Cheadle Hulme School: free Senior supervision to 6pm and A levels or BTECs

A levels, BTECs and a “Plus 1” make a flexible sixth form

The current curriculum centres on three A levels or a BTEC combination, one “Plus 1” enrichment option and a Pathway connected to interests or future work. Business BTEC may be offered in one-, two- or three-A-level-equivalent combinations. The Sport Extended Diploma occupies the full three-A-level programme. The school also describes smaller Sport qualifications, but families should confirm which sizes and combinations will run.

The Sport course page says the Extended Diploma cannot be combined with an A level. Ask which route will run and what a proposed university or apprenticeship requires. Similar qualification size or UCAS points do not mean every destination accepts the same mix.

Plus 1 choices include EPQ, Core Maths, CREST Gold, Arts Award, Global Perspectives AS, TEFL and further maths. Pathways include areas such as medical sciences, enterprise, creative arts, languages, sport, social impact and STEM. Check which options actually run for your entry year and where they sit in the week.

This makes CHS more interesting than a school offering only a conventional three-subject package. It also creates decisions. A student considering engineering may value further maths or CREST; one balancing elite sport may need to protect recovery time more than collect another credential.

The 2026 GCSE options guide describes nine GCSE or IGCSE subjects, including both English courses, maths and the modern language studied from Year 7, with dual or separate sciences and options. Do not infer that every combination on an options site can fit every timetable.

The free Senior late stay could change family logistics

A published sample Year 7 timetable runs from 8.50am to 3.45pm, with five hour-long periods, lunch and clubs, and a short form period. It is an illustration, not a promise that every Year 7 day or club follows exactly that pattern.

The Senior admissions page says pupils may be on site from 7.30am, with supervised breakfast from 8am, and may remain supervised until 6pm. The Senior page describes that late facility as free and mentions computer and filtered internet access. We have not verified whether breakfast food carries a charge.

That window can be genuinely valuable for two working parents, but ask what “supervised” looks like. Is it a quiet room, social base or formal homework session? Can a Year 7 pupil leave for a club and return? What happens at 6pm if a train is cancelled?

Infant and Junior care also reaches 7.30am–6pm, but it is a paid service. The linked charge sheet was not publicly accessible during our review.

We could not verify a current nightly homework guide by year. Include device work, revision and unfinished classwork as well as tasks labelled “homework”.

Test the journey twice: at 3.45pm and after an activity

The travel page says Cheadle Hulme station is about a twelve-minute walk away. It lies on routes towards Manchester Piccadilly, Stockport, Crewe and Stoke-on-Trent. Walk it with your child in winter light, including the correct school entrance—not just from a map pin.

Elite operates the private coaches independently. Published areas include Chorlton, Didsbury, Marple Bridge, Poynton, Alderley Edge, Wilmslow and Hale. Year 5 and 6 are the youngest listed users, with a bus-buddy arrangement involving older pupils.

Ask Elite for the fare, seat availability and return time for your route. Free supervision until 6pm does not solve collection if the coach leaves earlier.

Parking is limited and nearby roads become congested. Try the actual morning and afternoon run before accepting. For siblings at different schools, model the bad day too: one late fixture, one parent away and rain at the station.

There is plenty to join without being “high performance”

The ordinary co-curricular menu includes examples such as Model United Nations, DofE, LAMDA, STEM Racing, a student magazine, House competitions and leadership. Choirs, productions, exhibitions and backstage technical work widen the creative routes beyond being a solo performer.

The sport page is unusually specific about access. Year 7 samples activities in mixed-ability groups before competitive and recreational paths. The school says ordinary sport has no trials, pupils can join practices mid-year and regular attendees will represent CHS at some point.

Saturdays and midweek fixtures can affect the household. Request a recent calendar for your child’s likely sport, not the most convenient example. A family deciding between CHS and a school with a shorter activities programme may reasonably prefer either one, depending on travel and the child’s appetite.

Support is layered, with mainstream-school limits

The pastoral page names Form Tutors, Heads of Year, non-teaching Student Managers, safeguarding staff, Learning Support, a Medical Manager, nurse, counsellor and first-aid team. Those are useful routes; the page does not promise counselling frequency or waiting time.

For an ongoing wellbeing concern, the published February 2024 mental-health policy starts with the Form Tutor and Head of Year, who can arrange a nurse or counsellor referral.

All Year 7 pupils are screened for reading, spelling and processing, with more assessment where indicated. Screening is repeated near the end of Year 9 for examination arrangements. CHS says it cannot diagnose dyslexia, and a private report is supporting evidence rather than automatic exam entitlement.

