Key Information
Cheetwood Community Primary School is located on the north side of Manchester, but within very close walking distance of the city centre. The school is situated on the junction of two major roads into/out of the city. Manchester Prison (formerly Strangeways) is 200 metres away and the school is largely surrounded by industrial and retail units.
Cheetwood is very close to both the Salford and Bury borders. In July 2021, the outgoing Y6 cohort fed into 10 different high schools within 3 different local authorities. This has a significant influence on the quality and complexity of the school’s transition processes, further compunded in 2021 with the additional challenge of schools unable to undertake face to face transition activities due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The school’s population is richly diverse. 96% of pupils are from minority ethnic backgrounds (an increase of 4% in the last two academic years), which is three times the national average, with 31 different minority groups being represented in the school, also an increase on last year. 82% of pupils speak English as an additional language, which is four times the national average. Of these EAL pupils, 24% of them are at the early stages of English acquisition, which is a 5% increase on last year. 34 different languages are represented in the school, which is broadly the same as last year.
During the Ofsted inspection in March 2018, inspectors judged that “The school’s curriculum strongly supports pupils’ language development. This helps pupils, particularly those who speak English as an additional language, to make good progress in their learning”.
The multicultural and diverse nature of the school contributes significantly to its positive ethos.
Ofsted inspectors also judged that “This is a highly inclusive school……work to promote pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is highly effective……leaders value highly the ‘richness of beliefs, cultures and experiences’ of pupils and staff”.
48% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, which is a 5% increase since last year, more than twice the national average (21%) and also higher than the Manchester average.
14.6% of learners at Cheetwood have ‘additional support’ for high levels of special educational needs which is an increase of 5% since last year. This is broadly in line with the national average, but when broken down, the school has a higher % of pupils with education, health and care plans (ie those pupils with the most complex of needs).
The school’s rates of transience remain very high and continue to increase year on year. Last academic year, 78 pupils left or came to the school other than at the normal time of admission, this is 41% of the school population. This is an increase on 2020/2021 when the school experienced 36% transience (with 72 pupils leaving or coming to the school other than at the normal time of admission). In spite of regular changes to the pupil population, pupil behaviour is consistently very good. High mobility has not acted as a barrier to learning or disrupted lessons but in fact the consistently good behaviour has greatly supported the inclusion of new pupils into the school community.
Parents/carers rarely need to raise a concern or issue with the school but when this does occur, records and logs show that matters are resolved quickly and satisfactorily. Based upon the strong partnerships already in existence with parents/carers, the school was one of the first schools in Manchester to receive accreditation for the nationally recognised Leading Parent Partnership Award.
Consultation with parents/carers is a strength of the school and opportunities to seek the views and opinions of stakeholders are planned throughout the year. This includes the Ofsted ‘Parent View’ questionnaire and bespoke surveys linked to school improvement priorities.
Please see our Parent/Carers page on this website for information on surveys and consultations the school has undertaken over the last few years.
