It is a privilege to reflect on my third year as Headteacher of Stafford Hall School. During this time, the school has continued to strengthen its provision, ambition and culture of care. I remain exceptionally proud of the high-quality work taking place every day, led by a highly committed team who know our pupils well and work tirelessly to ensure they are supported, challenged and enabled to make meaningful progress towards their individual goals.

The 2025–2026 academic year has been a significant and highly successful period of development for the school. The separation of our care and residential services has enabled Stafford Hall to operate as a dedicated day school, creating greater clarity of purpose and allowing us to further enhance the quality, breadth and responsiveness of our education offer.

In spring 2026, the school was inspected under the new framework and we were delighted to meet all required standards. This inspection took place within the first fortnight of our transition to a single-site model, making the outcome especially affirming. Since then, our systems, routines and provision have continued to embed and strengthen, and we look forward to demonstrating the full impact of our settled approach in future inspection activity.

We have continued to grow with confidence and purpose, and our pupil roll is now the largest it has ever been. This reflects the trust placed in us by families, carers, local authorities and partner professionals. We are currently awaiting Ofsted approval to increase capacity to 45 pupils, which would enable us to extend our specialist provision and support even more young people to achieve positive outcomes and move on successfully to the next stage of their lives.

As we move forward, my priority is to build on the excellent foundations already in place and to continue driving sustained improvement across all areas of the school. Together with our skilled and dedicated staff team, I am committed to ensuring Stafford Hall School is recognised as a centre of excellence, where pupils’ personal development, wellbeing, learning and preparation for adulthood are at the heart of everything we do. Our approach will remain collaborative, reflective and ambitious, with strong partnerships between education, clinical colleagues, families, carers and local authorities. Through this shared commitment, we will continue to provide a safe, nurturing and aspirational environment in which every pupil is supported to thrive.

I look forward to continuing to work in partnership with you as we build on this positive momentum. Thank you for your ongoing support, confidence and collaboration. Together, we will continue to ensure Stafford Hall School is a place of exceptional learning, care, ambition and achievement for every pupil.

Warmest regards,

Adam Medlock, Headteacher