Halcyon Way School, Oldham Ol9 9QE
Halcyon Way School is a special school for pupils aged 2 to 11 in Oldham Ol9 9QE, part of Kingfisher Learning Trust.
Data last updated 26 Oct 2026
Halcyon Way School in detail
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other special schools to Halcyon Way School are Kingfisher Special School (under 0.1 miles, Outstanding); Chances Mentoring (under 0.1 miles); Thornycroft School (1.2 miles); and Path 4 (1.4 miles).
Kingfisher Special SchoolChances MentoringThornycroft SchoolPath 4
The trust
Halcyon Way School is one of 7 schools run by Kingfisher Learning Trust, an academy trust.
What parents say
17 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about Halcyon Way School (as of September 2025): 100% would recommend the school and 100% say their child is happy there.
The strongest agreement was that they would recommend the school (100%); the weakest, that pupils behave well (88%).
Who goes there
51.5% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, and 23.8% speak English as an additional language, according to the 2026 school census.
Almost every pupil at Halcyon Way School has an education, health and care plan (130 of 130 in 2026). The most common need among them is speech, language and communication needs.
Getting there
The nearest tram or metro stop is South Chadderton (Manchester Metrolink), about 890 metres away (roughly a 11-minute walk).
11 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is The Sportsman, 200 metres away.
The area around the school
Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood Halcyon Way School stands in is among the 20% most deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.
Suspensions and exclusions
Halcyon Way School recorded no suspensions or permanent exclusions in 2024/25.
Sources: Ofsted Parent View; DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); data.police.uk street-level crime; DfE exclusions statistics
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 2 years agoOverall
Quality of Education
Behaviour & Attitudes
Personal Development
Leadership & Management
Ofsted Insights
From Ofsted's November 2024 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
This school excels at making children feel happy, safe and cared for through strong values and trusting relationships. Teachers know their pupils extremely well and use activities that spark interest and keep children engaged in learning. The school's approach to behaviour support is particularly impressive - staff work closely with each child before they start to understand their needs and develop personalised support that helps them manage emotions and behaviour over time.
Key Strengths
- Excellent behaviour support with personalised approaches that help pupils with complex needs feel safe and valued
- Strong school values and relationships that create a happy, caring environment where pupils thrive
- Well-designed curriculum tailored to individual needs with multiple pathways to suit different learning levels
- High expectations for all pupils with personal targets that support both academic and personal success
- Effective attendance work with parents that has significantly improved pupil attendance rates
Areas for Improvement
- School needs better ways to measure how well different subjects are working to help spot when some pupils are not learning as well as they could
- New phonics programme is off to a strong start but it is too early to see the full impact
Safeguarding
Safeguarding arrangements are effective with staff understanding individual pupil needs and creating a supportive culture that prioritises pupil safety.
Extracurricular Activities
Visits from paramedics, science learning with eggs and chicks, Diwali celebrations with sensory experiences
Halcyon Way School is a primary special school that opened in January 2022, catering for pupils aged 2-11 with severe learning difficulties and speech, language and communication needs. The school has been rated Good for quality of education, with Outstanding behaviour and attitudes.
At a Glance
51.5%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
17 responsesSource: Ofsted Parent View, responses as at September 2025 - % who strongly agree or agree
Primary Performance (KS2)
Academic year 2024/25KS2 Results (% meeting expected standard)
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby schools
Keep up with Halcyon Way School
Getting There
Tube / Metro / Tram
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Halcyon Way School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Halcyon Way School is in Oldham; for families living there:
Apply to Oldham for free school transport. Its policy is on the council's website.
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 12
- Fatal
- 1
- Serious
- 2
- Children hurt
- 1
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 12 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: 1 fatal, 2 serious and 9 slight.
1 child aged 0 to 15 was hurt: 1 on foot.
1 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included.
The typical figure for schools in Oldham is 14 (the median across 129 schools, same distance and years).
Serious and slight counts use the Department for Transport's severity adjustment, which allows for changes in how police forces record injuries; they are estimates, rounded to whole numbers. Distances are in a straight line. Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19), Open Government Licence v3.0.
Commute and house prices
Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
93%
Near capacity
130 pupils
140 places
10 spare places
as recorded on GIAS
Area Demand Pressure - Oldham Ol9 9QE
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Oldham Ol9 9QE
Across Oldham council
Places available
4,034
Applications
3,190
Got 1st preference
75.2%
Got preferred school
95.4%
All secondary applications across Oldham council (2026/27), not just this school.
Inspection History
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
0
SEN Support
130
EHC Plans
100.0%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
130
Total Pupils
86
Boys
44
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
10
Teachers
13.0:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£46,868
Mean salary
2026 data
Pupil Absence2024/25
9.8%
Overall absence
34.5%
Persistent absence
116
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
Linked Schools
Schools linked by geographic proximity
Halcyon Way School
Questions parents ask about Halcyon Way School
What are SATs results like at Halcyon Way School?
Of the pupils at Halcyon Way School who took the 2025 Key Stage 2 assessments, 0% reached the expected standard in reading and 0% did so in maths.
What is the catchment area for Halcyon Way School?
No fixed boundary. When Halcyon Way School is oversubscribed, Oldham allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
How many pupils go to Halcyon Way School?
Halcyon Way School has around 130 pupils on roll. 52% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at Halcyon Way School?
9.8% of sessions were missed at Halcyon Way School in 2024/25. 34.5% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Halcyon Way School?
Apply through Oldham's coordinated admissions process, naming Halcyon Way School on your application. The national closing date in England is 31 October for secondary places and 15 January for primary places, in the year before your child starts.
How many road collisions happen near Halcyon Way School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 12 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: 1 fatal, 2 serious and 9 slight. 1 child aged 0 to 15 was hurt: 1 on foot. 1 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included. The typical figure for schools in Oldham is 14 (the median across 129 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Halcyon Way School?
Halcyon Way School is at Gordon Street, Chadderton, Oldham Ol9 9QE, OL9 9QE.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)