Irlam and Cadishead Academy Review 2026: A standards-led 11 to 16 academy with improving confidence

A clear message runs through Irlam and Cadishead Academy: high standards, consistent routines, and a strong sense that students should be proud of their work. The academy’s own language focuses on ambition and character, and that aligns with what external evidence highlights about behaviour and pastoral support.

For parents, the most useful headline is that this is a state-funded school (no tuition fees), part of United Learning, and currently graded Good. The setting is practical for local families too, with straightforward public transport links and a school day that is explicitly structured from arrival to after-school activities.

Academically, the school sits broadly in line with the middle 35% of secondary schools in England (25th to 60th percentile) for GCSE outcomes, based on FindMySchool’s ranking methodology using official data. That makes it a credible, community-facing option rather than a results outlier, with a clear emphasis on improving consistency and expectations.

The academy’s culture is built around routine, expectations, and a strong pastoral spine. Students are described as happy and safe, with positive relationships between students and staff, and behaviour expectations that are consistently applied. That matters because a calm baseline is what allows learning to happen well, particularly for students who benefit from predictable structures.

The school’s ethos places heavy weight on respect, enthusiasm, ambition, and determination. In practice, that reads as a culture where staff want students to take learning seriously, show up prepared, and build confidence through small wins that accumulate over time. One distinctive detail is the weekly Proud Table approach, which encourages students to articulate what they are proud of and why. It is a simple mechanism, but it reinforces a growth mindset and helps students talk about progress in a concrete way.

Irlam and Cadishead Academy is part of United Learning, which gives it a wider organisational structure and shared approach to standards and character education. In schools like this, trust membership tends to show up in consistent policy frameworks, shared training expectations, and an emphasis on common routines that make behaviour and safeguarding more reliable.

Leadership is clear. The Principal is Mr Chris Leader.

This is a school where the published figures suggest steady, mainstream performance rather than extremes. Ranked 2,574th in England and 54th in Manchester for GCSE outcomes (FindMySchool ranking based on official data), results sit in line with the middle 35% of schools in England (25th to 60th percentile).

At GCSE level, the academy’s Attainment 8 score is 40.5. Progress 8 is -0.07, which indicates outcomes that are close to national norms, with a small negative tilt relative to prior attainment. That is not a dramatic gap, but it is the kind of metric parents should interpret as “broadly typical, with room to strengthen consistency across subjects”.

EBacc outcomes point to a narrower pipeline. The percentage achieving grades 5 or above in the English Baccalaureate is 15.1, and the average EBacc APS is 3.7. For families who value a strongly academic EBacc pathway for a wide proportion of the cohort, this is worth noting early, then discussing directly with the school in the context of options and curriculum breadth.

Teaching is framed around an ambitious curriculum and consistent delivery. The academy presents its curriculum openly by subject area, including long-term plans across year groups, which is often a good sign for coherence and sequencing. A separate emphasis on literacy and oracy supports the idea that learning is not just about content coverage, it is also about how students communicate, explain, and justify their thinking.

There is also a practical, structured feel to how the day is organised. Students are expected to be on site and ready for learning by 08:25, with a clear sequence through form time, five lesson periods, and a planned after-school window. That level of clarity tends to support students who thrive with predictability, and it reduces low-level disruption that can otherwise undermine learning.

Careers education appears to be deliberately integrated rather than bolted on at the end. Published information links careers provision to the Gatsby Benchmarks, and the academy places careers in a wider ASPIRE framework that includes trips, speakers, and guidance as students move toward GCSE options and post-16 decisions.

Where Students Go Next

The age range is 11 to 16, so the key transition is post-16. The school’s own framing is that students are prepared for their next steps through a thought-out careers programme that helps them connect subject learning to future pathways. Practically, that usually means students progressing into sixth form, further education colleges, apprenticeships, or training routes depending on attainment and personal preference.

A helpful feature is that aspiration starts early. The ASPIRE programme describes an aspirational university visit in Year 7, then builds through encounters, visits, and careers guidance as students approach GCSE decisions. For many families, that matters as much as headline destination statistics, because it shapes confidence and awareness, particularly for students who do not have professional networks at home.

Because published destination percentages are not available in the provided dataset for this school, parents should use open events and Year 9 and Year 11 guidance materials to understand how the school supports post-16 decision-making, including local provider relationships and how the school advises on academic versus technical routes.

