Middle schools in England are defined in English and Welsh law as schools in which the age range of pupils starts younger than 10 years and six months and finishes older than 12 years of age.

The number of middle schools, including combined schools for children aged between 5 and 12, reached a peak of over 1400 by 1983. In 2019 there were 107 middle schools remaining in England, operating in just 14 local authority areas.

History Middle schools were permitted by the Education Act 1964, which made additional arrangements to allow for schools which crossed the traditional primary-secondary threshold at age 11. Notably, these changes did not define a new type of school, but rather permitted a variation on existing schemes, while providing for regulations which allowed the Secretary of State to determine whether such schools should be treated as primary or secondary. This had not been provided for in the Education Act 1944.

The move, pushed forward by Alec Clegg, then Chief Education Officer of the West Riding of Yorkshire County Council, was initially part of a process to introduce comprehensive schools in secondary education. Clegg proposed a model of middle schools for students aged 9 to 13, crossing the traditional divide at age 11 as early as 1960, with the scheme fully implemented in September 1969. Earlier moves by the local authority in Leicestershire had seen the introduction of two-tier secondary schools for students aged 11 to 14, and 14 to 18 as early as the late 1950s.

The Education Act 1964 was followed in July 1965 by Circular 10/65 from the then Labour government requesting that local education authorities put forward plans to introduce comprehensive schools in their areas. However, the circular offered only limited support for a change to a three-tier model of middle schools, as the minister had already requested a review of the age of transfer to secondary schools as part of the Plowden enquiry into Children and their primary schools. The Plowden report published in 1967 encouraged the development of middle schools for students aged 8 to 12, developing from existing junior schools.

The law required that all schools were classified as either primary or secondary depending on the age range of students. By the 1970s, over 100 middle deemed secondary schools were in operation with around 30 deemed primary schools. The number of middle schools, including combined schools for children aged between 5 and 12, rose continuously over the next decade, reaching a peak of over 1400 such schools by 1983, with the primary model rapidly overtaking the secondary following the publication of the Plowden report. However, from that time onwards, the number of middle schools fell each year.

The introduction of the National Curriculum with set Key Stages aligned with the old primary/secondary model further affected the numbers of schools, with a quarter of middle schools closing in the five years after its introduction. Issues of falling rolls, and queries raised about the academic progress of students in three-tier systems led to further closures.

Statistics In 2019 there were 107 middle schools remaining in England, operating in 14 local authority areas, ranging from the 117-pupil Glendale Middle School in Northumberland, to the 1000-pupil Biggleswade Academy in Biggleswade, Bedfordshire.

In the table below, the URN refers to the unique reference number for each school, linking to its page on the Ofsted website. Also from the table below, it can be seen that middle deemed primary schools have now been almost completely abolished across England.

Middle schools

Bedford Borough Schools in the unitary authority, operated by Bedfordshire County Council until April 2009. Following consultation in the summer of 2009 the authority intended to re-introduce two-tier provision from 2013, closing all middle schools by 2015. However, on 7 July 2010, it was announced that the change from 3-tier to 2-tier "would be scrapped"; the reason given being cuts in government funding to schools made by the Coalition Government. One Middle School closed in 2011 and two more closed in 2014. In July 2015, the borough council announced its intention to support schools in the introduction of a borough-wide move to two-tier provision. As a result, all but one middle school reorganised as primary or secondary by 2019. Name Location AgeRange Deemedstatus Numberon RollURNWebsiteMarston Vale Middle SchoolStewartby9–13Secondary464145861

Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Poole Borough Council closed all of its middle-deemed-primary schools in August 2013. Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council became the successor Local Education Authority in 2019. Name Location AgeRange Deemedstatus Numberon RollURNWebsiteBroadstone Middle SchoolBroadstone9–13Secondary479141184

Central Bedfordshire Schools in the unitary authority, operated by Bedfordshire County Council until April 2009. Some locality groups, such as schools in Dunstable, have undergone local re-organisations to remove middle schools. The local authority supports the principle of moving to primary and secondary provision. Name Location AgeRange Deemedstatus Numberon RollURNWebsiteAlameda Middle SchoolAmpthill9–13Secondary715137249Arnold AcademyBarton-le-Clay9–13Secondary658136829Brooklands Middle SchoolLeighton Buzzard9–13Secondary518137636Etonbury AcademyEtonbury Academy is proposed to become secondary from 2023Arlesey9–16Secondary1071137632Fulbrook SchoolWoburn Sands9–16Secondary425137904Gilbert Inglefield AcademyLeighton Buzzard9–13Secondary424138003Holywell CE (VA) Middle SchoolCranfield9–13Secondary658138844Leighton Middle SchoolLeighton Buzzard9–13Secondary556109689Linslade SchoolLinslade9–13Secondary633136766Parkfields Middle SchoolToddington9–13Secondary457109662Pix Brook AcademyArlesey9–16Secondary720147081Priory AcademyDunstable9–16Secondary699138181Robert Bloomfield AcademyShefford9–13Secondary946136713Woodland Middle School AcademyFlitwick9–13Secondary621136560

