a school not in a category of concern of Edgar Wood Academy

Store Street Manchester M1 2WD T 0300 123 1231 www.gov.uk/ofsted

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Paul Jones Headteacher Edgar Wood Academy Heywood Old Road Heywood OL10 2QN

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Academy

This letter sets out the findings from the monitoring inspection that took place on 7 May 2025, on behalf of His Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills. The monitoring inspection was carried out under section 8(2) of the Education Act 2005 and took place because the school meets the monitoring threshold as set out in the Monitoring Inspection Handbook .

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Academy

The purpose of a monitoring inspection is not to grade the school’s key and (where applicable) provision judgements, but to identify and report on the school’s progress. It is to highlight to the school and parents any improvements that school leaders have made since the school’s previous graded inspection.

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Academy

During the inspection, I discussed with you and other senior leaders, officers of the trust, including the chief executive officer (CEO) and the chair of trustees, and a representative of the local authority the actions that have been taken to improve the school since the most recent graded inspection. We discussed the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. I also visited a sample of lessons, met with groups of pupils and observed their behaviour at different points of the school day. I have considered all of this in coming to my judgement.

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Main findings

Since the previous inspection in November 2023, the trust has helped to bolster the school’s leadership. Alongside your appointment as headteacher, several other new senior and middle leaders have taken up their posts. The school has continued to grow in size by admitting pupils into Year 10 in 2024. Despite some current staffing gaps, the school has successfully made sure that all posts will be filled in readiness for the next academic year. This is in anticipation of having a full complement of pupils in Years 7 to 11 by September 2025.

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Main findings

The school has prioritised developing a positive climate for learning. Expectations of pupils’ behaviour have been raised. In many lessons, learning now proceeds without disruption. The school has successfully established and rapidly embedded many new routines. These are helping pupils feel happier, safer and better prepared to learn than in the past. Pupils who spoke to me during this inspection keenly recognised the improvements that the school has made. In addition, overall attendance rates are improving. The school has been tenacious in its approach to supporting the minority of pupils who still do not behave well or attend regularly. Suspensions, while still high in number, are reducing. The school has championed an inclusive approach to providing supportive alternatives to suspension where appropriate. A renewed collaboration with external agencies, including the local authority, is helping with this.

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Main findings

The school has further developed its curriculum to encompass key stage 4. There are now clear end points for pupils to work towards. These improvements reflect a shared ambition between the school and the trust to improve the quality of education for all pupils. Work to embed a consistent set of teaching strategies is supporting staff to teach the curriculum more effectively than in the past. Pupils typically experience a better quality of education in many subjects, particularly those where staffing has been stabilised. They are beginning to remember more of what they have learned, giving them a more secure foundation of knowledge on which to build.

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Main findings

Some other aspects of the school’s work to develop teaching are ongoing. For example, the ways in which staff use assessment strategies to check how well pupils are learning the curriculum are not consistently effective. Furthermore, the school’s provision for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) is at an early stage of development. Systems to identify and assess pupils’ needs have been re-established. However, the information from these systems is not used to consistent effect by staff. This means that some pupils with SEND do not benefit from effective support to overcome barriers to their learning. This is also the case for pupils with gaps in their reading knowledge.

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Main findings

Leaders at trust and school level have worked with greater synergy since the previous inspection. This has helped to provide a clearer and more accurate understanding of the aspects of the school that require further development. At times, some of the school’s sound intentions have been hindered by difficulties in recruitment. When necessary, the trust has taken decisive action to ensure leadership continuity. However, some planned improvements are not as far forward as the school had intended.

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Main findings

The trust has also strengthened its oversight of the school. This provides both staff and trustees with increased confidence that the school’s actions and priorities are likely to lead to the necessary improvements. School leaders value the trust’s support with quality assurance. There is a clear, collegiate sense of staff and leaders at all levels working together in the best interests of pupils.

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Main findings

I am copying this letter to the chair of the board of trustees, and the CEO for the Altus Education Partnership, the Department for Education’s regional director and the director of children’s services for Rochdale. This letter will be published on the Ofsted reports website.

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