Hermitage Academy is a mixed secondary academy in Chester le Street, Durham County Council, teaching 881 pupils aged 11 to 18. Ofsted rated it Good at its last graded inspection in March 2024. In 2024–2025, GCSE Attainment 8 was 49.1 (England 46.1). Its 2025–2026 calendar lists 11 holidays and 3 INSET days.

Ofsted inspection

The latest published Ofsted judgement for Hermitage Academy.

Latest inspection
Good Overall effectiveness
Quality of educationGood
Behaviour & attitudesGood
Personal developmentGood
Leadership & managementGood
Sixth formGood
S5 Inspection · Inspected 12 Mar 2024 · Published 19 May 2024
Read full Ofsted report ↗

Scale: Outstanding Good Requires improvement Inadequate

Term dates & holidays 2025–2026

Autumn, spring and summer terms, half-terms, INSET days and bank holidays for Hermitage Academy.

Hermitage Academy term dates calendar 2025–2026
Official term-dates calendar · 2025–2026 · source

Interactive Calendar

September 2025
MonTueWedThuFriSatSun 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
  • 2 Inset Day
October 2025
MonTueWedThuFriSatSun 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
  • 27–31 School Holiday (Autumn Half Term)
November 2025
MonTueWedThuFriSatSun 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
  • 28 Inset Day
December 2025
MonTueWedThuFriSatSun 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
  • 22–31 School Holiday (Christmas Holiday)
  • 25 Christmas Day
  • 26 Boxing Day
January 2026
MonTueWedThuFriSatSun 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
  • 1 New Year's Day (Bank Holiday)
  • 1–2 School Holiday (Christmas Holiday)
February 2026
MonTueWedThuFriSatSun 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28
  • 23–27 School Holiday (Spring Half Term)
March 2026
MonTueWedThuFriSatSun 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
April 2026
MonTueWedThuFriSatSun 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
  • 2–3 School Holiday (Easter Holiday)
  • 6–17 School Holiday (Easter Holiday)
  • 17 Inset Day
May 2026
MonTueWedThuFriSatSun 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
  • 4 Early May Bank Holiday
  • 25–29 School Holiday (Summer Half Term)
  • 25 Spring Bank Holiday
June 2026
MonTueWedThuFriSatSun 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
July 2026
MonTueWedThuFriSatSun 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
  • 20–31 School Holiday (Summer Holiday)
August 2026
MonTueWedThuFriSatSun 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
  • 1–31 School Holiday (Summer Holiday)
  • 31 Summer Bank Holiday

Key dates (2025–2026)

  • Inset Day Sep 2, 2025 Inset Day
  • School Holiday (Autumn Half Term) Oct 27-31, 2025 Holiday
  • Inset Day Nov 28, 2025 Inset Day
  • School Holiday (Christmas Holiday) Dec 22-31, 2025 Holiday
  • Christmas Day Dec 25, 2025 Holiday
  • Boxing Day Dec 26, 2025 Event
  • New Year's Day (Bank Holiday) Jan 1, 2026 Holiday
  • School Holiday (Christmas Holiday) Jan 1-2, 2026 Holiday
  • School Holiday (Spring Half Term) Feb 23-27, 2026 Holiday
  • School Holiday (Easter Holiday) Apr 2-3, 2026 Holiday
  • School Holiday (Easter Holiday) Apr 6-17, 2026 Holiday
  • Inset Day Apr 17, 2026 Inset Day
  • Early May Bank Holiday May 4, 2026 Holiday
  • School Holiday (Summer Half Term) May 25-29, 2026 Holiday
  • Spring Bank Holiday May 25, 2026 Holiday
  • School Holiday (Summer Holiday) Jul 20-31, 2026 Holiday
  • School Holiday (Summer Holiday) Aug 1-31, 2026 Holiday
  • Summer Bank Holiday Aug 31, 2026 Holiday

Exam results & performance

DfE performance tables Official results, 2024–2025 GOV.UK ↗
49.1 Attainment 8 England 46.1 Top 27%
43.1% Grade 5+ English & maths England 45.4%
31.08 A level average score England 35
20% Persistent absence England 17.8%

The measures that carry the most signal. Open a section to compare Hermitage Academy with Durham County Council and England.

Key stage 4 (GCSE) 49.1 Attainment 8 score

Year 11 results across eight qualifications, including English and maths.

This school Durham County Council England

Attainment 8 score · Average across 8 GCSEs, out of 90 49.1
Durham County Council 44.1 England 46.1 +3 vs England
Grade 5+ in English & maths · A strong pass 43.1%
Durham County Council 41.6% England 45.4% -2.3 vs England
Attainment 8 — disadvantaged pupils 43.1
Durham County Council 35.6 England 34.9 +8.2 vs England
Disadvantage gap · Attainment 8 points; smaller is better 8.6
Durham County Council 12.5 England 15.5 -6.9 vs England
Disadvantaged pupils in the year group · Context for the scores above 30.1%
Durham County Council 31.9% England 28.2%
Pupils in the year group · Small cohorts swing wildly 153
16 to 18 (A level & sixth form) 31.08 A level average point score

Results for students finishing post-16 study.

This school Durham County Council England

A level average point score · Per entry, 50 = A* 31.08
Durham County Council 35.7 England 35 -3.9 vs England
A level students · Small cohorts swing wildly 42
Attendance 20% Persistently absent pupils

Absence across the whole school year.

This school Durham County Council England

Persistently absent pupils · Missed 10%+ of sessions; lower is better 20%
Durham County Council 18.8% England 17.8% +2.3 vs England
Overall absence · Lower is better 7.4%
Durham County Council 6.9% England 6.8% +0.7 vs England
What pupils do after GCSEs 89% In education, apprenticeship or work

Still in education, an apprenticeship or work a year after key stage 4.

This school Durham County Council England

In education, apprenticeship or work 89%
Durham County Council 89% England 92% -3 vs England
Same, for disadvantaged pupils 77%
Durham County Council 80% England 83% -6 vs England
What students do after 16 to 18 study 90% In education, apprenticeship or work

Destinations the year after finishing post-16 study.

This school Durham County Council England

In education, apprenticeship or work 90%
Durham County Council 76% England 79% +11 vs England
Went to higher education 46%
Durham County Council 32% England 37% +9 vs England
About this data source & caveats

Progress 8 is not published for 2024–2025. This year group missed their key stage 2 tests in 2020, so there is no baseline to measure progress from.

Attendance comparisons are pupil-weighted averages we calculate from every school’s published absence figure — the DfE absence file has no local authority or England rows of its own.

We show the headline measures only. Threshold and curriculum-policy figures — grade 4+ in English and maths, EBacc entry and points, the per-subject key stage 2 breakdown, academic and applied splits at 16 to 18 — reflect admissions and curriculum choices more than school quality, so they are left to GOV.UK. Progress measures matter most because they compare pupils with others who started at the same level; attainment on its own largely tracks a school’s intake.

Figures are the Department for Education’s official published results for Hermitage Academy. Results are suppressed where too few pupils were entered. England figures are the average for state-funded schools. “Top x%” is this school’s position among all schools in England with a published figure for that measure — the DfE does not publish league table rankings.

Source: Compare school and college performance, Department for Education. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Location & catchment area

Indicative catchment Other secondary schools

Indicative only. This is a nearest-school (Voronoi) estimate — the area closer to Hermitage Academy than to any other secondary school. Real admissions depend on the school’s own policy (straight-line distance, siblings, faith, feeder schools and available places) and change each year. Always confirm with the school and local authority admissions team.