OFSTED
Latest graded inspection
13 September 2022
Latest published outcome
Good
OEIF
Quality of education
Good
Behaviour & attitudes
Good
Personal development
Good
Leadership & management
Good
SCHOOL DETAILS
About this school
School type
Academy converter
Phase
Secondary
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
—
Local authority
Wigan
Trust
MAKERFIELD ACADEMY TRUST
Census date
15 January 2026
PUPIL PROFILE
School community
Latest published pupil characteristics
for 2025/26.
2025/26
Total pupils
1,138
1,138 full-time ·
0 part-time
Female pupils
557
48.9% of pupils
Male pupils
581
51.1% of pupils
8.9 pts
above England
School
33.7%
Wigan
29.4%
North West
28.5%
England
24.8%
12.8 pts
below England
School
7.5%
Wigan
11.9%
North West
18.1%
England
20.3%
0.6 pts
below England
School
0.4%
Wigan
0.5%
North West
0.8%
England
1.0%
Ethnicity
Largest recorded pupil groups.
Any other White background
3.4%
39
Any other ethnic group
1.0%
11
Any other Asian background
0.8%
9
Council, regional and national comparisons
are pupil-weighted using published school
census counts.
ADDITIONAL NEEDS
Special educational needs
Pupils receiving SEN support or with an
education, health and care plan.
2025/26
Pupils with SEN
21.8%
248 of
1,138 pupils
1.0 pts
above England
England:
20.8%
SEN support
17.4%
198 pupils
England
14.8%
2.6 pts
above
EHC plans
4.4%
50 pupils
England
6.0%
1.6 pts
below
PRIMARY NEEDS
Most common identified needs
Pupils
Social, emotional & mental health
98
Moderate learning difficulty
47
Autistic spectrum disorder
33
Specific learning difficulty
29
Speech, language & communication
22
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
Attendance profile
Published Department for Education
absence data for
2024/25.
Lower absence rates are generally
better.
2024/25
ABSENCE RATE
Overall absence
9.41%
Percentage of possible sessions missed.
3.19 pts
higher than
England
School
9.41%
Wigan
6.03%
North West
6.25%
England
6.22%
ABSENCE RATE
Persistent absence
25.09%
Pupils missing 10% or more of sessions.
9.27 pts
higher than
England
School
25.09%
Wigan
15.01%
North West
15.89%
England
15.82%
ABSENCE RATE
Severe absence
5.36%
Pupils missing 50% or more of sessions.
3.55 pts
higher than
England
School
5.36%
Wigan
1.55%
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
93.6%
1.3 pts
above England
The Byrchall High School
93.6%
Benchmarks use open schools in the
same phase. Capacity utilisation is
calculated from published pupil and
capacity figures.