OFSTED
2 June 2026
Latest inspection
Latest published outcome
Met
Renewed framework
Safeguarding
Met
Inclusion
Expected standard
Curriculum & teaching
Expected standard
Achievement
Expected standard
Attendance & behaviour
Expected standard
Personal development
Expected standard
Leadership & governance
Expected standard
INSPECTION HISTORY
Previous Ofsted activity
21 November 2023
Graded inspection
Requires improvement
Published
18 January 2024
SCHOOL DETAILS
About this school
School type
Free schools
Phase
Secondary
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
—
Local authority
Rochdale
Trust
ALTUS EDUCATION PARTNERSHIP
Census date
15 January 2026
PUPIL PROFILE
2025/26
School community
Latest published pupil characteristics for 2025/26.
Total pupils
729
729 full-time ·
0 part-time
Female pupils
338
46.4% of pupils
Male pupils
391
53.6% of pupils
Free school meals
Pupils eligible for free school meals.
17.9 pts
above England
School
42.7%
Rochdale
33.0%
North West
28.5%
England
24.8%
English as an additional language
Pupils whose first language is not English.
3.6 pts
below England
School
16.7%
Rochdale
27.4%
North West
18.1%
England
20.3%
Young carers
Pupils recorded as young carers.
0.7 pts
below England
School
0.3%
Rochdale
0.5%
North West
0.8%
England
1.0%
Ethnicity
Largest recorded pupil groups.
White British
66.3%
483
African
8.0%
58
Any other White background
6.7%
49
Pakistani
3.8%
28
Any other Mixed background
2.9%
21
White and Black Caribbean
2.1%
15
Council, regional and national comparisons
are pupil-weighted using published school
census counts.
ADDITIONAL NEEDS
2025/26
Special educational needs
Pupils receiving SEN support or with an education, health and care plan.
Pupils with SEN
20.2%
147 of
729 pupils
0.7 pts
below England
England:
20.8%
England
14.8%
2.1 pts
above
England
6.0%
2.7 pts
below
PRIMARY NEEDS
Pupils
Most common identified needs
SEN comparisons are pupil-weighted using published 2025/26 Department for Education school-level data. Primary needs combine pupils receiving SEN support and pupils with EHC plans.
ATTENDANCE & ABSENCE
2024/25
Attendance profile
Published Department for Education absence data for 2024/25. Lower absence rates are generally better.
ABSENCE RATE
9.72%
Overall absence
Percentage of possible sessions missed.
3.51 pts
higher than
England
School
9.72%
Rochdale
6.78%
North West
6.25%
England
6.22%
ABSENCE RATE
30.74%
Persistent absence
Pupils missing 10% or more of sessions.
14.92 pts
higher than
England
School
30.74%
Rochdale
18.20%
North West
15.89%
England
15.82%
ABSENCE RATE
5.88%
Severe absence
Pupils missing 50% or more of sessions.
4.08 pts
higher than
England
School
5.88%
Rochdale
2.12%
North West
1.75%
England
1.80%
Council, regional and national
comparisons are averages of published
school-level percentages rather than
pupil-weighted official absence rates.
HOW DOES IT COMPARE?
School context
Comparison with open secondary schools.
CAPACITY
Capacity utilisation
81.0%
11.3 pts
below England
Edgar Wood Academy
81.0%
Rochdale
95.0%
North West
91.8%
England
92.3%
Benchmarks use open schools in the
same phase. Capacity utilisation is
calculated from published pupil and
capacity figures.