Stafford Manor High School Review 2026: A small Stafford secondary focused on routines, reading, and rebuilding

Stafford Manor High School is a state secondary serving students aged 11 to 18, with an agreed Year 7 admission number of 90. Tuition is state-funded, so there are no school fees. Leadership is currently headed by Mr Rhys Adams.

This is a school in improvement mode. The most recent full inspection outcome was Requires Improvement (inspection dates 24 and 25 May 2023), with sixth form provision judged Good. The report describes a caring, inclusive culture and strong safeguarding practice, while also being clear that attendance, consistent behaviour expectations, and the quality of curriculum planning and assessment needed to improve across subjects.

For families, the headline question is fit. If you want a smaller secondary where staff know students well, routines are explicit, and reading support is taken seriously, it is worth close consideration. If exam outcomes and progress measures are your primary driver, you will want to compare alternatives carefully using the FindMySchool Local Hub and comparison tools.

A defining feature here is the emphasis on structure and clear expectations. The behaviour approach is framed around “The 4 Rs”, ready, respectful, responsible, resilient, introduced as part of a reset in September 2022. That sort of explicit vocabulary matters in a school working to re-establish calm, consistent norms, because it gives staff and students a shared language to refer back to.

Safeguarding and reporting routes are made highly visible. The school uses the SHARP system, which is designed to allow students to report concerns anonymously, alongside educational content on issues such as bullying, online safety, and hate crime. In a community-serving school, that kind of low-barrier reporting mechanism can be an important complement to pastoral conversations, particularly for students who find face-to-face disclosure difficult.

Reading culture is also presented as a practical, day-to-day priority rather than a slogan. The inspection notes regular tutor-time reading sessions and targeted support for students with low reading ages. On the school site, “Reading at School” sets out specific strategies used in lessons, including shared reading, choral reading, partner reading, and structured re-reading routines. The library is positioned as a Phone Free Zone, open for Key Stage 3 during registration and lunchtimes, with student librarians supporting the space.

On FindMySchool’s GCSE outcomes ranking (based on official data), Stafford Manor High School is ranked 3,659th in England and 9th in Stafford, placing it below England average overall. This aligns with the underlying performance indicators.

The school’s Attainment 8 score is 32. Progress 8 is -1.13, which indicates that, on average, students made substantially less progress than similar students nationally between the end of primary and GCSE. The EBacc average point score is 2.79, and 6% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in EBacc subjects. In practice, these figures point to a cohort where strengthening core knowledge, attendance, and consistent subject sequencing will be central to improving outcomes, rather than marginal gains at the top end.

For parents comparing options, it helps to separate intent from impact. The inspection describes a suitable intended curriculum, with a broad Key Stage 3 and a Key Stage 4 model combining an academic core with GCSE and vocational routes, but also highlights inconsistency in curriculum planning and assessment in some subjects. That gap between “planned” and “consistently delivered” is often where improvement efforts succeed or stall.

Key Stage 3 is presented as deliberately broad. Alongside English, maths and science, students study subjects including design technology, expressive arts, French, humanities, ICT, philosophy and ethics, and social and emotional learning. The inclusion of philosophy and ethics and social and emotional learning as explicit curriculum components is a useful signal of how the school frames personal development and discussion-based learning, rather than leaving it solely to assemblies.

At Key Stage 4, the school positions English Baccalaureate subjects as a strengthening foundation and notes a direction of travel towards higher uptake. What matters for families is the practical experience: how well subject knowledge is sequenced, how reliably assessment spots gaps early, and how consistently classroom routines protect learning time. The inspection is direct that the quality of curriculum planning and assessment is not yet consistent across all subjects, and that this has led to knowledge gaps for some pupils.

The school’s approach to independent study is unusually explicit for a mainstream secondary. A new homework policy launched in January 2025 sets a daily subject focus and asks students to create revision resources such as flashcards, posters, or past paper practice, with tutors checking completion and awarding achievement points. This kind of tightly framed homework model can suit students who benefit from routine and clear instructions. It can be harder for highly self-directed students if it feels overly prescriptive, so it is worth asking how flexibility is handled as students mature through Key Stage 4.

Post-16 is present, but small. The inspection records a very limited sixth form cohort and describes a partnership model where students access a broader offer through the local Stafford Schools Partnership, alongside enrichment and support for next steps. The benefit is breadth of subject options beyond what a small standalone sixth form can sustain. The trade-off is that a partnership model can feel less like a single, self-contained sixth form community, so students who want a large, socially busy sixth form experience may prefer a bigger provider.

