St Benedict's Catholic High School
| Type | Secondary / Voluntary aided school |
| Age Range | 11-18 |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
| Address | Red Lonning Hensingham Whitehaven Cumbria CA28 8UG |
| Phone | 01946692275 |
| Reference Number | 112398 |
St Benedict’s Catholic High School continues to perform effectively since its last inspection, maintaining good standards and fostering a positive learning environment for its pupils. Everyone at the school contributes to a supportive atmosphere where pupils are engaged, polite, and happy. The school has made noteworthy strides in its curriculum design and the current cohort of students is benefitting from these improvements, exhibiting strong understanding and quality of work across various subjects. However, the outcomes from examinations in 2024 do not yet reflect these substantial advancements in education quality due to former cohorts not receiving these benefits in time.
General Makeup
| Number of pupils | 992 |
| Boy/Girl ratio |
Boys: 49.7%
Girls: 50.3% |
| Percentage of students eligible for free school meals | 30.1% |
| Percentage of students where English is not their first language | 5.5% |
Class Sizes
| Average size of one teacher classes | 19.1 |
Year Groups
| Year | Boys | Girls | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | 93 | 94 | 187 |
| 8 | 98 | 93 | 191 |
| 9 | 92 | 105 | 197 |
| 10 | 87 | 70 | 157 |
| 11 | 74 | 75 | 149 |
| 12 | 25 | 24 | 49 |
| 13 | 24 | 38 | 62 |
Ethnicities
| Ethnicity | Percentage |
|---|---|
| White, British | 90.8% |
| Asian, Other | 1.6% |
| African | 1.4% |
| White, Other | 1.3% |
| Mixed, Other | 0.7% |
| Indian | 0.6% |
| White & Asian | 0.4% |
| Unclassified | 0.3% |
| Chinese | 0.2% |
| White & Black (African) | 0.2% |
| White & Black (Caribbean) | 0.1% |
| Irish | 0.1% |
| Overall Ofsted Rating | Good |
| Last Report Date | 03 Jun 2025 |
| Date | Report |
|---|---|
| 03 Jun 2025 | School inspection |
| 17 Dec 2019 | School inspection |
| 16 Sep 2014 | Full inspection: |
| 05 Mar 2013 | Full inspection: |
| 21 Nov 2012 | Monitoring visit |
| 03 Jul 2012 | Monitoring visit |
| 27 Feb 2012 | Full inspection: |
| 09 Mar 2011 | Curriculum and development visit |
| 22 Jun 2009 | Full inspection: |
| 08 Nov 2007 | Curriculum and development visit |
| 25 Jan 2006 | Full inspection: |
| 16 Oct 2000 | Full inspection |
Strengths
- Pupils demonstrate positive attitudes towards learning and participate actively in lessons.
- The curriculum has been redesigned to provide a stronger educational foundation, especially in key stage 3.
- Teachers effectively address misconceptions and support pupils' understanding of subject-specific vocabulary.
- The school promotes a range of extracurricular activities that foster pupil talents and interests.
- Safeguarding arrangements are effective and pupils feel safe.
- Staff enjoy a positive community atmosphere and feel valued, benefiting from communication with leadership.
Areas for Improvement
- Some learning activities chosen by staff do not effectively help pupils to secure knowledge.
- The adapted curriculum for some pupils with SEND is not ambitious enough, limiting their potential.
Attainment 8 Score
Attaimenment 8 is a measure of a pupil's average grade across a set of 8 subjects. The 8 subjects which make up Attainment 8 are:
- English
- Maths
- 3 subjects from qualifications that count towards the English Baccalaureate (EBacc), like sciences, language and history
- 3 more GCSE qualifications (including EBacc subjects) or technical awards from a list approved by the Department for Education
Each grade a pupil gets is assigned a point score from 9 (the highest) to 1 (the lowest). These scores are added up, with English and maths counted twice.
| School Score | Percentile (local) | Percentile (nationwide) |
|---|---|---|
| 41.2 |
GCSE Results
| Metric | School Score | Percentile (local) | Percentile (nationwide) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 32.9% | ||
| 5 or more GCSEs at grade 9-4 (or A-C) | 47% |
Attainment 8 Score
Note: Exam results were not published in 2021 and 2022 due to the pandemic.
Attaimenment 8 is a measure of a pupil's average grade across a set of 8 subjects. The 8 subjects which make up Attainment 8 are:
Sample
UnlockGCSE Results
Note: Exam results were not published in 2021 and 2022 due to the pandemic.
