Westmorland School
Weldbank Lane, Chorley, PR7 3NQOpen in maps (opens in a new tab)
Westmorland School is a special school in Chorley for ages 5 to 16. It is one of the 692 schools in Lancashire. Its latest Ofsted rating is Good, from an inspection in February 2025.
Ofsted inspection
Inspected 11 February 2025, report published 24 March 2025
- Overall effectiveness
- Good
- Quality of education
- Good
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Good
- Personal development
- Good
- Leadership and management
- Good
- Safeguarding
- Met
What Ofsted said
From the inspection on 11 February 2025
Pupils, and their families, appreciate the great lengths that staff go to for them at Westmorland School. Each pupil is known well as an individual and staff strive to meet and support pupils' specific needs. Pupils benefit from consistent routines and therapeutic input. They enjoy caring relationships with staff and they feel safe. Pupils understand that the school expects the best of them both personally and academically. Staff make effective use of the school's specialist facilities and resources to overcome any barriers that pupils have to their learning and development. Pupils are supported expertly to develop their levels of independence, communication and social skills. From varied starting points, pupils make good progress and achieve well. In the main, the atmosphere around school and in lessons is calm and purposeful. Pupils attend school regularly. They are routinely supported to understand their emotions and to regulate their behaviour. This helps pupils to better prepare for their learning so that they can access the curriculum on offer. Pupils enjoy a wide-ranging personal development offer. For example, pupils access swimming lessons and extra-curricular opportunities to support their physical and mental health, such as yoga and boxing classes. They learn about responsibility by becoming pupil ambassadors or looking after the many animals on the school farm.
What the school should improve
- In some subjects, the school is developing the curriculum. It has not ensured that teachers are clear about exactly what pupils should learn and in what order. This hinders some pupils from building a secure body of subject-specific knowledge over time. The school should complete its curriculum thinking in these subjects so that teachers are clear about what pupils should learn and when.
- Some pupils have gaps in their reading knowledge. As a result, they do not access the curriculum as well as they should. The school should ensure that it further strengthens the support that it provides to help pupils read. This is so that support is more targeted and helps pupils to develop fluency and confidence in their reading as quickly as possible.
Pupil numbers and mix
86 pupils on roll, with places for 96
Schools near Westmorland School
| School | Distance | Ofsted | Results |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mayfield School | 0.1 miles | Ofsted: Good | 0% met the expected standard |
| Chorley Astley Park School | 0.9 miles | Ofsted: Outstanding | 0% met the expected standard |
| Mayfield House School | 1 mile | Ofsted: Inadequate | Not published |
| Oliver House School | 1 mile | Ofsted: Outstanding | Not published |
| Waterloo Lodge | 2 miles | No Ofsted inspection | Attainment 8: 7.2 |
School details
- School type
- Other independent special school
- Sector
- Independent
- Age range
- 5 to 16
- Gender
- Mixed
- Headteacher
- Mrs Susan Asher
- Phone
- 01257278899
- Address
- Weldbank Lane, Chorley, PR7 3NQ
- Local authority
- Lancashire
- URN
- 132828
School details from Get Information about Schools, 17 September 2026. Ofsted outcomes published to 31 August 2026. Pupil mix from the school census, 2025/26.