King James I Academy Bishop Auckland
Academy converter secondary school in Bishop Auckland (County Durham).
Location
iSchool location from Get Information about Schools. Nearby schools are coloured by phase. Open Map+ for a full-screen map with neighbourhood deprivation (England only).About
Year 11 Parents Evening - Thursday 19th February 16:45-19:00 King James I Academy operates a cashless catering system. All students have a unique account which is accessed through scanning their fingerprint or card in school. There are two methods to add money onto these accounts: Parents are required to sign a form to opt into the biometric system.
The following benefits are derived from the system: What is a cashless system? At the heart of the cashless system is a software program which recognises each individual customer, holds individual cash balances and records expenditure and cash received. It also records where and when money is spent and on what food. How are students and staff recognised by the system?
All students and staff will be registered via their unique card and fingerprint.
In the school’s own words, from the school website.
Enrichment
2 activitiesiFound on the school website by WhatSchool. Not verified by Governance Register; the school website is the authority.- Unify
- Week 21 (A)
Awards
2 awardsiFound on the school website by WhatSchool. Not verified by Governance Register; the school website is the authority.- Duke of EdinburghPersonal development
- International School AwardRecognised award
Key facts
- URN
- 136770
- Type
- Academy converter
- Phase
- Secondary
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Mixed
- Admissions
- Non-selective
- Sixth form
- Has a sixth form
- Local authority
- County Durham
- Constituency
- Bishop Auckland
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Opened
- 2011
Governing body (9 current, 1 former)
iAcademy trust: local governing body and trust board.Leadership
| Name | Role | How appointed | Term |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mrs Elizabeth Maxey Varley | Chair of Local Governing Body | Appointed by foundation/Trust | since 2025 · until 2029 |
Full governing body
| Name | Role | How appointed | Term |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miss Rebecca Kate Thompson | Local Governor | Elected by parents | since 2026 · until 2030 |
| Mrs Anne Charlotte Sawczyn | Local Governor | Elected by parents | since 2026 · until 2030 |
| Mrs Eileen Marie Brewis | Local Governor | Appointed by foundation/Trust | since 2025 · until 2029 |
| Mrs Lisa Lumley-Imerson | Local Governor | Elected by school staff | since 2025 · until 2029 |
| Mrs Gillian Campbell | Local Governor | Appointed by trustees | since 2024 · until 2028 |
| Mr Craig Robinson | Local Governor | Appointed by foundation/Trust | since 2023 · until 2027 ends 2027 |
| Mr Daniel Wheatley | Local Governor | Appointed by foundation/Trust | since 2023 · until 2027 ends 2027 |
| Mrs Kirsten Julia Lightfoot | Local Governor | Appointed by foundation/Trust | since 2022 · until 2030 |
| Mrs Rachael Dobinson Former | Local Governor | Appointed by foundation/Trust | since 2025 · term ended 2026 |
Source: Department for Education, Get Information about Schools (governance records, as at 25 October 2026). Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Names are shown as published; there are no addresses or contact details. Current and former are worked out from term end dates when the page loads. Object or ask for removal · Report an issue with this record