Younger Senior pupils may use Learning Support for a focused period, including lunchtime or after school; sixth formers can use study periods.

The school’s June 2024 accessibility plan acknowledges that some parts of its heritage campus may remain inaccessible and that it is not a specialist or high-dependency medical facility. A child with a mobility or complex health need should visit the actual rooms and routes they would use, and receive a written plan before acceptance.

The June 2024 English-language support procedures include monitoring, vocabulary work and a buddy. For severe English-language difficulties, the procedures recommend outside sessions paid for by parents.

The inspection praised activities and flagged some lesson disruption

The March 2024 ISI inspection found all applicable standards met. It identified the co-curricular programme as a significant strength, noting broad participation, life skills and community contribution. At the time, inspectors said all pupils took at least one activity.

The report also asked leaders to manage and reduce low-level disruption so every pupil could participate fully in lessons. Its summary locates the issue in some Senior classes in Years 9–11. That is not a finding about every lesson or the Junior School.

We have not found a later regulatory follow-up proving the issue resolved. A current behaviour policy now gives staff a graduated route for classroom disruption, but a written process is not evidence of how consistently it works.

The same inspection describes bullying as rare and effectively managed, with pupils valuing anonymous reporting. Read that as a dated independent observation, not a promise that bullying never occurs.

Price the whole year, not only the tuition line

From 1 September 2026, the published fees are VAT-inclusive. Our annual figures below simply multiply the termly charge by three; they are not a guarantee for 2027–28.

Lunch adds £4.55 per day from Reception through Year 4 and £5.20 in Years 5–13. Also budget for uniform, the required Senior or sixth-form device, travel, trips, younger wraparound care, optional stationery or revision materials and Food & Nutrition ingredients in Year 8.

Pre-School’s published base fee is £3,948 per term. Funded-hour deductions differ by term, so obtain an individual quote; the Summer 2027 funded figures are estimates. Do not apply an Infant tuition figure or a single annual funding deduction to that separate stage.

Fees are annual but billed at the start of three terms. A ten-month direct debit beginning in September is available; the current fee-in-advance plan gives no discount. Build a five-year stress test with rises and extras rather than multiplying today’s Year 7 figure as if it will remain fixed.

The currently linked 2026 admissions booklet quotes an £80 non-refundable registration fee and a £500 non-refundable acceptance deposit. We did not find the current parent contract. Before paying, read the offer’s exact deposit, withdrawal, notice and fees-in-lieu terms; do not assume the rules used by another school apply.

Fee assistance only at Year 7 and Year 12

Means-tested assistance is available to new pupils entering Year 7 or Year 12, from 10% to 100% of tuition. It is not normally available for Infant, Junior, mid-year or other entry points. Passing the admissions process and qualifying financially are separate decisions.

For 2027 entry, one date is probable—not the whole calendar

Applications for September 2027 Year 7 entry are open. The school’s term dates identify Tuesday 5 January 2027 as Entrance Examination Day. The assessment FAQ gives the same date.

We therefore treat 5 January as the probable 2027-entry test date, subject to confirmation in your invitation. The current public pages do not establish the 2027 application deadline, interview period, decision day or acceptance deadline. Older sixth-form dates online belong to the 2025–26 cycle.

Contact Admissions for one written calendar and save it beside your other schools. Ask whether two sittings are assigned by the school, what happens after illness and when adjustment evidence is due. Do not build travel or another school’s acceptance decision around a date copied from an old webpage.

The 11+ combines a computer test, writing and a lesson

The Senior assessment FAQ describes around one hour of CEM Select Insight on a computer. It covers verbal or English, numerical or maths, and non-verbal work. A separate 35-minute creative-writing paper is handwritten and marked by the school’s English department.

The computer questions may use multiple choice, drag-and-drop and typed answers. A pupil may review answers while a timed section remains open, but cannot return after moving on. No calculator is allowed. Paper can be used for working, although only answers entered on the computer are marked.

Candidates also take part in a CHS lesson. Year 12 mentors accompany them, and the school provides snacks and lunch. That taught element is a useful reminder: preparation should leave a child able to listen, attempt something unfamiliar and recover from a difficult question.

CHS has not published a pass mark, component weighting or admission probability. All registered Year 7 candidates are invited to assessment; stronger performers are then invited to interview. An interview invitation is another stage, not an offer or a coded assurance about the final result.