Edenfield Girls’ High School Review 2026: Small, faith-based secondary with a clear ethos and growing exam track record

A compact 11–16 setting can make school feel more personal, but only if routines, teaching and safeguarding are consistently well organised. Edenfield Girls’ High School is building that structure quickly, with a strong faith-based identity and a curriculum designed to take students through GCSE. The school opened in September 2019, so it is still comparatively young by secondary standards.

External evaluation is recent and relevant. The April 2024 routine inspection by the Independent Schools Inspectorate (ISI) confirmed that the required Independent School Standards are met, including safeguarding.

This is a girls-only school with an explicitly Islamic ethos, and that identity is not a bolt-on. The school describes itself as a faith-based independent girls’ school, and frames daily expectations around values that are repeatedly referenced in its communications: Excellence, Growth, Happiness, and Service.

The atmosphere is shaped by scale as much as ethos. With a published capacity of 130, the day-to-day experience is likely to feel tighter and more familiar than in a large comprehensive, with fewer layers between families and senior staff. Smaller schools can be quicker to respond to issues because lines of communication are short; they can also feel exposed when staffing changes, timetable constraints, or specialist gaps appear. The most useful way to assess “fit” here is to focus on how well the school balances warmth and structure: clear behaviour routines, consistent teaching habits, and an agreed approach to pastoral support.

Leadership visibility matters in schools of this size. The headteacher is listed as Dr Sayeid Al-Jamee on the school’s own contact information, and the government register also lists Dr Mohammad Sayeid-Al-Jamee as headteacher. The public sources do not consistently publish an appointment date, so families who want that detail should ask directly at an open event.

Because this is an independent 11–16 school, the headline question is less about sixth form outcomes and more about how confidently the GCSE programme is established. On FindMySchool’s GCSE outcomes ranking (based on official data), Edenfield Girls’ High School is ranked 2,512th in England and 12th in Blackburn. This places performance broadly in line with the middle 35% of schools in England (25th to 60th percentile).

In the most recent available GCSE performance metrics, the school’s Attainment 8 score is 46.1, and the EBacc average point score is 4.35. The recorded percentage achieving grade 5 or above in EBacc is 0%, which can occur in small or atypical cohorts where entry patterns are unusual. The safest interpretation is to treat EBacc entry, subject choice, and cohort size as areas to clarify directly with the school when reviewing the curriculum offer for Key Stage 4.

Parents comparing local options should use the FindMySchool Local Hub page to view these results side-by-side using the Comparison Tool, especially where cohort sizes vary and single-year swings can look dramatic.

Curriculum intent is ambitious and explicit: the school states that the curriculum should lead to recognised qualifications, meet statutory requirements, and be supported by careers education that connects students with employers and professions. The site also describes careers activity that has included a careers fair with over 60 employers exhibiting, alongside visitors from professional fields such as software engineering, pharmacy and medicine.

In practical classroom terms, the latest inspection evidence points to a teaching model that relies on structured schemes of work, regular checking for understanding, and individual support. Subject examples in the April 2024 report include structured questioning in humanities and practical work in science, with students using appropriate materials to investigate Hooke’s Law in physics. The same report also references consistent expectations around literacy and vocabulary, including dedicated silent reading in form time and explicit work on examination language in chemistry.

For families, the implication is clear. Students who thrive on well-scaffolded lessons, frequent feedback, and clear expectations should find the approach reassuring. Students who want a very broad creative menu in Key Stage 4 should check options early, because creative and aesthetic pathways are an area where the school is still developing depth for older year groups.

As an 11–16 school, Edenfield Girls’ High School’s “next steps” picture centres on progression to post-16 providers rather than A-level outcomes on site. The school positions careers guidance as a core strand, including employer engagement and exposure to a range of professions.

What families should look for during admissions discussions is specificity: which local sixth forms and colleges are most common destinations, what guidance is provided for GCSE option choices, and how the school supports applications for competitive post-16 pathways. For students considering medicine, computing, or other high-demand routes, the most relevant proxy measures at 11–16 are the strength of science and mathematics teaching, the quality of careers guidance, and the school’s capacity to support structured independent study habits ahead of GCSE.

Entry is managed directly by the school rather than through a local authority coordinated process. The school publishes a clear sequence for September 2026 entry, including an autumn open evening, a late-October application deadline, entrance testing in late January, interviews in February, and outcome notifications by 1 March.

