OFSTED
16 May 2023
Latest graded inspection
Latest published outcome
Requires improvement
OEIF
Quality of education
Requires improvement
Behaviour & attitudes
Requires improvement
Personal development
Requires improvement
Leadership & management
Requires improvement
SCHOOL DETAILS
About this school
School type
Academy sponsor led
Phase
Secondary
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
Roman Catholic
Local authority
Blackburn with Darwen
Trust
ROMERO CATHOLIC ACADEMY TRUST
Census date
15 January 2026
PUPIL PROFILE
2025/26
School community
Latest published pupil characteristics for 2025/26.
Total pupils
770
770 full-time ·
0 part-time
Female pupils
383
49.7% of pupils
Male pupils
387
50.3% of pupils
Free school meals
Pupils eligible for free school meals.
22.9 pts
above England
School
47.7%
Blackburn with Darwen
25.6%
North West
28.5%
England
24.8%
English as an additional language
Pupils whose first language is not English.
17.9 pts
above England
School
38.2%
Blackburn with Darwen
36.4%
North West
18.1%
England
20.3%
Young carers
Pupils recorded as young carers.
0.2 pts
below England
School
0.8%
Blackburn with Darwen
0.4%
North West
0.8%
England
1.0%
Ethnicity
Largest recorded pupil groups.
White British
44.4%
342
Pakistani
20.5%
158
Any other White background
11.8%
91
Unclassified
5.7%
44
African
3.6%
28
Indian
3.5%
27
Council, regional and national comparisons
are pupil-weighted using published school
census counts.
ADDITIONAL NEEDS
2025/26
Special educational needs
Pupils receiving SEN support or with an education, health and care plan.
Pupils with SEN
20.7%
159 of
770 pupils
0.2 pts
below England
England:
20.8%
England
14.8%
2.7 pts
above
England
6.0%
2.9 pts
below
PRIMARY NEEDS
Pupils
Most common identified needs
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
2024/25
Key stage 4 outcomes
Published Department for Education results for 2024/25.
ATTAINMENT 8
Average attainment score
37.2
2.0 pts
below England
Comparisons are averages of published school-level results for open schools. They are not pupil-weighted official local authority attainment rates.
ATTENDANCE & ABSENCE
2024/25
Attendance profile
Published Department for Education absence data for 2024/25. Lower absence rates are generally better.
ABSENCE RATE
13.77%
Overall absence
Percentage of possible sessions missed.
7.56 pts
higher than
England
School
13.77%
Blackburn with Darwen
6.47%
North West
6.25%
England
6.22%
ABSENCE RATE
40.51%
Persistent absence
Pupils missing 10% or more of sessions.
24.69 pts
higher than
England
School
40.51%
Blackburn with Darwen
17.93%
North West
15.89%
England
15.82%
ABSENCE RATE
7.99%
Severe absence
Pupils missing 50% or more of sessions.
6.18 pts
higher than
England
School
7.99%
Blackburn with Darwen
1.96%
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
93.8%
1.5 pts
above England
Our Lady and St John RC High School, a Voluntary Academy
93.8%
Blackburn with Darwen
94.1%
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.