Overview
- The BBC confirmed the comeback on The One Show and in a press release, with Healey saying she feels "like I'm coming home."
- Healey reprises Janeece Bryant as a regular, marking her first sustained return since the show's revival following a brief 2023 appearance.
- Lauren Hylton joins as Janeece’s on-screen daughter, Cheryl Bryant, who will be a student at Waterloo Road.
- New pupil characters include Leo Ashton (Liam Shaw), Callum Broome (Nathan Clark), Yousef Naseer (Ibrahim Azzi), Lewis Pemberton (Cane Morris) and Keelan Wright (Marshall Clark).
- Executive producer Cameron Roach called the move a 20th‑anniversary "coming of age" designed to refresh the series, with the new season set to air on BBC One and BBC iPlayer later this year.