Culcheth High School

Our School

As a high performing school, we offer a rich, broad and engaging education for all our young people. Culcheth High School is a successful mixed community school currently catering for around 1100 11-16 year olds. Our current examination performance places us consistently as one of Warrington’s highest performing schools. Not only do students at Culcheth attain much higher success ratios than students nationally, they also make excellent progress from their starting points. The school’s aim is to get the very best from each student; not only through    superb teaching and learning but also by encouraging involvement in extra-curricular and community activities.

The school enjoys an enviable reputation within its locality. It is extremely popular and has been signifcantly oversubscribed in recent years with the school roll growing. It attracts students from more than 25 different primary schools within four different local education authorities. We are part of Warrington Local Authority which provides a supportive and professional advisory service. 

Our most recent Ofsted report (May 2014) gave us a grade 2 rating (“good”). We are delighted that the improvements made in the school have been given public acknowledgement. The school was rated “good” in all major areas. Inspectors praised teaching and learning (“a good proportion of lessons are now outstanding”), personal development (“behaviour and attitudes to learning are good”) and leadership and management. We were pleased with the report but not complacent. We want to improve further and our ultimate objective is to achieve Ofsted’s highest award of ‘Outstanding School’.

Our School’s Purpose is:

To inspire students to achieve and guide them to be confident, articulate and skilled citizens to enable them to thrive in a diverse British and global community.

Our Vision of Culcheth High School is:

A truly exceptional forward thinking school with high expectations for all learners through a relentless approach to breaking down barriers to learning and evidenced by high standards of achievement across all ages, regardless of background.

• A learning centred school which strives to nurture and develop the talents of all of its students
• A vibrant, tolerant and aspirational school community characterised by high levels of staff and student happiness and mutual respect, underpinned by pride, ambition and a commitment to achievement and enrichment for all
• A school community where all staff are committed to the ‘Always Learning’ ethos through personalised professional development underpinned by a collaborative coaching culture which promotes and nurtures all staff to sustain excellence and develop further
• A school that truly works in the community, with the community and for the community
• A financially efficient school that can provide for itself, think for itself and utilise resources to maximise the best outcomes for all
• A school that provides a relevant, purposeful and inspiring curriculum for all students enabling them to be active citizens in a modern diverse British and global community. 

Our School’s Values are:

We want everyone to work in a caring school where everyone is valued and everyone values relationships. Our emotionally intelligent school community will celebrate individual differences and people will understand how their actions will impact upon, and be perceived by, those they affect. We expect all members of our school community to be the best they can be and help others to be the best that they can be by valuing: Respect, Honesty and Excellence.  

Our Staffing

We have a very capable and talented team of staff. The Senior Leadership Team consists of the Headteacher, 1 Deputy Headteacher, 5 Assistant Headteachers and the Finance and Business Manager. We have circa 70 teaching and 50 support staff. The school is also supported by a committed and enthusiastic Governing Body, the members of which have a diverse range of skills and expertise. We are strongly committed to the development of our staff. We use external courses to support colleagues but also believe firmly in the benefits of internal expertise – sharing through coaching and “in-house” good practice sessions. We also work with a group of other schools to support teacher training in middle-management and excellent classroom practice.

Our Facilities

We are proud that high-class teaching and learning at Culcheth High School is supported by the best in modern facilities. We moved into a £29m new building in July 2010 with fantastic, state-of-the-art modern facilities. Each classroom is equipped with projectors and interactive equipment; there are now around 1200 computers for student use

Our Facilities and Employee Benefits Include:

• Free parking
• Free unlimited refreshments
• On site multi gym
• Discount rewards scheme at major retailers and restaurants
• Occupational health service
• An open-plan restaurant and café
• Fabulous science labs and technology suites
• Large areas for creative and media
• A superb multi-purpose assembly hall
• Classrooms that operate dually as double learning spaces
• A Conference Centre
• Extensive ILC

Our Location

The school is based in the leafy village of Culcheth, in rural north Cheshire, mid-way between Manchester and Liverpool. It is a well appointed village, with a population of around 6,000. It is ideally located within easy access of a network of motorways and major roads. It is within close proximity to several business and technology parks. Housing in the area consists mainly of private property supplemented by some rented accommodation. The majority of our students live in Culcheth and the surrounding villages but we take students from other parts of Warrington and also other authorities such as Salford, Wigan and St Helens.