Norman Cornish Academy
Special school in Spennymoor, Durham. Requires improvement (Dec 2023).
Latest graded inspection
Inspected 5 December 2023, report published 31 January 2024, under the inspection system used from 2019 to 2025.
This grade was given to The Meadows School (its Ofsted page), the school this one replaced when it became an academy. Norman Cornish Academy hasn’t been inspected under its own name yet, so Ofsted’s page for it shows no grade.
Requires improvement overall. Not yet good. Schools with this grade were normally inspected again within 30 months. 11% of schools whose latest graded inspection was under this system got Requires improvement.
| Area | Grade |
|---|---|
| Quality of education | Requires improvement |
| Behaviour and attitudes | Requires improvement |
| Personal development | Requires improvement |
| Leadership and management | Requires improvement |
| Safeguarding effective | Yes |
These grades come from the system Ofsted replaced in November 2025. They stay on record until the school’s next inspection, when it gets a report card instead. More about the old grades.
Next inspection: around June 2026
The last inspection was in December 2023. Schools graded requires improvement were normally inspected again within 30 months. It’s now later than the usual gap, so an inspection could happen at any time.
An estimate, not an Ofsted date. Ofsted doesn’t publish its schedule and gives schools about a day’s notice. The law says the next inspection must be by August 2029 at the latest, and Ofsted can visit sooner if it has concerns.
Nearby special schools
- 0.5 milesThe Oaks Secondary School
School remains Outstanding (May 2023)
- 4.0 milesEvergreen Primary School
School remains Good (Dec 2022)
Ofsted data as at 30 September 2026, school details from Get Information about Schools, 26 October 2026.