The Hathershaw College

The Hathershaw College is a school in a period of significant change, with new leadership at both school and trust level. The recent inspection found the school to be performing at the expected standard in attendance and behaviour, inclusion, and personal development and wellbeing, but identified areas needing attention in achievement, curriculum and teaching, and leadership and governance. Pupils are proud of their school, feel safe, and behave well. They benefit from a well-designed personal development programme and strong inclusion practices, particularly for pupils with hearing impairments. However, historically, pupils have not achieved well enough by the time they leave, with 2025 outcomes below national averages. Leaders have introduced new systems to improve teaching and assessment, but these are recent and have yet to demonstrate sustained impact. The school is part of the Pinnacle Learning Trust and serves a disadvantaged community, with nearly half of pupils eligible for free school meals.

Strengths

• Pupils behave well and have positive attitudes to learning
• Leaders have improved attendance, especially for disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND
• The school is an inclusive community with a strong sense of belonging
• Pupils with specific needs, such as hearing impairment, are well supported
• The personal development programme is well designed and prepares pupils for life in modern Britain
• Pupils feel safe and are well cared for
• Disadvantaged pupils attend regularly and achieve well
• Leaders have established purposeful working partnerships with other schools and professionals
• Governors and trustees understand their roles and hold leaders to account appropriately
• Most parents would recommend the school and consider their children safe and happy

Areas for Improvement

• Pupils have not achieved well enough by the time they leave, with 2025 results below national averages
• New assessment systems are not yet embedded and have not demonstrated sustained impact on learning
• Teachers do not consistently identify and address gaps in pupils' knowledge quickly enough
• Some older pupils, such as those in Year 11, do not receive the help they need to close reading gaps
• Leaders' actions to support pupils' writing skills are less well developed
• Leaders did not make changes to bring about improvements quickly enough until recently
• Many renewed strategies are recent and it is too soon to see sustained impact
• Some staff feel their workload is not considered well enough
• Participation in extracurricular activities is low for most pupils
• Pupils are not as well prepared for the next steps in their learning as they should be

Admissions: local authority offers data from the Department for Education. A school is oversubscribed when at least 5% of the families who put it first were not offered a place, and undersubscribed when everyone who put it first got in but 10% or more of its places were unfilled in the Department's school capacity survey (the latest survey is used for entry years it does not cover). Places: Department for Education, School capacity, from local authorities' annual survey as at 1 May. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024–25); the survey was not run in 2020. Places include sixth form places. Forecasts are the local authority's own for the school's planning area, an area it uses to plan places that is not the school's catchment area. The forecast starts from a head count in 2025; the dashed line is the Department's estimate of places in that area, including those the authority has firm plans for. Planned places are cumulative, and only those with firm plans are counted.

In 2024–25 pupils at The Hathershaw College attended 92.4% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 24.2% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 23.4%).

Sessions missed

Pupils persistently absent

Source: Department for Education, Pupil absence in schools in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Persistent absence means missing 10% or more of sessions; severe absence means 50% or more. No figures were published for 2019/20.

In 2024–25, 8.7% of pupils at The Hathershaw College were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). 5 pupils were permanently excluded.

Pupils suspended at least once

Source: Department for Education, Suspensions and permanent exclusions in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). A pupil can be suspended more than once, so suspensions per 100 pupils can be higher than the share of pupils suspended. Very small numbers are hidden by the DfE. Exclusion figures dropped in 2020 and 2021 because of school closures.

In 2025–26 The Hathershaw College had 15.8 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 12.5% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 14.1%).

Pupils per teacher

Teachers who left the school within a year

Source: Department for Education, School workforce in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Pupils per teacher counts full-time-equivalent pupils and teachers. Turnover is the share of a year's teachers (full-time equivalent) who were not at the school the following year, whether they moved to another school or left state-funded teaching. Turnover and sickness figures run one year behind the ratios. Sick leave is the share of teachers who took at least one day in the year, so it swings widely at small schools, where a few teachers can make it 0% or 100%. The national figures are for all state schools of the same type.

In 2025–26, 15.1% of pupils at The Hathershaw College were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 5.4% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 3.5%).

Pupils by main type of need

Source: Department for Education, Special educational needs in England (the 2025–26 school census). SEN support is extra help in school without an EHC plan. National figures are for all state-funded secondary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2024–25 The Hathershaw College received £8,918 and spent £9,144 for each of its 1,054 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £198,000 (£188 per pupil).

Across all 5 schools of The Pinnacle Learning Trust, income was £7,508 and spending £7,769 per pupil.

Income per pupil

Spending per pupil

Source: Department for Education, Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool. Each year is the one the financial year ends in (2024 is 2023–24). Academy figures include a share of the trust's central services, shared out by pupil numbers, and are rounded to the nearest £1,000. Premises costs were defined differently from 2024, so compare them across that gap with care.

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Oldham · Oldham local authority: places and applications

The Hathershaw College is part of The Pinnacle Learning Trust, which runs 5 schools. The nearest others:

• Broadfield Primary School Oldham
• Werneth Primary School Oldham
• Alexandra Park Junior School Oldham
• Oldham Sixth Form College Oldham

What is The Hathershaw College's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for The Hathershaw College is Needs attention, from an inspection in June 2026.

When was The Hathershaw College last inspected by Ofsted?

The Hathershaw College was last inspected in June 2026.

How many pupils does The Hathershaw College have?

The Hathershaw College has 1,034 pupils on roll.

What age range does The Hathershaw College cover?

The Hathershaw College for pupils aged 11 to 16.

What are The Hathershaw College's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 35.2, and 20% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is The Hathershaw College?

The Hathershaw College is at Bellfield Avenue, Hathershaw, Oldham, Greater Manchester, OL8 3EP.