Cardinal Newman Catholic School

Cardinal Newman Catholic School is a large voluntary-aided Catholic secondary comprehensive with a sixth form, and inspectors found provision to be exceptionally strong across every area of the school. Pupils are proud of their school and feel a strong sense of belonging, supported by a distinctive ethos that values each person. The school has high academic expectations, and pupils, including those with SEND, achieve extremely well through highly skilled teaching and an ambitious curriculum. Behaviour is exemplary, pupils are strongly motivated and respectful, and pastoral care is very strong. Pupils benefit from an extensive range of high-quality wider opportunities, including extra-curricular activities and leadership roles, and sixth-form students are well supported, achieve highly and receive strong careers guidance. Leadership and governance are uniformly strong, staff workload is considered, and safeguarding arrangements are effective. The inspection took place in October 2024, following a previous inspection graded Good. There are no identified areas of concern in the report; inspectors found a tireless desire to keep improving and a school that ensures pupils achieve academically while also thriving personally and socially.

Strengths

• Pupils feel valued, have a strong sense of belonging and are immensely proud of their school.
• The school has very high academic expectations and pupils achieve extremely well.
• Teaching is highly skilled and expert across the curriculum.
• The curriculum is highly ambitious and enriched by meaningful cross-subject links.
• Pupils with SEND achieve well and learn the curriculum alongside their peers.
• Reading is prioritised, with effective support for pupils who are not yet fluent.
• Behaviour in lessons is exemplary and pupils are highly motivated and respectful.
• Very strong pastoral care provides exceptional support for pupils' well-being.
• Pupils enjoy an impressive array of extra-curricular and wider development opportunities.
• The sixth-form curriculum is ambitious, students achieve highly and careers guidance is comprehensive.
• Leadership at all levels and governance are uniformly strong.
• Staff are overwhelmingly positive and their workload is considered.
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective.

Admissions: local authority offers data from the Department for Education. A school is oversubscribed when at least 5% of the families who put it first were not offered a place, and undersubscribed when everyone who put it first got in but 10% or more of its places were unfilled in the Department's school capacity survey (the latest survey is used for entry years it does not cover). Places: Department for Education, School capacity, from local authorities' annual survey as at 1 May. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024–25); the survey was not run in 2020. Places include sixth form places. Forecasts are the local authority's own for the school's planning area, an area it uses to plan places that is not the school's catchment area. The forecast starts from a head count in 2025; the dashed line is the Department's estimate of places in that area, including those the authority has firm plans for. Planned places are cumulative, and only those with firm plans are counted.

In 2024–25 pupils at Cardinal Newman Catholic School attended 90.7% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 24.7% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 23.4%).

Sessions missed

Pupils persistently absent

Source: Department for Education, Pupil absence in schools in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Persistent absence means missing 10% or more of sessions; severe absence means 50% or more. No figures were published for 2019/20.

In 2024–25, 5.8% of pupils at Cardinal Newman Catholic School were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). No pupils were permanently excluded.

Pupils suspended at least once

Source: Department for Education, Suspensions and permanent exclusions in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). A pupil can be suspended more than once, so suspensions per 100 pupils can be higher than the share of pupils suspended. Very small numbers are hidden by the DfE. Exclusion figures dropped in 2020 and 2021 because of school closures.

In 2025–26 Cardinal Newman Catholic School had 15.5 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 9.3% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 14.1%).

Pupils per teacher

Teachers who left the school within a year

Source: Department for Education, School workforce in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Pupils per teacher counts full-time-equivalent pupils and teachers. Turnover is the share of a year's teachers (full-time equivalent) who were not at the school the following year, whether they moved to another school or left state-funded teaching. Turnover and sickness figures run one year behind the ratios. Sick leave is the share of teachers who took at least one day in the year, so it swings widely at small schools, where a few teachers can make it 0% or 100%. The national figures are for all state schools of the same type.

In 2025–26, 18.6% of pupils at Cardinal Newman Catholic School were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 2.7% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 3.5%).

Pupils by main type of need

Source: Department for Education, Special educational needs in England (the 2025–26 school census). SEN support is extra help in school without an EHC plan. National figures are for all state-funded secondary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2025–26 Cardinal Newman Catholic School received £7,197 and spent £7,129 for each of its 2,661 pupils. It ended the year with a deficit of £1,597,000 (-£600 per pupil).

Income per pupil

Spending per pupil

Source: Department for Education, Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool. Each year is the one the financial year ends in (2024 is 2023–24).

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Hove · Brighton and Hove local authority: places and applications

What is Cardinal Newman Catholic School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Cardinal Newman Catholic School is Outstanding, from an inspection in November 2024.

When was Cardinal Newman Catholic School last inspected by Ofsted?

Cardinal Newman Catholic School was last inspected in November 2024.

How many pupils does Cardinal Newman Catholic School have?

Cardinal Newman Catholic School has 2,657 pupils on roll.

What age range does Cardinal Newman Catholic School cover?

Cardinal Newman Catholic School for pupils aged 11 to 18.

What are Cardinal Newman Catholic School's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 50.9, and 54% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is Cardinal Newman Catholic School?

Cardinal Newman Catholic School is at The Upper Drive, Hove, East Sussex, BN3 6ND.