For September 2026 intake specifically, the published information includes:

• Open Evening: 8 October 2025 (5pm to 7pm)

• Application deadline: 31 October 2025

• Entrance exam invitations: mid-January 2026; exams usually by end of January

• Interviews: February 2026; decisions by 1 March

Because published pages can occasionally contain legacy wording (for example, older year references), families should rely on the dated timetable above and confirm any finer details, such as the content of entrance assessments and the number of places available.

Parents who are distance-sensitive (for example, balancing travel time against after-school commitments) can use FindMySchool Map Search to estimate journey time from home to the school area before committing to the admissions process.

Pastoral provision is framed around clear moral expectations and a sense of responsibility to the wider community. The school explicitly values service, and its extracurricular and wider life includes charity activity and student involvement in organising events, which can be a meaningful leadership route for students who do well with responsibility.

Wellbeing support is also tied to PSHE education and whole-school events. The school references themed activity such as Children’s Mental Health awareness week, and the latest inspection evidence points to pupils feeling safe with trusted adults available.

Students with special educational needs and disabilities can receive individual support, but the school is still strengthening how it communicates support strategies and progress evaluation for students with SEND and their parents. For families considering admission with additional needs, that is a key discussion point: ask how support plans are shared, how progress is reviewed, and how student voice is built into the process.

Extracurricular life is a useful indicator of how a small school builds confidence, teamwork and leadership without relying on scale. Edenfield Girls’ High School gives a relatively concrete picture of what “beyond lessons” can look like, with activities that mix recreation, practical skills, mentoring, trips and student-led roles.

Examples currently referenced by the school include:

• Youth Club, using a dedicated games room and an adjoining sports hall, which provides a structured social space as well as physical activity.

• Embroidery classes, where small groups learn stitching skills, a practical option that suits students who enjoy detailed work and patience-led progress.

• Peer mentoring (ASDAN) involving Year 10 students supporting peers towards goals, a clear leadership and responsibility pathway.

• PGL residential, described as including activities such as raft building, orienteering and a giant zipwire, which can be valuable for confidence and independence.

• Trip to Manchester for a Van Gogh exhibition, a specific cultural enrichment example that adds breadth for students with interest in art and wider culture.

• World Book Day door displays, where students decorate doors with book covers, reinforcing reading culture in a public, shared way.

The implication for families is twofold. First, there is evidence of enrichment that is not purely sport-led or purely academic. Second, the range is still developing, and students who want an unusually large menu of specialist clubs should check what runs weekly versus what runs as one-off events or termly rotations.

As an independent school, Edenfield Girls’ High School charges tuition fees. The most consistently published figure in current public directories is £2,400 per term for day students (excluding VAT). Scholarships and bursaries are commonly listed as not available, so families needing support should verify directly whether any means-tested assistance is offered in practice, and what payment schedules are available.

Even in fee-paying settings, parents should budget for additional costs such as uniform, educational visits, and any optional tuition or trips that sit outside the core timetable. The exact mix varies by year group and by student choices.

The published academic calendar confirms that the school year for 2025/26 begins on Tuesday 2 September 2025, and it also references planned inset days and observance-related dates within the year.

Daily start and finish times are not currently set out clearly on the public pages, so families who need wraparound clarity (for example, for work commitments or shared custody arrangements) should request the latest bell schedule directly.

For travel, Nelson railway station is the closest rail link, with onward walking or local bus connections depending on the route.

• Curriculum breadth at Key Stage 4. Older students have more limited choice to develop learning in aesthetic and creative subjects, so students who prioritise art-heavy or design-heavy pathways should check GCSE option breadth early.

• Extracurricular range is still maturing. There are specific clubs, trips and leadership routes, but the wider menu is not yet as extensive as in a large secondary, so students who want multiple weekly specialist activities may need to be selective.

• Systems are still being tightened. The April 2024 report highlighted the need to strengthen oversight of staff training renewal, which matters in safeguarding-heavy environments where training cycles must be tracked precisely.

• Fees without published financial aid. With fee information publicly listed alongside “no bursaries or scholarships”, affordability may be a limiting factor for some families unless alternative arrangements are available.

Edenfield Girls’ High School will suit families seeking a small, girls-only 11–16 setting with a clearly articulated Islamic ethos and a structured approach to teaching and pastoral expectations. The strongest fit is for students who benefit from close relationships, clear routines, and a school culture that connects learning with behaviour and moral formation. The main decision point is whether the school’s developing breadth, particularly in creative options and the depth of weekly enrichment, matches what your daughter will want by Years 9 to 11.