The Valley Leadership Academy
Fearns Moss, Bacup, OL13 0TG
578 pupils · 55% of 1,050 capacity
- Phase
- Secondary
- Type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 11–16
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Does not apply
- Trust
- STAR ACADEMIES
- Local authority
- Lancashire
- Free school meals
- 41.9%
Ofsted
Needs attention (2026) — Report card — the most common grade across the inspected areas
| Inclusion | Expected standard |
|---|---|
| Curriculum and teaching | Needs attention |
| Achievement | Needs attention |
| Attendance and behaviour | Needs attention |
| Personal development and wellbeing | Expected standard |
| Leadership and governance | Expected standard |
| Safeguarding | Met |
Inspected 21 April 2026, published 7 June 2026. Read the full Ofsted report
England has three coexisting inspection systems — how we translate them into one signal.
Exam results
| Measure | 2024/25 |
|---|---|
| Attainment 8 score | 32.6 |
| Grade 5 or above in English & maths (strong pass) | 30.5% |
| Grade 4 or above in English & maths (standard pass) | 50% |
| Entering the English Baccalaureate | 32.9% |
Progress 8 is not published nationally for 2024/25 and 2025/26 while KS2 baselines are missing (no SATs in 2020/21). It returns from 2026/27.
“Not published (small cohort)” means the DfE suppressed the figure to protect small cohorts — it is not a zero.
Will my child get in?
Usually has places available — 0.41 first-choice applications per place (Sept 2026 entry)
| Entry | Places | 1st preferences | Total preferences | Offers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sept 2026 entry | 104 | 43 | 105 | 65 |
| Sept 2025 entry | 139 | 47 | 117 | 72 |
| Sept 2024 entry | 134 | 74 | 159 | 98 |
| Sept 2023 entry | 183 | 97 | 212 | 138 |
| Sept 2022 entry | 144 | 100 | 188 | 124 |
| Sept 2021 entry | 164 | 76 | 151 | 108 |
| Sept 2020 entry | 142 | 62 | 126 | 74 |
First-choice demand varies year to year, and the school’s admission criteria — not demand — decide who is offered a place. Use this as a rough signal, never a prediction.
Nearby alternatives
- Bacup and Rawtenstall Grammar School 0.6 km · Inadequate (2022) · previous system
- Alder Grange School 3.2 km · Most areas: Expected standard (2026)
- All Saints' Roman Catholic High School, a Voluntary Academy 4.4 km · Requires improvement (2024) · previous system
- Haslingden High School and Sixth Form 5.4 km · Good — confirmed 2022 · previous system
- Whitworth Community High School 5.7 km · Good — confirmed 2023 · previous system
- The Hollins 8.9 km · Standards maintained (2024)
Straight-line distance — not travel time, and not a catchment. Same phase, open schools only.
Data from DfE and Ofsted open data (OGL v3) — sources. School record updated 10 July 2026. Report incorrect data.