Careers and progression support also features in the inspection narrative, including the note that students receive support when considering education or employment routes, and that the school meets provider access requirements around technical education and apprenticeships. In practical terms, families may want to ask how the school supports application pathways for college, apprenticeships, and sixth form routes, and how early those conversations start for different students.

For Year 7 entry, Stafford Manor High School has an agreed admission number of 90. Applications are coordinated through Staffordshire, and the county’s published timetable for September 2026 entry lists a closing date of 31 October 2025, with offers issued on 02 March 2026.

If the school is oversubscribed, the published criteria prioritise, in order: children with an Education, Health and Care plan naming the school; looked after and previously looked after children; siblings; catchment area; eligible children of staff; certain exceptional medical or social circumstances; then distance from the school gate, measured by straight-line distance, with random allocation as a tie-break where applications cannot otherwise be separated. Waiting lists are kept until the end of the autumn term of the admissions year.

Open events appear to follow a typical early autumn pattern. The school’s transition information references an open evening during September or October, and Staffordshire’s open evening listing for the 2025 cycle shows an event on Thursday 25 September 2025 at 6:00pm. Families should use FindMySchool’s Map Search to understand how catchment and distance rules are likely to apply to their address, then check the local authority’s current year documentation before relying on any single indicator.

The inspection describes strong support systems and notes that most pupils feel happy and safe, with bullying described as rare by most pupils, while acknowledging that some pupils want faster resolution at times. This is a useful “middle” signal: a generally safe climate, with the realistic challenge of consistency and response speed that many community secondaries manage daily.

Safeguarding is a clear strength in the latest inspection, with effective arrangements and a culture where staff are trained, vigilant, and work with external agencies when needed. The SHARP reporting system adds an additional route for raising concerns anonymously, which can reduce barriers for students who are anxious about reporting.

The school also signposts wider family support resources, including links to local community support and wellbeing services, which reflects an approach that recognises how external pressures affect attendance, readiness to learn, and day-to-day stability for some families.

The Ofsted report notes that clubs and activities include sports, singing, art, coding, and computer-aided design, plus an increasing number of trips. That mix matters because it suggests the school is trying to balance engagement, enrichment, and practical skill-building, not just “extra time” on core subjects.

There are also some distinctive examples of student participation that show the practical side of enrichment. The school highlights a Science Club experience using a 2.4m pinhole projector built by Year 7 students in the design technology club. That is a strong example of applied learning, students build something tangible, then use it in a real scientific observation context, which reinforces both technical confidence and scientific curiosity.

Creative and cultural participation appears regularly, including a choir performance at the Gatehouse Theatre and contributions to the Holocaust Memorial Art Exhibition at the Collegiate Church of St Mary. The library is another notable feature: it has been relaunched and was officially opened by author Jon Mayhew, with student librarians involved in running the space. For students who benefit from calm structure, a well-managed library and a clear reading programme can become a genuine anchor point in the week.

The published timetable shows a school day running from tutor time at 8:45am to a 3:15pm finish. Access is described as being via Hesketh Road, with both pedestrian and vehicle entrances and signposted parking. For wraparound care, this is not typically a feature of secondary schools; families who need supervised after-school provision should check what is currently available through clubs or local providers, as arrangements vary year to year.

• Inspection position and pace of change. The latest inspection outcome is Requires Improvement (May 2023). Families should ask what has changed since that point, particularly around consistent behaviour routines, attendance, and subject-by-subject curriculum planning.

• Progress measures are a key watch point. Progress 8 is -1.13 indicating significantly lower progress than similar pupils nationally. If your child is academically able and needs stretch, ask how the school identifies gaps early and accelerates progress in core subjects.

• Consistency, not intent, is the challenge. The inspection highlights improvements underway, but also points to inconsistent curriculum sequencing and assessment in some subjects, with knock-on effects on pupils’ knowledge and progress.

• A very small sixth form. Sixth form provision was judged Good, but the cohort is very small and organised through a partnership model. Students who want a larger sixth form social and enrichment scene may prefer a bigger provider.

Stafford Manor High School is best understood as a smaller community secondary with a strong safeguarding culture, explicit routines, and an increasingly structured approach to reading and independent study. It will suit families who value close relationships with staff and a school that is candid about the work of improvement, and who are prepared to engage actively with attendance, routines, and home learning. For families primarily seeking high attainment and strong progress outcomes, the current data suggests you should compare alternatives carefully and look closely at evidence of sustained improvement over time.