Secondary
St Thomas More Catholic Voluntary Academy
Palace Fields, Buxton, SK17 6AF
Key facts
- Phase
- Secondary
- Type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 11 to 16
- Intake
- Mixed
- Pupils
- 407 of 450 places
- Pupils per teacher
- 23.6
- Local authority
- Derbyshire
- Religious character
- Yes
- Trust
- ST RALPH SHERWIN CATHOLIC MULTI ACADEMY TRUST
- Diocese
- Diocese of Nottingham
Staffing23/24
- Teachers (FTE)
- 18.1
- All staff (FTE)
- 27.2
- Pupils per adult
- 15.7
- Pupils
- 426
Staff are counted as full-time equivalents in the November school workforce census, so the pupil figure here is that census’s own and will differ a little from the roll above, which is counted in January.
Ofsted
Last inspected June 2025
- Behaviour and attitudesGood
- Leadership and governanceGood
- Personal developmentGood
- Quality of educationGood
Inspected under the previous framework, which used its own four-point scale. Ofsted now publishes a report card grading several areas separately, so these grades are not directly comparable with a recent inspection’s.
SafeguardingMet
Read the full Ofsted report (opens in a new tab)Earlier inspections1
January 2023
Previous framework
Requires improvement
- Behaviour and attitudesRequires improvement
- Leadership and governanceRequires improvement
- Personal developmentRequires improvement
- Quality of educationRequires improvement
GCSE results
47%
49.5
All published measures2024/2025
| Measure | Result |
|---|---|
| Attainment 8 | 49.5 |
| EBacc average point score | 4.1 |
| Entered the EBacc | 24% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 81% |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 47% |
From the Department for Education. Measures are published per year and suppressed where a cohort is too small, so some schools show fewer. There are no results for 2019/20 or 2020/21, when exams and assessments were cancelled.
Results over time4 years
Each measure on its own scale, over every year we hold.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 21/22 | 45% |
| 22/23 | 33% |
| 23/24 | 29% |
| 24/25 | 47% |
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 21/22 | +0.09 |
| 22/23 | -0.10 |
| 23/24 | -0.51 |
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 21/22 | 48.7 |
| 22/23 | 42.8 |
| 23/24 | 39.2 |
| 24/25 | 49.5 |
Palace Fields, Buxton, SK17 6AF
Admissions
How to apply (opens in a new tab)
You apply through your council, not the school - even for academies and free schools. Applications close on 31 October, the year before starting.
Derbyshire admissions (opens in a new tab)
The council publishes the oversubscription criteria and last year’s offer distances, which is the closest thing to knowing your chances.
If you are refused a place (opens in a new tab)
You can appeal, and you can join a waiting list at the same time. Accept whatever offer you get first - declining it can leave you with no place at all.
This school’s own admissions (opens in a new tab)
Schools that set their own criteria - faith schools, grammars, academies - publish them on their own site.
Contact
- Headteacher
- David Redfern
- Address
- Palace Fields, Buxton, SK17 6AF
- Telephone
- 0129823167