Sample
UnlockPoints
| Points | Percentile (local) | Percentile (nationwide) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average Points | 30.72 | ||
| Average Points (best 3) | 33.81 |
Grades
| School | Local | Nationwide | |
| Average Grade | C | C | C+ |
| Average Grade (best 3) | C+ | C+ | C+ |
| Percentage | Percentile (local) | Percentile (nationwide) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Students getting AAB or better | 14.3% |
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| Number of Applications | Number of Offers | |
| First Preference | ||
| Second Preference | 147 | 3 |
| Third Preference | 42 | 0 |
| From another Local Authority | 1 | 0 |
Previous Years
Sample
UnlockDestinations after GCSE's
| Staying in Education | |
| > Further Education | |
| > School Sixth Form | |
| > Sixth Form College | |
| > Other Education | |
| Apprenticeships | |
| Employment | |
| Not in education or employment | |
| Unknown |
| Name | Distance |
|
Jericho Primary School
Windsor Court, Whitehaven, Cumbria, CA28 6UX |
0.29 miles |
|
Hensingham Primary School
Main Street, Whitehaven, Cumbria, CA28 8QZ |
0.49 miles |
|
St Gregory and St Patrick's Catholic Infant School
Esk Avenue, Corkickle, Whitehaven, Cumbria, CA28 8AJ |
0.81 miles |
|
St Begh's Catholic Junior School
Coach Road, Whitehaven, Cumbria, CA28 7TE |
0.9 miles |
|
St James' CofE Junior School
Wellington Row, Whitehaven, Cumbria, CA28 7HG |
1.03 miles |
|
St James' CofE Infant and Nursery School
High Street, Whitehaven, Cumbria, CA28 7PZ |
1.06 miles |
|
Monkwray Junior School
Monkwray Brow, Monkwray Junior School, Monkwray Brow, Whitehaven, Cumbria, CA28 9DT |
1.21 miles |
|
Valley Primary School and Nursery
Whinlatter Road, Whitehaven, Cumbria, CA28 8DA |
1.25 miles |
|
Moresby Primary School
School Brow, Moresby Parks, Whitehaven, Cumbria, CA28 8UX |
1.3 miles |
|
Bransty Primary School
Mona Road, Bransty, Whitehaven, Cumbria, CA28 6EG |
1.35 miles |
|
Kells Infant School
High Road, Kells, Whitehaven, Cumbria, CA28 9PQ |
1.56 miles |
|
St Mary's Catholic Primary School
High Road, Kells, Whitehaven, Cumbria, CA28 9PG |
1.62 miles |
|
St Bridget's CofE School
Main Street, Parton, St Bridget's Ce School, Whitehaven, Cumbria, CA28 6NY |
1.96 miles |
|
Moor Row Community Primary School
School Street, Moor Row, Cumbria, CA24 3JW |
2.16 miles |
|
St Patrick's Catholic Primary School
Todholes Road, Cleator Moor, Cumbria, CA25 5DG |
2.71 miles |
|
St Joseph's Catholic Primary School
Yeathouse Road, Frizington, Cumbria, CA26 3PX |
2.76 miles |
|
Montreal CofE Primary School
Ennerdale Road, Cleator Moor, Cumbria, CA25 5LW |
2.76 miles |
|
Cleator Moor Nursery School
Ennerdale Road, Cleator Moor, CA25 5LW |
2.8 miles |
|
Lowca Community School
Lowca, Whitehaven, Cumbria, CA28 6QS |
2.81 miles |
|
Frizington Community Primary School
Main Street, Frizington, Cumbria, CA26 3PF |
2.83 miles |
| Name | Distance |
|
Mayfield School
Campus Whitehaven, Red Lonning, Whitehaven, Cumbria, CA28 8UG |
0.17 miles |
|
The Whitehaven Academy
Cleator Moor Road, Whitehaven, Cumbria, CA28 8TY |
0.34 miles |
|
St Bees School
Wood Lane, St Bees, Cumbria, CA27 0DS |
3.61 miles |
|
West Lakes Academy
Main Street, Egremont, Cumbria, CA22 2DQ |
4.28 miles |
|
Lakes College - West Cumbria
Hallwood Road, Lillyhall Business Park, Lillyhall, Workington, Cumbria, CA14 4JN |
4.6 miles |