Newbridge Learning Community
Newbridge Learning Community is a council special school in Wigan for boys and girls aged 11 to 16. It has 83 pupils and room for 88. About 75 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far more than at most schools in England. Ofsted's last grade was good, back in 2024.
Moss Lane, Platt Bridge, Wigan, WN2 3TL01942 369770newbridge.wigan.sch.ukMr Paul Appleton headteacherAll details
What Ofsted found
A shorter visit on 27 March 2024 found nothing to change the school's grade. Read the report on Ofsted's website.
Good overall. A shorter follow-up visit found nothing to change that. The last full inspection was before September 2019, which is as far back as Ofsted's public records go, so we can't show its date or the grades for each area.
Results
GCSE results, summer 2025
21 pupils sat their GCSEs. Here is how they did against every state secondary in England.
All GCSE measures, year by year
| Measure | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2019 | 2018 | Wigan | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of Year 11 | 21 | 21 | 15 | 16 | 22 | 18 | – | – |
| Average GCSE scoreAttainment 8 | 18.9 | 15.2 | 20.2 | 23.0 | 8.5 | 17.8 | 43.9 | 46.8 |
| Progress from age 11Progress 8 | – | -1.56 | -1.20 | -0.62 | -2.55 | -1.16 | – | – |
| Strong pass in English and mathsGrade 5+ in English and maths | 0% | 0% | 7% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 39% | 46% |
| Standard pass in English and mathsGrade 4+ in English and maths | 0% | 10% | 13% | 13% | 0% | 0% | 62% | 66% |
| Core subjects scoreEBacc average point score | 1.55 | 1.33 | 1.86 | 2.04 | 0.73 | 1.44 | 3.77 | 4.15 |
| Taking the core subjectsEBacc entry | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 31% | 41% |
| Average GCSE score: low-income pupilsAttainment 8, disadvantaged | 17.5 | 13.1 | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Average GCSE score: other pupilsAttainment 8, non-disadvantaged | 22.3 | 20.7 | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Average GCSE score: pupils who started behindAttainment 8, low prior attainers | – | 13.4 | 13.4 | 25.1 | 9.3 | 15.3 | – | – |
Subjects
Results came out for 4 GCSE subjects in 2025. Each figure is the share of pupils who got a grade 5 or better, next to the average for state secondaries in England.
Subjects that did worse than the England average: Mathematics (0% here, 53% across England), English Literature (6% here, 58% across England), English Language (10% here, 54% across England), Combined Science (0% here, 36% across England).
The small number is how many pupils sat each subject. Subjects with fewer than six pupils aren't published.
Every subject against England, 2025
| Subject | Entries | Grades 9 to 7 | Grades 9 to 5 | Grades 9 to 4 | England 9 to 5 | Rank in England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mathematics | 21 | 0% | 0% | 0% | 53% | – |
| English Language | 21 | 5% | 10% | 29% | 54% | – |
| English Literature | 18 | 6% | 6% | 22% | 58% | – |
| Combined Science | 15 | 0% | 0% | 13% | 36% | – |
In combined science each pupil gets two grades and we count the lower one. Rankings only include state secondaries where 20 or more pupils sat the subject.
Does every child do well here?
A good school does well by every child, not just on average. Each row compares two groups of pupils here. The grey marks show the same two groups across England. Every gap at this school is smaller than the gap across England. When a group has fewer than about ten pupils, its figures jump around a lot from year to year.
At GCSE, 2025
Low-income means the child has had free school meals at some point in the last six years. A group's figure isn't published when it has fewer than six pupils.
Getting a place
Admissions policy not published.
Each council publishes its own figures on how many families applied and how far away the last child to get a place lived. We are adding councils one at a time. If you have a link to Wigan council's admissions booklet, send it to us.
Who goes here
Who the school teaches, from the latest school census.
Specialist SEND provision. A special school for pupils with social, emotional and mental health.
To get a place in the unit or resourced provision, a child normally needs an education, health and care plan (EHCP) that names the school. Other schools in Wigan with social, emotional and mental health provision.
The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: emotional and mental health (80), Autistic spectrum disorder (1), Moderate learning difficulty (1), Specific learning difficulty (1).
How the mix of pupils has changed
| Census | 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils on roll | 83 | 87 | 88 | 87 | 87 | 86 |
| Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals | 75% | 74% | 72% | 72% | 67% | 66% |
| Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Pupils getting extra supportSEN support | – | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans | – | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
Attendance and behaviour
In 2024/25 pupils were in school 70.8% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.
Attendance year by year
| Measure | 2024/25 | 2023/24 | 2022/23 | 2021/22 | 2020/21 | 2018/19 | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sessions missedOverall absence | 29.3% | 30.1% | 26.9% | 24.4% | 20.0% | 29.1% | 5.2% |
| Missed with permissionAuthorised absence | 15.6% | 15.9% | 14.2% | 12.1% | 12.8% | 16.9% | – |
| Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence | 13.7% | 14.2% | 12.7% | 12.3% | 7.2% | 12.1% | – |
| Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence | 63.6% | 70.8% | 66.3% | 60.7% | 56.8% | 57.3% | 12.8% |
| SuspensionsSuspension rate | 31.0 | 53.4 | 72.4 | 43.7 | 59.3 | – | – |
| Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – |
What pupils do next
After GCSEs
Where the 15 pupils who left in 2022/23 were a year later.
