 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 Peak School a faith school?
- No. Peak School has no designated religious character.
- Is Peak School part of an academy trust?
- Peak School is part of ESTEEM MULTI-ACADEMY TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- What SEN provision does Peak School have?
- The schools register lists Peak School's special educational needs provision as: VI - Visual Impairment; HI - Hearing Impairment; SLCN - Speech, language and Communication; ASD - Autistic Spectrum Disorder; SEMH - Social, Emotional and Mental Health; MSI - Multi-Sensory Impairment; PD - Physical Disability; SLD - Severe Learning Difficulty; PMLD - Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulty. Contact the school to discuss how it would support a particular child.
- What is Peak School's absence rate?
- Peak School's overall absence rate is 14.8% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Peak School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Peak 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.