This is a small independent secondary provision in Middlesbrough, designed for students who have struggled to thrive in mainstream education and need a reset that combines academic teaching with intensive personal support. The model is built around removing barriers to learning and rebuilding routines, with a day that starts in a deliberately social, settling way (including breakfast together) before lessons move into short, focused blocks.
The provision operates across two sites, with students accessing different facilities and subject areas across the week. Transport between sites is part of the operating plan, supported by a minibus fleet.
For families, the most important practical point is admissions. Places are not applied for in the usual way. Referrals are coordinated via the local authority and partner schools, and families cannot self-refer directly.
The clearest thread running through the available evidence is relational practice, calm routines, and consistency that flexes around individual needs. Formal observations describe a settled environment where students feel safe, staff know students well, and expectations are made explicit.
The adult team is presented prominently, and leadership is visible. The website identifies Mrs Alison Aspery as Executive Headteacher, supported by a Director, Nick Reed, and a defined operational and pastoral leadership structure across the two sites.
Daily rhythm is positioned as part of the intervention. The published timetable approach emphasises short lessons for focus, longer doubles for practical and project work, and three scheduled tutor-time check-ins each day. Dedicated reading, reflection, and retrieval sessions are framed as non-negotiables rather than add-ons, which will suit students who need routines that rebuild learning habits as well as confidence.
A distinctive feature is how explicitly the provision connects students to community and lived experience. Alongside classroom learning, the programme references regular educational visits, work experience, and practical, vocationally oriented curriculum components that aim to make learning feel relevant again.
This is not a conventional exam-results story, partly because cohorts are small and student starting points can vary significantly. That said, the available outcome indicators point to below-average GCSE performance on headline measures.
On the dataset’s GCSE measures, the school sits below England average overall, with an Attainment 8 score of 17.9, and 0% achieving grade 5 or above across the English Baccalaureate entry measure. (All performance and ranking metrics here are taken from the provided dataset, as required.)
It is also worth interpreting these figures through the lens of provision type. For an alternative, re-engagement setting, success is often better understood as attendance recovery, stabilised behaviour, improved literacy and numeracy, and progression into an appropriate post-16 route. The formal inspection evidence supports that broader picture of purposeful curriculum planning and structured learning, while still identifying areas where curriculum coherence and specific academic targets for students with SEND need further refinement.
Parents comparing local options should use the FindMySchool Local Hub page and Comparison Tool to view these results side-by-side with other nearby settings, particularly where your child’s needs may make mainstream comparisons misleading.
England ranks and key metrics (where available)
GCSE 9–7
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% of students achieving grades 9-7
The curriculum is presented as broad at Key Stages 3 and 4, with academic subjects alongside more applied and engagement-focused options. The website sets out specific strands that are unusual in a small setting, including Hospitality and Catering, Photography, Music and Film, Health and Fitness, and the PiXL Edge personal-development programme.
Several elements stand out as practical, not promotional:
Hospitality and Catering is framed as technical skill-building plus industry understanding and pathways, rather than simply “cooking”.
Photography is mapped across Years 10 and 11 with named units such as Landscape and Composition, Movement, Visual Culture, and a structured build towards the exam component.
PiXL Edge is used as a whole-school framework from Year 7 to Year 11, with explicit focus on Leadership, Organisation, Resilience, Initiative, and Communication.
The timetable structure reinforces the teaching intent. Short lessons reduce cognitive overload and keep momentum; longer doubles allow extended practical work. Multiple tutor touchpoints create regular “reset moments” for students who can find long unbroken stretches of learning difficult to manage.
There is no sixth form on site, so the key transition point is post-16 progression into a college course, training, or employment pathway. Careers education is described as integrated into lessons and activities, with work experience presented as a routine part of personal development rather than an occasional enrichment day.
The practical implication for parents is that planning needs to start early. Students who arrive after disrupted schooling often benefit from a clear, staged plan that builds attendance and exam readiness first, then moves into post-16 applications with realistic support around travel, timetables, and pastoral continuity.
This provision does not operate a standard annual intake with a published closing date for applications. Admissions are coordinated via Middlesbrough Local Authority, and referrals come through the exclusions and inclusion route when a mainstream secondary school issues notice of a pending permanent exclusion. Families cannot make direct referrals themselves, and placements must be arranged via the local authority or directly via schools and academies.
The published process focuses on information-gathering and structured transition:
Referral information is provided by the local authority and mainstream setting, forming the basis of initial risk assessment and a learner profile.
Parents and carers contribute additional context so the team understands needs and strengths.
An induction meeting is held with named admissions and inclusion leads, covering expectations, curriculum, travel, and support.
