The Stephen Longfellow Academy

The Stephen Longfellow Academy is a large and successful Alternative Provision, based in South Leeds. We are passionate about providing the highest standard of educational experience for all children, regardless of background and across the age range. At the academy we offer exceptional education and therapy and provide pupils with a second chance to either reintegrate back into mainstream settings or successful opportunities to succeed in their next steps provisions.

Pupils are taught national curriculum subjects and have access to a range of therapeutic services such as counselling. Therapy is delivered as both an integrated part of our timetable but also within discrete groups or on a one-to-one basis. We believe that a therapeutic and nurturing approach allows our pupils to grow in confidence and increase their self-esteem, so they can successfully integrate into their learning environment and the wider community. We pride ourselves on our global therapeutic and pastoral offer which supports all pupils and their families.

During our Ofsted inspection in February 2025, we were extremely proud to be recognised as maintaining the high standards identified in our previous inspection. This includes an acknowledgement that “the school provides inspirational careers guidance and support to pupils to promote further education, employment and training options”

Our aim is to do all that we can to support pupils and their families to get back on track to achieving their goals and ambitions. To, ultimately, make a difference, that otherwise would not have happened. We put kindness at the heart of everything that we do and instil this ethos within our school community, alongside our core values – aspiration, inclusion and resilience. We are relentless in our pursuit for excellence and our desire for a continuous cycle of 1% improvement every day.