Highfields School
Upper Lumsdale, Matlock, DE4 5NA
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- EAST MIDLANDS EDUCATION TRUST
- Co-Headteachers
- Mr Andrew Marsh
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Sponsor
- East Midlands Education Trust
- Constituency
- Derbyshire Dales
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,394
- Pupils on roll
- 1,298
- URN
- 148299
- Local authority
- Derbyshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01629581888
About this school
Highfields School is a secondary academy in Matlock. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 1,298 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. Numbers and a report only go so far, so visit in person before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 8 January 2025, where inspectors found that standards have been maintained. 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 | 206 | 206 | 202 |
| Attainment 8 score | 50.2 | 45.6 | 47.0 |
| Progress 8 score | +0.09 -0.11 to +0.28 | +0.05 -0.14 to +0.25 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 59% | 47.6% | 43.1% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 77% | 71.4% | 68.3% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 41% | 41.7% | 40.6% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 4.5 | 4.0 | 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 Highfields 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 | Derbyshire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 50.2 | 41.6 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 45.6 | 41.3 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 47 | 40.9 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 8% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 7.9% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 7.1% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,303 |
| 2023/24 | 1,321 |
| 2024/25 | 1,295 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Highfields School compares
Highfields School ranked 15th of 45 secondary schools in Derbyshire for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 66% 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 | 47 | 7.1% | 25.4% | 1,298 | — |
| Anthony Gell School | 45.8 | 10.9% | 25.2% | 776 | 4.9 miles |
| Tupton Hall School | 41.1 | 11.2% | 37.1% | 1,581 | 5.8 miles |
| Brookfield Community School | 50.8 | 8% | 20.8% | 1,156 | 6.5 miles |
| Parkside Community School | 41 | 9.9% | 51.9% | 587 | 7.0 miles |
| David Nieper Academy | 41 | 8.9% | 48.1% | 810 | 7.3 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)
- 25.35%
- English as an additional language
- 3%
- Overall absence
- 7.14%
- Persistent absence
- 14.63%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Anthony Gell School4.9 miles
Secondary · Matlock
-
Tupton Hall School5.8 miles
Secondary · Chesterfield
-
Brookfield Community School6.5 miles
Secondary · Chesterfield
-
Parkside Community School7.0 miles
Secondary · Chesterfield
-
David Nieper Academy7.3 miles
Secondary · Alfreton
Other schools in Matlock
- Anthony Gell School Secondary
- All Saints CofE Infant School Primary
- All Saints CofE Junior School Primary
- Bonsall CofE (A) Primary School Primary
- Brassington Primary School Primary
- Carsington and Hopton Primary School Primary
- Castle View Primary School Primary
- Crich Carr CofE Primary School Primary
- Crich Church of England Infant School Primary
- Crich Junior School Primary
- Cromford Church of England Primary School Primary
- Darley Churchtown Church of England Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does Highfields School teach?
- Highfields School teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in Matlock.
- Who is the co-headteachers of Highfields School?
- The co-headteachers of Highfields School is Mr Andrew Marsh, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Highfields School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Highfields 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 Highfields School?
- Highfields School has 1,298 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is Highfields School full?
- Highfields School has capacity for 1,394 pupils and 1,298 on roll (93%), 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 Highfields School a faith school?
- No. Highfields School has no designated religious character.
- Is Highfields School a selective school?
- No. Highfields School is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Who runs Highfields School?
- Highfields School is part of EAST MIDLANDS EDUCATION TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Highfields School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 50.2 in 2022/23 and 47 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Highfields School rank locally?
- Highfields School ranked 15th of 45 secondary schools in Derbyshire for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 66% 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 Highfields School's absence rate?
- Highfields School's overall absence rate is 7.1% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Highfields School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Highfields 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.