Earlier years
| Destination | 2022/23 leavers | 2021/22 leavers | 2020/21 leavers | 2019/20 leavers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Still in education, work or training | 73% | 69% | 50% | 68% |
| Education | 73% | 56% | 44% | 63% |
| Apprenticeship | 0% | 6% | 6% | 0% |
| Work | 0% | 6% | 0% | 5% |
| Not in education, work or training | 7% | 6% | 19% | 32% |
Staff and money
From the government's count of school staff in November 2025 and the school's published accounts.
Money
From the council school accounts, year to March 2025. The per-pupil figures are compared with other special schools in England that report their accounts the same way.
Reserves are the money left over at the end of the year, kept back for emergencies and big projects. Being in the red year after year is a warning sign. Very large reserves can mean money sitting in the bank instead of being spent on today's pupils. Academy figures are rounded to the nearest £1,000 and include a share of any money the trust holds centrally.
The area around the school
Crime figures come from police.uk. The police record each crime at the nearest of a fixed set of map points rather than the exact spot, so “within 500 m” is only rough. House prices are from HM Land Registry sales nearby over the last two years.
Nearby schools
The closest schools, nearest first. Hover over a row to see it on the map.
| School | Type | Distance | Pupils | Ofsted | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St Mary's CofE Primary School | Church of England | 30 m | 242 | Good 2024 | 31 | Compare |
| Platt Bridge Community School | Academy | 350 m | 479 | Good 2024 | 55 | Compare |
| Fix-It (UK) Ltd | Special post 16 institution | 550 m | – | Not inspected | – | Compare |
| Holy Family Catholic Academy | Academy | 870 m | 228 | No overall grade 2025 | 48 | Compare |
| St John's Church of England Primary School, Abram | Academy | 0.7 miles | 274 | Good 2023 | 24 | Compare |
| St Peter's Church of England Primary School, Hindley | Academy | 0.8 miles | 281 | Good 2024 | 44 | Compare |
| Three Towers Alternative Provision Academy | Academy alternative provision sponsor led | 1.0 miles | 106 | No overall grade 2025 | – | Compare |
| St Benedict's Catholic Primary School Hindley | Roman Catholic | 1.1 miles | 198 | Good 2022 | 85 | Compare |
Questions parents ask
Is Newbridge Learning Community a good school?
Newbridge Learning Community doesn't have a score yet. Ofsted rated it good at its last inspection in March 2024.
What is Newbridge Learning Community's Ofsted rating?
Ofsted rated Newbridge Learning Community good at its last full inspection on 27 March 2024.
How good are Newbridge Learning Community's GCSE results?
In summer 2025, 0% of pupils got a grade 5 or better in both English and maths. Across England it was 46%. Its Attainment 8 score, which is the average grade across a pupil's best eight subjects times ten, was 18.9, against 46.8 for England. In each subject, pupils here finished well over a grade behind children across England who started secondary school at the same level.
How many pupils does Newbridge Learning Community have?
83 pupils aged 11 to 16 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 88 places, so it is 94% full.
What is attendance like at Newbridge Learning Community?
Pupils were in school 70.8% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 64% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.
Does Newbridge Learning Community have specialist SEND provision?
Yes. It is a special school for social, emotional and mental health. To get a place there, a child normally needs an education, health and care plan (EHCP) that names the school.
These answers come straight from the figures on this page and update when new data comes out.
Contact and details
- Address
- Moss Lane, Platt Bridge, Wigan, WN2 3TL
- Telephone
- 01942 369770
- Website
- www.newbridge.wigan.sch.uk
- Headteacher
- Mr Paul Appleton
- Type of school
- Council special school (Community special school, special schools)
- Phase
- Special school, ages 11-16
- Gender
- Mixed
- Local authority
- Wigan
- Ward
- Abram
- Constituency
- Makerfield
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Opened
- 1 September 2008 (result of amalgamation)
- URN
- 135199 · LAESTAB 3597023 · UKPRN 10024114
- Formerly
- Kingshill School, Highlea Secondary School
Recent changes
- New KS4 results for 2024/25
Where these figures come from
- School details: Department for Education, Get Information About Schools, refreshed daily (this page rebuilt 13 September 2026).
- Inspections: Ofsted management information, monthly; latest publication in our data 27 August 2026.
- GCSE results: DfE key stage 4 performance tables, 2024/25 final.
- Attendance: DfE pupil absence in schools in England, 2024/25 full year.
- Pupil characteristics: DfE school census, January 2026.
- Staff: DfE school workforce census, November 2025.
- Pupil premium: DfE allocations and conditions of grant, 2026 to 2027.
- Money: DfE financial benchmarking and insights tool, consistent financial reporting 2024/25.
- Neighbourhood: police.uk street-level crime, HM Land Registry price paid data, NaPTAN bus stops, English Indices of Deprivation 2025.
- All under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Full list and update calendar.