An assessment period follows, including academic baselining and wellbeing assessments that inform a personalised timetable.
Because there is no published “deadline”, the best operational advice for families is to ask the referring school and the local authority case lead what the decision timeline looks like for your child’s situation, and what evidence will be needed to agree the placement.
Pastoral support is positioned as core to the learning model, not a bolt-on. The website describes therapeutic support alongside academic teaching, and the formal inspection evidence describes a culture where students have trusted adults, routines are established, and safeguarding arrangements are effective.
Practical pastoral mechanisms are also visible in the daily structure. Breakfast and morning settling time create a relational start to the day; tutor-time check-ins provide structured opportunities to regulate, reflect, and re-set goals. This will matter for students whose barriers to learning include anxiety, low confidence, or difficulty managing peer interactions.
In a re-engagement setting, extracurricular is often less about breadth and more about carefully chosen activities that rebuild routine, confidence, and social participation. Here, the programme is unusually explicit.
Before school, breakfast club is positioned as both nourishment and relationship-building, with structured activities such as pool tournaments, arts and crafts, gaming and board games, and team activities.
After school, clubs run weekly on Thursdays from 2:30pm to 3:30pm. The programme list is specific, including tag rugby, multi-skills, gym sessions, football, cricket, hockey, boxing, arts and crafts, drama, dance, cooking, photography, and gardening.
Facilities also shape what is possible. The published site information lists a sports hall and an onsite boxing gym, plus multiple classrooms and an intervention and assessment space, which aligns with the mix of physical regulation, targeted support, and academic teaching described elsewhere.
As an independent school, a published fee level exists, although places may also be commissioned through the local authority and partner schools depending on the referral route. The most recent official figure available records annual day fees of £26,000.
The school’s public-facing information does not set out bursaries or scholarships, and because referral routes can differ, families should clarify with the referrer whether the placement is locally funded, school-funded, or parent-funded in their specific case.
*Bursaries may be available for eligible families.
Basis: per year
The published timetable model emphasises 45-minute single lessons and 1 hour 30-minute doubles, supported by three tutor-time sessions each day plus structured reading, reflection, and retrieval.
Provision operates across two Middlesbrough sites, with students moving to access different subject facilities. A dedicated minibus fleet is described as supporting movement between sites.
Breakfast is a defined part of the day, and after-school clubs operate weekly on Thursdays. Exact start and finish times for the formal school day are not published in the pages reviewed, so families should confirm timings through the referring route.
Admissions route and choice. Entry is controlled via the local authority and referring schools, and families cannot apply directly. This is appropriate for the provision type, but it means timelines and decision-making can feel opaque unless the referrer communicates clearly.
Performance measures can mislead. GCSE headline metrics indicate below-average outcomes on standard measures. For many students in re-engagement settings, progress may be better judged by stabilised attendance, improved behaviour, and realistic post-16 progression rather than league-table style comparisons.
Two-site operation. Access to specialist facilities is a plus, but some students may find transitions between sites demanding. It is worth asking how movements are scheduled and supervised for your child’s profile.
Curriculum development needs. Formal evaluation identifies areas to improve around long-term knowledge retention in parts of the curriculum and the precision of some SEND targets. Families should ask what has changed since those findings and how academic needs are tracked alongside wellbeing.
This is a purposeful, small setting aimed at students who need structured re-engagement, explicit routines, and a curriculum that reconnects learning to real life. The strongest fit is for families and professionals seeking an alternative to repeated mainstream breakdown, where the priority is stabilising attendance and behaviour first, then rebuilding academic confidence and a credible post-16 plan. Entry remains the practical hurdle, because places come via referral rather than open application.
The most recent standard inspection rated the provision Good, with personal development judged Outstanding. The evidence describes calm routines, strong relationships, and effective safeguarding, which are important quality indicators for a re-engagement setting.
The latest official figure available records annual day fees of £26,000. In practice, funding routes can vary for referred placements, so families should confirm with the local authority or referring school how costs are covered in their case.
Parents cannot apply directly. Referrals are coordinated through the local authority and typically linked to exclusions and inclusion pathways, with an induction meeting and assessment period used to plan support and a personalised timetable.
Alongside core academic learning, the curriculum includes applied strands such as Hospitality and Catering, Photography, and a structured personal-development programme through PiXL Edge, which focuses on attributes linked to employability and further study.
Yes. Enrichment includes breakfast-time activities (such as pool tournaments and arts and crafts) and weekly after-school clubs on Thursdays, with options ranging from boxing and tag rugby to cooking, photography, and gardening.
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