Admissions are processed through Salford City Council, rather than directly through the academy. For September 2026 entry, the academy’s website highlights an application deadline of Friday 31 October 2025, which is consistent with the usual Year 6 autumn application window.

Demand looks manageable compared with some urban secondaries. The local authority’s published information for offer day (1 March 2025) shows 212 applications and that all applicants were offered, with vacancies remaining. In other words, this does not read as a “near impossible to access” school in the way that some heavily oversubscribed academies can be, although year-to-year variation always matters.

If the school becomes oversubscribed, published criteria prioritise pupils with an Education, Health and Care Plan naming the school, then looked-after and previously looked-after children, then siblings, then certain exceptional medical or social cases, then children of staff recruited to fill a skills-shortage area, then other children, with distance used as a tie-break. For families weighing a move, FindMySchool’s Map Search is a practical way to compare your home-to-school distance against typical allocation patterns in your area.

The school encourages parents to book a tour during the school day. That is particularly useful here because the day is built around routines and expectations, and those are best assessed by seeing transitions, lesson starts, and the general calm of corridors.

Pastoral support is a clear strength. Students are described as feeling safe, benefiting from strong pastoral support, and having good relationships with staff. Behaviour expectations are explicit and tied to routines that students follow, which helps learning stay focused.

Wellbeing is also reflected in the academy’s support signposting for families, including guidance towards external organisations and a framework for keeping children safe. Schools that make this visible tend to be proactive about early support and consistent safeguarding culture, rather than reactive once a situation escalates.

Food and morning readiness are also treated seriously. The school offers a free breakfast provision in the morning window before line up, which supports punctuality and reduces the “start of day” stress that can derail concentration for some students.

Extracurricular life is not presented as an optional extra, it is designed to reinforce character, belonging, and confidence.

Clubs and enrichment have specific examples that help parents understand the flavour. A lunchtime board games club is highlighted as active and social, with friendly competition between students and staff. The carbon research club has a defined mission aimed at making the school carbon zero, which is a strong example of student leadership meeting real-world problem solving. E-sports activity is also referenced, which will appeal to students who prefer competitive digital spaces over traditional sport.

The ASPIRE structure strengthens this further by linking involvement to practical outcomes. Students are encouraged to join a team, get involved in the community, and build a can-do attitude. Houses are used to create belonging, with competitions and points that culminate in Sports Day. For some students, that sense of team identity can be the difference between simply attending and genuinely engaging.

Facilities support breadth. Published information about community lettings lists a floodlit 3G pitch, dance studio, sports hall, a multi-use games area, a main hall, classrooms, a dining hall, and on-site parking. Even if a student is not sporty, a site with a proper range of spaces usually supports a wider menu of clubs and enrichment after school.

The academy runs a clearly structured day. Students are expected to be in school ready for learning by 08:25, with the formal day running until 15:00 and an additional 15:00 to 16:00 window used for Year 11 support and extracurricular clubs for Years 7 to 10.

Transport is straightforward. The school is described as a short walk from Irlam Station, and bus routes are also referenced. There is provision for students who cycle or scooter, including on-site storage, plus a defined drop-off point for families arriving by car.

• GCSE performance is broadly typical rather than exceptional. The school sits in line with the middle 35% of secondary schools in England for GCSE outcomes, with a Progress 8 of -0.07. Families seeking a strongly academic, high-attaining outlier may want to benchmark alternatives using FindMySchool’s Comparison Tool.

• EBacc outcomes look relatively modest. With 15.1% achieving grades 5 or above in the EBacc, parents who prioritise a strong EBacc pipeline for a large share of the cohort should ask how language uptake, humanities entry, and academic stretch are handled in key stage 4.

• Admissions information can be confusing in published sources. Different published documents reference different Year 7 numbers for different contexts and years. Parents should rely on the current admissions policy for the entry year they are applying for, and confirm the planned intake for September 2026 directly through official admissions materials.

• After-school time is meaningful here. Clubs and enrichment run in the 15:00 to 16:00 window. For families managing transport or caring responsibilities, it is worth planning early how often your child can realistically stay for clubs, since participation is part of the school’s character offer.

Irlam and Cadishead Academy is a standards-led, community-facing secondary where routines, behaviour, and pastoral support underpin day-to-day learning. Results suggest broadly typical GCSE performance, with clear signs of ambition and improvement focus rather than complacency. Best suited to families who want a structured, expectations-driven school culture with accessible admissions, practical transport links, and a purposeful enrichment offer that includes both traditional sport and modern interests such as e-sports and environmental projects.