Longdendale High School

Longdendale High School is improving after its previous inspection, with strong and determined leadership driving positive change and rising standards. Behaviour and attitudes, personal development and leadership and management are good, and safeguarding is effective, but the quality of education still requires improvement because some pupils, especially those with SEND and disadvantaged pupils, do not achieve as well as they should. The school has overhauled its curriculum so that learning is well sequenced across key stages, and many teachers have strong subject knowledge and check understanding effectively. However, delivery is uneven in some subjects, the revised SEND offer is too new to have full impact, and older pupils have not benefited from the renewed reading support. Pupils feel happy and safe, behave well, attend more regularly, and benefit from a rich personal development programme and careers provision. The school is part of The Stamford Park Trust and remains on a rapid improvement journey.

Strengths

• Strong and determined leadership has driven positive change and rising standards.
• The curriculum has been overhauled and is well designed and sequenced across key stages.
• Many teachers have strong subject knowledge and use effective checks for understanding.
• Pupils feel happy and safe and typically behave well in class and around school.
• Personal development is a strength, with pupils learning about safety, healthy relationships and diversity.
• A wide range of clubs and activities supports pupils’ broader development.
• The careers programme is well designed and helps pupils move to high-quality destinations.
• Attendance has improved and is close to the national average.
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective.
• Staff receive quality training and leaders consider workload and well-being.

Areas for Improvement

• The quality of education requires improvement.
• Curriculum delivery is uneven in some subjects, which hinders some pupils’ learning.
• Some teachers are still developing the expertise needed to deliver their subject curriculums well.
• The revised SEND offer is in its early stages and some pupils with SEND do not get the support they need.
• Some older pupils have not benefited from the renewed approach to identifying and addressing reading gaps.
• Weaknesses in curriculum delivery and SEND implementation prevent some pupils, particularly disadvantaged pupils, from reaching their full potential.
• Published 2024 key stage 4 data do not yet reflect the improvements made to the curriculum.

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 Longdendale High School attended 90.0% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 27.4% 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, 15.3% of pupils at Longdendale High School 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 Longdendale High School had 16.7 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 17.8% 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, 11.1% of pupils at Longdendale High School were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 4.2% 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 Longdendale High School received £8,082 and spent £8,573 for each of its 784 pupils. It ended the year with a deficit of £61,000 (-£78 per pupil).

Across all 4 schools of Stamford Park Trust, income was £7,264 and spending £7,263 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 Hyde · Tameside local authority: places and applications

Longdendale High School is part of Stamford Park Trust, which runs 4 schools. The nearest others:

• Rayner Stephens High School Dukinfield
• Ashton Sixth Form College Ashton-Under-Lyne
• Fairfield High School for Girls Manchester

What is Longdendale High School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Longdendale High School is Requires Improvement, from an inspection in May 2025.

When was Longdendale High School last inspected by Ofsted?

Longdendale High School was last inspected in May 2025.

How many pupils does Longdendale High School have?

Longdendale High School has 795 pupils on roll.

What age range does Longdendale High School cover?

Longdendale High School for pupils aged 11 to 16.

What are Longdendale High School's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 40.1, and 37% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Longdendale High School?

Longdendale High School is at Spring Street, Hyde, SK14 8LW.