St Leonard's Catholic School, Durham

St Leonard's Catholic School is a coeducational Roman Catholic secondary school and sixth form. It is located in Durham, County Durham, England.

History
The school was founded in 1936 as the St Leonard's Catholic Central School in the former Springwell Hall, a coalmine owner's house acquired in 1935 by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle.

During the era of the tripartite system, the school became a secondary modern and turned comprehensive in 1970 when the system was abolished by the LEA. The sixth form was opened that same year. During the last full Ofsted Inspection in 2007 the school was given an overall rating of good.

Previously a voluntary aided school administered by Durham County Council, in November 2016 St Leonard's Catholic School converted to academy status. The school is now sponsored by the Bishop Wilkinson Catholic Education Trust.

Ofsted judgements
The school was judged Good by Ofsted in 2019. In 2022 it was inspected again and judged to Require Improvement.

The Prime Minister's Global Fellowship
The school has a record of students attaining places on the Prime Minister's Global Fellowship programme. The school achieved its first student in the inaugural year of the programme, 2008, and in 2009 had 3 successful applicants.

Sport
The school has a rowing club, the St Leonard's School Boat Club.

Notable former pupils

 * Stephen Cantwell (born 1996), cricketer
 * Elliot Embleton
 * Paddy and Martin McAloon, founders of the pop group Prefab Sprout
 * Jessica Eddie, Olympic medal-winning rower