Tottington High School Review 2026: A community secondary focused on rebuilding consistency

Tottington High School serves local families in Tottington and the wider Bury area with a straightforward 11 to 16 offer, and an increasingly explicit focus on attendance, behaviour and re-engagement. The current leadership structure is openly described as interim, which signals a school in a transition phase rather than one claiming to have everything solved already.

The latest inspection outcome remains the headline accountability marker, and it aligns with what the school itself foregrounds across its published information, namely consistency in classroom delivery, stronger routines, and better participation in wider opportunities.

For parents, the practical question is fit. This is a mainstream local secondary that can work well for pupils who benefit from clear structure, targeted support for attendance and anxiety, and a school day that is tightly organised. It may be less suitable for families seeking a high-performing academic environment right now, as recent performance indicators and progress measures point to work still to do.

A key feature of the school’s messaging is an emphasis on inclusive culture and on students having a voice in shaping aspects of school life. This is reflected in external commentary about changes made after consultation, and in the way the school positions leadership and student roles.

Leadership visibility is unusually direct. The school publishes an extensive leadership team list and identifies the interim headteacher as Mrs L Jaunbocus-Cooper, with senior leaders holding defined portfolios across behaviour, curriculum, personal development and SEND. This clarity can be reassuring for parents who want to know who is accountable for what, particularly when a school is working through improvement priorities.

Pastoral language also shows up in specific provision, rather than only in general statements. The PEEL Centre is described as a specialist hub supporting students experiencing Emotionally Based School Avoidance (EBSA), with a focus on confidence-building, attendance improvement and paced reintegration. In a mainstream 11 to 16 school, having a named, structured approach to EBSA is a meaningful signal that the school expects to handle complexity rather than deflect it.

Ranked 2,987th in England and 10th in Bury for GCSE outcomes (FindMySchool ranking based on official data)

This sits below England average overall, placing the school within the bottom 40% of schools in England on this measure.

The attainment and progress picture is consistent with that ranking. The school’s Attainment 8 score is 40.4, and the Progress 8 score is -0.65, which indicates that, on average, students make less progress than similar students nationally from their starting points. EBacc indicators are also comparatively weak, with an average EBacc APS of 3.53 against an England benchmark of 4.08, and 6.9% achieving grades 5 or above across the EBacc measure in the available dataset.

What this means for families is not that individual children cannot do well here, but that outcomes are uneven and the school’s improvement effort needs to translate into consistently stronger teaching and assessment across subjects, particularly for students who are capable but may disengage without tight classroom routines.

If you are comparing local options, it is worth using the FindMySchool Local Hub and Comparison Tool to view nearby secondaries side by side, focusing on progress measures as well as attainment.

The school’s improvement priorities are best understood as “consistency of delivery”. Curriculum planning is described externally as more organised, with staff supported to align what is taught and when, but with unevenness still evident across subjects and classrooms. This is the central educational challenge, because inconsistency tends to affect middle attainers and vulnerable learners most sharply.

Reading support is described as targeted for those who struggle, alongside a broader attempt to raise reading profile, which suggests a school trying to rebuild foundations rather than only push exam technique at the end of Key Stage 4.

For pupils with SEND, the stated approach is that needs are identified accurately and staff are provided with guidance, but the key risk is implementation, namely whether teachers adapt learning effectively in everyday lessons. Families of children with SEND will generally benefit from asking very specific questions during visits about in-class adaptations, not only about support outside lessons.

As an 11 to 16 school, Tottington High’s post-16 story is about transition rather than sixth form results. Careers education materials explicitly encourage students to apply to more than one destination and signpost a range of local providers, including Bury College, Bolton College, Holy Cross College, Hopwood Hall College and others.

The practical implication is that students should expect structured guidance towards a range of pathways, including college routes and apprenticeships. For families, the best indicator of fit is whether your child is likely to take advantage of guidance and act on it early in Year 11. A school can provide good careers information, but it still relies on student follow-through.

Admissions are coordinated by Bury Local Authority, and the school’s published admission number for Year 7 is 210. If the school is oversubscribed, allocation is primarily by straight-line distance from home to school after priority categories, with random allocation used where distances are identical.

