To Know, Love and Serve God Our Lady’s R.C. HIGH SCHOOL
Welcome
I am very pleased to welcome you to Our Lady’s High School.
I hope our prospectus, inspection reports, visits to our school and discussions with staff, parents and students, will provide you with the information you require to satisfy yourself that Our Lady’s will provide the quality of education you want for your child.
The Mission of our school is ‘To Know, Love and Serve God’; each student will have a sense of this Mission throughout their time at Our Lady’s. We support students as they explore their own journey of faith, learning with confidence and creativity. This is underpinned by our core values which include tolerance, respect, honesty and humility. Our success is built upon these values, along with the high expectations that we have of our students in their work, appearance and behaviour. We offer students a happy, hard-working atmosphere and a stimulating curriculum.
We look for excellence in all aspects of learning and expect high standards of achievement from all members of our community. We are very proud of our most recent Ofsted report where it was noted that outcomes are good because of high standards and expectations, strong attitudes to learning and good or better teaching. This is further evidenced by the consistently strong GCSE examination results that our students have achieved over recent years.
Please feel free to contact me at school if you want to know more; you are more than welcome to visit us while the school is in operation. As you will see, our students are very proud of their school, and we are very proud of our students. Whatever you decide for your child, I wish them the very best in the next chapter of their education.
Lee Ormsby Headteacher
“Teachers expect pupils to do their best. Pupils work diligently to meet the high expectations that teachers have for their learning.”
OFSTED 2021
Our School
Our Lady’s is a diverse and vibrant Catholic high school community with a distinct ethos centred upon the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Within a friendly environment that welcomes all faiths, we promote a learning culture where everyone is valued and differences are respected and celebrated.
We take a forward-thinking approach to developing the values and beliefs of our students, ensuring the dignity of each individual is at the heart of our Catholic teaching. Students are encouraged and supported to take an active role in the liturgical life of the school with the opportunity to join our Chaplaincy team as well as getting involved in trips and events to celebrate Catholic spirituality.
All staff at Our Lady’s have the same goal – to ensure that the unique gifts and talents of every student are developed to their full potential. We seek excellence in all aspects of learning and expect high standards of academic and personal achievement.
Our innovative leadership promotes a fun, challenging and distinctive learning experience. Positive relationships between teachers, students and parents are fundamental to our success. Working together we ensure our students make good progress at Our Lady’s and leave our school as responsible, well-qualified, mature young people; ready to make a valued contribution to society.
Our Mission and Ethos
The mission of our school is “To Know, Love and Serve God.”
We believe this will be achieved if:
• We place prayer at the centre of everything we do.
• We recognise Religious Education as the principal subject and the teaching and message of Jesus Christ as the foundation of our community.
• We work with parents to ensure every child reaches their own potential.
• We value and respect all individuals and the communities around us.
• We promote excellence in all we do whilst allowing for failure by taking into account forgiveness, healing and reconciliation.
• We prepare and nurture our pupils to become respectful citizens
• We make our school a place for all people to feel safe and happy.
All that we do as a school is informed by our mission and our fundamental aim is to, ‘educate the whole person with Jesus Christ as our model’. We put Christ at the heart of all that we do, from the curriculum to the religious life of the school, and give all members of our school community the opportunity to develop spiritually on their journey of faith.
“Leaders in the school have created a faith filled community that is fully inclusive, welcoming and ambitious for all, where staff are strong role models for students.”
CATHOLIC SCHOOL INSPECTORATE 2023
Equality and Diversity
Our Lady’s is committed to developing an environment that prioritises, champions and celebrates diversity and equality.
We do this by promoting equality and inclusion within our community and regard people of all faiths, races and cultures with equal respect. Our teaching staff have created carefully considered curriculums which ensure that equity and diversity is celebrated and promoted in all areas of our daily school life. We celebrate our diversity through events such as ‘Culture day’ and ‘Tour of the World’.
Success and Achievement
At Our Lady’s effort is praised, achievements rewarded and success celebrated. Our students consistently make excellent progress and achieve ever-higher standards.
Securing a ‘good’ judgement from Ofsted (2021), an ‘Outstanding’ judgement from the Catholic School Inspectorate (2023) and consistently strong GCSE outcomes all highlight the great standard of education delivered at Our Lady’s. And it’s not just in the classroom where achievement flourishes. We also offer support to prepare our students for success beyond school with a wide choice of extracurricular activities and enterprise opportunities. Our many successes are built on the relationships we develop with parents, partner primary schools and local parishes. Our governing body also play a vital supporting role challenging us to achieve. Strong links with our local community and our various partnerships open up fantastic opportunities for our students to develop the skills and personal qualities required to thrive in an ever-changing world.
“There are lots of clubs that I enjoy, such as Art Club, Photography Club and Chess Club. The e-coin rewards trips are also great! We have been to play mini-golf, zorb football, rock climbing!”
KHRYLLE, YEAR 8
Enrichment
Enrichment is a vital part of school life giving students the chance to develop friendships as they pursue hobbies, explore new talents and realise their potential.
