St Wilfrid's Church of England Academy

St Wilfrid’s Church of England Academy continues to perform well as a good school, with pupils and students expressing happiness and safety in their learning environment. The staff prioritize the well-being of students and have effectively created a respectful and inclusive atmosphere. Leaders maintain high expectations and ensure that pupils, including those with special educational needs, achieve commendably despite any social disadvantages. The school has a well-structured curriculum that builds on students' existing knowledge, although some areas require attention to ensure all students are ready before moving on to new material.

Strengths

• Pupils and students enjoy a supportive and inclusive school environment.
• Staff are dedicated to students' well-being and academic success.
• High-quality education with a well-designed ambitious curriculum.
• Leaders effectively equip staff to support pupils with SEND.
• Pupils demonstrate positive attitudes to learning and behavior.
• Strong community involvement through enrichment activities.
• Effective safeguarding practices are in place.

Areas for Improvement

• Some teachers do not ensure prior knowledge is secure before introducing new content.
• Older pupils do not read as regularly as they should to enrich their vocabulary.

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 St Wilfrid's Church of England Academy attended 92.9% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 19.2% 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, 5.9% of pupils at St Wilfrid's Church of England Academy were suspended at least once (nationally 7.3%). 4 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 St Wilfrid's Church of England Academy had 16.8 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 8.1% 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, 7.8% of pupils at St Wilfrid's Church of England Academy were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 1.8% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 3.5%).

The school has resourced provision with 7 pupils.

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 2024–25 St Wilfrid's Church of England Academy received £7,131 and spent £7,142 for each of its 1,493 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £3,845,000 (£2,575 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). Academy figures include a share of the trust's central services, shared out by pupil numbers, and are rounded to the nearest £1,000. Premises costs were defined differently from 2024, so compare them across that gap with care.

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Blackburn · Blackburn with Darwen local authority: places and applications

What is St Wilfrid's Church of England Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for St Wilfrid's Church of England Academy is Good, from an inspection in February 2023.

When was St Wilfrid's Church of England Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

St Wilfrid's Church of England Academy was last inspected in February 2023.

How many pupils does St Wilfrid's Church of England Academy have?

St Wilfrid's Church of England Academy has 1,483 pupils on roll.

What age range does St Wilfrid's Church of England Academy cover?

St Wilfrid's Church of England Academy for pupils aged 11 to 18.

What are St Wilfrid's Church of England Academy's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 49.8, and 58% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is St Wilfrid's Church of England Academy?

St Wilfrid's Church of England Academy is at Duckworth Street, Blackburn, Lancashire, BB2 2JR.