Dorset Name Location AgeRange Deemedstatus Numberon RollURNWebsiteAllenbourn Middle SchoolWimborne Minster9–13Secondary600113859Cranborne Middle SchoolCranborne9–13Secondary407113853Dorchester Middle SchoolDorchester9–13Secondary617138186Emmanuel CofE Middle SchoolVerwood9–13Secondary410113894Ferndown Middle SchoolFerndown9–13Secondary586113878Lockyer's Middle SchoolCorfe Mullen9–13Secondary466113862St Mary's CofE Middle SchoolPuddletown9–13Secondary481138189St Michael's Church of England Middle SchoolColehill9–13Secondary577113891St Osmund's Church of England Middle SchoolDorchester9–13Secondary701138165West Moors Middle SchoolWest Moors9–13Secondary210113861

Hertfordshire Name Location AgeRange Deemedstatus Numberon RollURNWebsiteEdwinstree CofE Middle SchoolBuntingford9–13Secondary434117554Ralph Sadleir SchoolPuckeridge9–13Secondary404140249King James Academy, RoystonRoyston9–18Secondary911137656

Kirklees

Name Location AgeRange Deemedstatus Numberon RollURNWebsiteKirkburton Middle SchoolKirkburton10–13Secondary509143791Scissett Middle SchoolScissett10–13Secondary599143792

Newcastle upon Tyne A new school is proposed to open at Great Park, Gosforth in 2020, which will be a middle school with age range 9–16. Name Location AgeRange Deemedstatus Numberon RollURNWebsiteGosforth Central Middle SchoolGosforth9–13Secondary514108519Gosforth East Middle SchoolGosforth9–13Secondary512108521Gosforth Junior High AcademyGosforth Junior High is federated with Gosforth High SchoolGosforth9–13Secondary700136348

North Tyneside

Name Location AgeRange Deemedstatus Numberon RollURNWebsiteMarden Bridge Middle SchoolWhitley Bay9–13Secondary549108635Monkseaton Middle SchoolMonkseaton9–13Secondary294108637Valley Gardens Middle SchoolMonkseaton9–13Secondary762108636Wellfield Middle SchoolSouth Wellfield9–13Secondary323108649

Northumberland Northumberland County Council began closing middle schools across the authority in 2006. This was discontinued as a universal policy following funding difficulties, but middle schools have continued to close, merge into all-through academies, or change to primaries, with 27 Northumberland middle schools having ceased to be middle schools since 2006 and four more closures approved: James Calvert Spence College - will cease to be a middle school from September 2025 becoming an 11-18 school while Glendale Middle School, Berwick Middle School and Tweedmouth Middle School will all close in 2026.

Name Location AgeRange Deemedstatus Numberon RollURNWebsiteBellingham Middle SchoolBellingham9–13Secondary95122350Berwick Middle SchoolBerwick-upon-Tweed9–13Secondary306122354Chantry Middle SchoolMorpeth9–13Secondary546137747Corbridge Middle SchoolCorbridge9–13Secondary349122326Dr Thomlinson CE Middle SchoolRothbury9–13Secondary225145639Glendale Middle SchoolWooler9–13Secondary115122352Hexham Middle SchoolHexham9–13Secondary455122364Highfield Middle SchoolPrudhoe9–13Secondary419122340Newminster Middle SchoolMorpeth9–13Secondary526137748Ovingham Middle SchoolOvingham9–13Secondary349122341St Joseph's RC Middle SchoolHexham9–13Secondary336122369Seaton Sluice Middle SchoolSeaton Sluice9–13Secondary326122334Tweedmouth Middle SchoolBerwick-upon-Tweed9–13Secondary304122348Whytrig Middle SchoolSeaton Delaval9–13Secondary231122335

Somerset

Name Location AgeRange Deemedstatus Numberon RollURNWebsiteAvanti Park SchoolFrome4–13Primary452147651Danesfield CofE Middle SchoolWilliton9–13Secondary318123895Fairlands Middle SchoolCheddar9–13Secondary483123888Hugh Sexey Church of England Middle SchoolBlackford9–13Secondary585123897Minehead Middle SchoolMinehead9–13Secondary566136774Oakfield AcademyFrome9–13Secondary644136970Selwood AcademyFrome9–13Secondary631137741

Staffordshire

Name Location AgeRange Deemedstatus Numberon RollURNWebsiteBilbrook CofE Middle SchoolCodsall9–13Secondary99124453Brewood Middle CE AcademyBrewood9–13Secondary420124452Christ Church AcademyStone9–13Secondary580136961Churnet View Middle SchoolLeek9–13Secondary437124436Codsall Middle SchoolCodsall9–13Secondary546124424James Bateman Middle SchoolBiddulph9–13Secondary385124428Oldfields Hall Middle SchoolUttoxeter9–13Secondary506145376Penkridge Middle SchoolPenkridge9–13Secondary454144206Perton Middle SchoolPerton9–13Secondary373124437Ryecroft CE Middle SchoolRocester9–13Secondary201145375St Edwards CofE(VA) Junior High SchoolLeek9–13Secondary724139171Walton Priory Middle SchoolStone9–13Secondary461124426Windsor Park CE Middle SchoolUttoxeter9–13Secondary325144007Woodhouse AcademyBiddulph9–13Secondary452124432

Windsor and Maidenhead

Name Location AgeRange Deemedstatus Numberon RollURNWebsiteDedworth Middle SchoolWindsor9–13Secondary505110072St Edwards Royal Free Ecumenical Middle SchoolWindsor9–13Secondary480110086St Peter's Middle School, Old WindsorOld Windsor9–13Secondary220110085Trevelyan Middle SchoolWindsor9–13Secondary577110075

Worcestershire