All students are welcome to take part in our exciting extra-curricular programme; regardless of ability, age or needs and we encourage and support every child to get involved.
Our Lady’s offer many opportunities for students to get away from the school environment to develop team skills, build respect for each other and appreciate the space and time required for personal reflection. Our annual student retreat to Savio House is just one example of an experience offering the chance for spiritual and personal growth, team work and quiet contemplation.
By providing access to a range of extra-curricular activities, all our students are given access to outstanding learning opportunities beyond the classroom. The value of learning outside the normal curriculum should not be under-estimated. Work experience placements, careers events and enterprise days alongside out-of-school groups and sports clubs inspire a positive can-do attitude in our students. The success of our sports teams and our highly-acclaimed drama productions provide just a couple of examples of the value of our wide-ranging extra-curricular provision.
A Varied Extra-Curricular Programme Includes:
• Duke of Edinburgh Award
• Sporting clubs
• Crafting Club
• GIFT Chaplains
• Youth SVP
• Chess Club
• Art Club
• Current affairs
• Debate Mate
• Model United Nation
• Roller Skating
• International visits including Paris, Barcelona and New York.
Pastoral Care
Teaching and LEARNING
At Our Lady’s a culture of acceptance and respect is actively promoted within a nurturing environment. Every child has the right to feel safe and confident at school so our anti-bullying policy makes it clear that any behaviour deliberately intended to cause distress will not be tolerated.
We are committed to providing opportunities for all students whatever their abilities and talents.
With strong teaching and a broad but balanced curriculum we strive to continually improve the learning experience. Developing young minds through enjoyable practical lessons and academic study helps promote important life skills, selfconfidence, imagination, creativity and resilience.
Every year group has a dedicated head of year who has overall responsibility for their welfare from Year 7 through to Year 11. As a trusted and consistent point of contact for their students, heads of year communicate and work with other school staff to promote good attendance and positive behaviour. They closely monitor the progress of each member of their year group, helping to build understanding and strong peer friendships to ensure a happy and vibrant school community.
Great-quality and consistent teaching, high standards of discipline, well-planned and stimulating lessons all contribute to learning that challenges each student. Our innovative approach to teaching encourages both individual progression and teamwork. All our students are given the necessary support and encouragement to
Thanks to strong links with our local primary schools, Our Lady’s is proud to offer a fantastic transition programme from Key Stage 2 to Key Stage 3. We regularly welcome primary school pupils into our school to enjoy a variety of lessons and interactive sessions designed to make the move up to high school a smooth and positive experience. A comprehensive and ongoing support network is in place to welcome our new Year 7s to the Our Lady’s family and they all receive a free school uniform.
“Pupils of all abilities, including most able are challenged appropriately.”
“Pastoral care in the school is strong and is built on principles of forgiveness, the school make an explicit and concrete commitment to the most vulnerable.”
CATHOLIC SCHOOL INSPECTORATE 2023
“There is so much support around school, teachers at Our Lady’s are always incredibly helpful and kind.”
EMILY, YEAR 8
Support and Guidance
At Our Lady’s we are committed to keeping your child safe whether that be with us in school, online or out in the community.
Parental support plays a vital part in a child’s education so we work closely with parents and carers to ensure strong links between students, school and home. A good level of communication with parents is high priority. We welcome parental input and enjoy the chance to meet parents both at school events and more informally. Our dedicated on-site Safeguarding team work with students and their families to provide universal support in the form of parenting support workshops, advice, signposting, onward referrals, meetings in school and home visits. We also have close links with a range of statutory and voluntary agencies to better support young people and their families.
SEND
(SPECIAL EDUCATIONAL NEEDS AND DISABILITY)
Students’ educational needs are assessed on transition and provision for those with special needs is coordinated, adapted and monitored by our SEND team and Learning Support staff. Additional support is also provided by external agencies should this be necessary.
Social and emotional aspects of learning interventions are offered to pupils who require extra support in building self-esteem, confidence, self-regulation and resilience. The SEND provision at Our Lady’s is student-centred and is devised based on a child’s individual needs. If they require support with any aspect of their education the SEND team will work to find solutions and ensure that the child is given the best possible chance of achieving their potential.
“There is an exceptional special educational needs and social, emotional and mental health provision on site.”
CATHOLIC SCHOOL INSPECTORATE 2023
Admissions
Our Lady’s R.C. High School is a Roman Catholic Secondary School provided by the Diocese of Salford and is maintained by the Manchester Local Authority as a Voluntary Aided School.
The school’s governing body is the admissions authority and is responsible for making decisions on applications for admissions. We welcome applications from students of all religious and cultural backgrounds. More information on our admissions policy, procedures and dates is available on our school website.
In order that you can make an informed choice about your child’s high school education there are plenty of opportunities for you to visit our school and ask any questions. Our Open Evenings are a great chance to interact with staff and students, listen to the Headteacher’s introductory talk and familiarise yourself with our school environment and culture.
We also offer personal tours of the school which can be arranged at a time to fit conveniently around your other commitments. To arrange a tour, please call Miss Royle on 0161 507 9640 or email s.royle@olsc.manchester.sch.uk
