Firwood High School
Stitch-MI Lane, Bolton, BL2 4HU
- Phase
- Academies
- School type
- Academy special converter
- Ages
- 11 to 19
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- WOODBRIDGE TRUST
- Head of School
- Mrs Dawn Evans
- Sponsor
- Woodbridge Trust
- SEN provision
- SLD - Severe Learning Difficulty
- Constituency
- Bolton North East
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 150
- Pupils on roll
- 261
- URN
- 146410
- Local authority
- Bolton
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01204333044
About this school
Firwood High School is a special academy in Bolton. It teaches children aged 11 to 19 and has 261 pupils on roll.
You can read Ofsted's latest judgement for the school below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Seeing a school for yourself shows what no page can, so arrange a visit before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Confirmed by a short inspection, not a full one
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 8 March 2023, where inspectors confirmed the school remains Good. The school's last full inspection took place before September 2019, so its area grades are not part of Ofsted's current published data. Older reports are on the school's Ofsted page.
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 17 | 28 | 30 |
| Attainment 8 score | - | - | - |
| Progress 8 score | - | - | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | - | - | - |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | - | - | - |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | - | - | - |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | - | - | - |
Progress 8 is paused nationally for the 2024/25 and 2025/26 school years. Those pupils sat no key stage 2 tests during the Covid pandemic, so there is no starting point to measure progress from. A blank figure here is not missing school data.
Trends over time
How Firwood High School has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 12.5% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 14.4% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 14% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 199 |
| 2023/24 | 212 |
| 2024/25 | 230 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 55.49%
- English as an additional language
- 32.2%
- Overall absence
- 13.95%
- Persistent absence
- 37.65%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Park School Teaching Service0.8 miles
Academies · Bolton
-
Forwards Centre0.8 miles
Academies · Bolton
-
Breightmet School0.8 miles
Special schools · Bolton
-
Birtenshaw School Bolton1.7 miles
Special schools · Bolton
-
Madrasatul Imam Muhammad Zakariya1.8 miles
Independent schools · Bolton
Other schools in Bolton
- Birtenshaw College Other types
- Birtenshaw School Bolton Special schools
- Breightmet School Special schools
- Cumberland School Special schools
- EdStart Schools Bolton Special schools
- Forwards Centre Academies
- Green Fold School Special schools
- Ladywood School Academies
- Lever Park School Academies
- LifeBridge ASEND Other types
- Park School Teaching Service Academies
- Raise Education and Wellbeing School Special schools
Common questions
- What year groups does Firwood High School teach?
- Firwood High School teaches children aged 11 to 19. It is a special school in Bolton.
- Who is the head of school of Firwood High School?
- The head of school of Firwood High School is Mrs Dawn Evans, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Firwood High School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Firwood High School, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How big is Firwood High School?
- Firwood High School has 261 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 19.
- Is Firwood High School full?
- Firwood High School has capacity for 150 pupils and 261 on roll (174%), so it is at or above its published capacity. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Firwood High School a faith school?
- No. Firwood High School has no designated religious character.
- Who runs Firwood High School?
- Firwood High School is part of WOODBRIDGE TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- What SEN provision does Firwood High School have?
- The schools register lists Firwood High School's special educational needs provision as: SLD - Severe Learning Difficulty. Contact the school to discuss how it would support a particular child.
- What is Firwood High School's absence rate?
- Firwood High School's overall absence rate is 14% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Firwood High School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Firwood High School's key stage results are shown in the results section on this page, with the last three years so you can see the trend rather than a single year.
School details come from the Department for Education's Get Information About Schools register. Inspection outcomes come from Ofsted, and exam results from the Department for Education's school performance service. This page was last updated on 10 July 2026.