For September 2026 entry, the key dates published across official sources are clear: applications open 01 September 2025 and close 31 October 2025, with offers issued 02 March 2026 (emails from 9am for online applicants, letters posted for paper applications). The appeal deadline shown for Year 7 entry is 31 March 2026, with appeals heard May to July 2026.

For families assessing likelihood of offer by distance, the most reliable approach is to use FindMySchoolMap Search to calculate your exact home-to-school distance, then compare against published allocation patterns where available from official sources.

Open evenings are typically scheduled in the September to October window for the relevant entry year, so families looking ahead should expect that timing and confirm the precise date on the school and local authority pages.

Attendance and behaviour are explicit priorities. External reporting indicates behaviour is improving and the atmosphere is generally calm and orderly, while still recognising that poor behaviour can remain a barrier to learning for some pupils. Attendance improvement is also described as a focus, with processes intended to reduce persistent absence.

Two practical supports stand out in published materials. First, the school promotes a free breakfast offer through the National School Breakfast Programme, running from 8:15 until registration, which is a simple but meaningful lever for punctuality and readiness to learn. Second, the PEEL Centre is described as a targeted approach for students with EBSA, with structured reintegration plans and a blend of academic and emotional support.

Used well, these supports can make a difference for students who are anxious about school or who have slipped into poor attendance patterns. The caveat is that effectiveness depends on consistent referral, consistent follow-up, and families working in partnership with the school.

The school’s enrichment offer is more specific than many comparable secondaries, and it is best illustrated by two distinctive strands.

One is practical and land-based. The school describes Laurel Farm as a community initiative on the school site, involving animal care and volunteering, with animals including alpacas, goats, sheep, chickens and small mammals. This becomes tangible in the extra-curricular timetable itself, which includes an Animal Care Club based at the farm. For some students, especially those who learn best through responsibility and routine, this kind of provision can be a strong engagement tool.

The second strand is structured clubs that feel deliberately inclusive of different interests, not only sports. The published timetable includes Board Game and D&D, Warhammer and Gaming Networking Club, Debate Club, Chess Club, a KS3 Maker Space Club, 3D Virtual Modelling, plus subject support such as Maths Homework Club and Science Homework Club. Sport remains present with football, volleyball, badminton, basketball and trampolining across year groups.

The implication for families is that enrichment here can work as a re-engagement strategy, particularly for students who do not see themselves as “sporty” or who need a reason to stay after school. Parents should still check practicalities, such as which clubs run in which term, because the timetable is published by term.

The school day is clearly set out: students are expected on site by 8:25 for an 8:30 start, and the day ends at 3pm, with students remaining on site at lunchtime. Breakfast provision is promoted as running from 8:15 until registration.

Transport information is framed around local bus services and Transport for Greater Manchester guidance, including concessionary travel via the IGO pass for eligible students, and references to school bus arrangements where applicable. For cycling, the school notes bike facilities and expectations around safe, sensible cycling and secure locking.

• Academic track record is still rebuilding. Recent performance indicators and progress measures point to inconsistency across subjects, so families should look closely at how the school is improving classroom routines and assessment, and how quickly that is translating into better outcomes.

• Behaviour and attendance priorities may reflect lived challenges. Published information indicates improvement work is underway, but some disruption and absence issues remain. Families should ask how behaviour support is implemented day to day, and what happens when learning is disrupted.

• Leadership is explicitly interim in key roles. An interim structure can bring pace and clarity, but it also suggests continuing change. Families who prefer long-settled leadership teams may want to understand the school’s next steps for permanent appointments.

• Support for anxiety and EBSA is a clear feature, but it needs partnership. The PEEL Centre model suggests a serious approach, yet success usually depends on consistent family engagement and agreed routines at home as well as in school.

Tottington High School is a mainstream local secondary with a visible focus on tightening routines, improving attendance and strengthening classroom consistency. It will suit families who value structured support, clear pastoral pathways for anxiety and EBSA, and an enrichment offer that gives students different ways to connect with school life. The main challenge is that academic outcomes and progress indicators still sit below England average, so parents should weigh improvement momentum and day-to-day teaching consistency carefully before committing.