SCHOOL PROFILE

St Cuthbert's Roman Catholic High School, a Voluntary Academy

Secondary Academy sponsor led URN 149873
Open
Pupils 8,834,192 Latest school census
Capacity 1,200 Published school capacity
Capacity used 85.3% Pupils as a share of capacity
Age range 11 – 16 Statutory age range
OFSTED

Latest graded inspection

29 March 2022
Latest published outcome Requires improvement
OEIF
Quality of education Requires improvement
Behaviour & attitudes Requires improvement
Personal development Good
Leadership & management Requires improvement
SCHOOL DETAILS

About this school

School type Academy sponsor led
Phase Secondary
Gender Mixed
Religious character Roman Catholic
Local authority Rochdale
Trust ST TERESA OF CALCUTTA CATHOLIC ACADEMY TRUST
Census date 15 January 2026
PUPIL PROFILE

School community

Latest published pupil characteristics for 2025/26.

2025/26
Total pupils 1,023 1,023 full-time · 0 part-time
Female pupils 527 51.5% of pupils
Male pupils 496 48.5% of pupils

Free school meals

Pupils eligible for free school meals.

43.2%
18.4 pts above England
School 43.2%
Rochdale 33.0%
North West 28.5%
England 24.8%

English as an additional language

Pupils whose first language is not English.

30.9%
10.6 pts above England
School 30.9%
Rochdale 27.4%
North West 18.1%
England 20.3%

Young carers

Pupils recorded as young carers.

4.1%
3.1 pts above England
School 4.1%
Rochdale 0.5%
North West 0.8%
England 1.0%

Ethnicity

Largest recorded pupil groups.

White British
51.7%
529
African
15.9%
163
Pakistani
10.4%
106
Any other White background
6.7%
69
Any other Black background
3.1%
32
Any other ethnic group
2.8%
29
Council, regional and national comparisons are pupil-weighted using published school census counts.
ADDITIONAL NEEDS

Special educational needs

Pupils receiving SEN support or with an education, health and care plan.

2025/26
Pupils with SEN 21.1% 216 of 1,023 pupils
0.3 pts above England England: 20.8%
School 21.1%
Rochdale 22.4%
North West 22.1%
England 20.8%
SEN support 17.1% 175 pupils
England 14.8% 2.3 pts above
EHC plans 4.0% 41 pupils
England 6.0% 2.0 pts below
PRIMARY NEEDS

Most common identified needs

Pupils
Social, emotional & mental health 60
Speech, language & communication 53
Other difficulty or disability 51
Autistic spectrum disorder 22
Specific learning difficulty 11
Moderate learning difficulty 8

SEN comparisons are pupil-weighted using published 2025/26 Department for Education school-level data. Primary needs combine pupils receiving SEN support and pupils with EHC plans.

ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE

Key stage 4 outcomes

Published Department for Education results for 2024/25.

2024/25
ATTAINMENT 8

Average attainment score

39.7 0.5 pts above England
School 39.7
Rochdale 33.8
North West 37.7
England 39.2
English & maths grade 5+ 29.0% England 36.0% 7.0 pts below England
English & maths grade 4+ 47.3% England 51.4% 4.1 pts below England
EBacc entry 18.8% England 30.6% 11.8 pts below England
EBacc average point score 3.37 England 3.41
Progress 8 Not available for 2024/25

Comparisons are averages of published school-level results for open schools. They are not pupil-weighted official local authority attainment rates.

ATTENDANCE & ABSENCE

Attendance profile

Published Department for Education absence data for 2024/25. Lower absence rates are generally better.

2024/25
ABSENCE RATE

Overall absence

10.63%

Percentage of possible sessions missed.

4.41 pts higher than England
School 10.63%
Rochdale 6.78%
North West 6.25%
England 6.22%
ABSENCE RATE

Persistent absence

32.67%

Pupils missing 10% or more of sessions.

16.85 pts higher than England
School 32.67%
Rochdale 18.20%
North West 15.89%
England 15.82%
ABSENCE RATE

Severe absence

6.17%

Pupils missing 50% or more of sessions.

4.36 pts higher than England
School 6.17%
Rochdale 2.12%
North West 1.75%
England 1.80%
Council, regional and national comparisons are averages of published school-level percentages rather than pupil-weighted official absence rates.
HOW DOES IT COMPARE?

School context

Comparison with open secondary schools.

CAPACITY

Capacity utilisation

85.3% 7.1 pts below England
St Cuthbert's Roman Catholic High School, a Voluntary Academy
85.3%
Rochdale
95.0%
North West
91.8%
England
92.3%
Benchmarks use open schools in the same phase. Capacity utilisation is calculated from published pupil and capacity figures.
Sources: Department for Education · Get Information about Schools · Ofsted monthly management information