St John the Baptist Catholic Comprehensive School, Woking

St John the Baptist Catholic Comprehensive School is a highly effective secondary school where pupils receive an exceptional education. Inspectors found consistently high expectations, strong relationships and a broad, ambitious curriculum that enables pupils, including those with SEND, to achieve very well. Behaviour is exemplary, attendance is strong, and pupils benefit from a rich personal development programme and a wide range of enrichment opportunities. The sixth form is also strong, with students acting as role models and moving on to ambitious destinations. The school is part of the Xavier Catholic Education Trust and has not previously been inspected under section 5, although it was previously judged outstanding before becoming an academy. Leadership is highly effective, staff well-being is prioritised, and governors and the trust provide rigorous challenge. Safeguarding arrangements are effective. Inspectors identified no significant weaknesses in this inspection.

Strengths

• Broad and ambitious curriculum that exceeds national expectations
• High achievement across key stages, including in national examinations
• Highly effective support for pupils with SEND
• Exemplary pupil behaviour and conduct
• Strong attendance and effective action to reduce absence
• Rich personal development programme that builds character exceptionally well
• Wide range of visits, clubs, cultural events and charitable activities
• Strong careers advice preparing pupils for ambitious next steps
• Sixth-form students are strong role models and achieve well
• Effective leadership with high staff well-being and strong trust/governor challenge
• Effective safeguarding arrangements

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 John the Baptist Catholic Comprehensive School, Woking attended 94.7% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 10.8% 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, 1.4% of pupils at St John the Baptist Catholic Comprehensive School, Woking 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 St John the Baptist Catholic Comprehensive School, Woking had 14.5 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 10.2% 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, 8.1% of pupils at St John the Baptist Catholic Comprehensive School, Woking were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 4.5% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 3.5%).

The school has a SEN unit with 2 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 John the Baptist Catholic Comprehensive School, Woking received £8,707 and spent £9,082 for each of its 1,543 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £1,619,000 (£1,049 per pupil).

Across all 21 schools of Xavier Catholic Education Trust, income was £6,512 and spending £6,815 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 Woking · Surrey local authority: places and applications

St John the Baptist Catholic Comprehensive School, Woking is part of Xavier Catholic Education Trust, which runs 23 schools. The nearest others:

• The Marist Catholic Primary School West Byfleet
• St Hugh of Lincoln Catholic Primary School Woking
• St Peter's Catholic School Guildford
• Holy Family Catholic Primary School Addlestone
• St Thomas of Canterbury Catholic Primary School Guildford
• St Joseph's Catholic Primary School Guildford
• Salesian School, Chertsey Chertsey
• St Anne's Catholic Primary School Chertsey
• St Charles Borromeo Catholic Primary School, Weybridge Weybridge
• St Augustine's Catholic Primary School Camberley

What is St John the Baptist Catholic Comprehensive School, Woking's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for St John the Baptist Catholic Comprehensive School, Woking is Outstanding, from an inspection in March 2025.

When was St John the Baptist Catholic Comprehensive School, Woking last inspected by Ofsted?

St John the Baptist Catholic Comprehensive School, Woking was last inspected in March 2025.

How many pupils does St John the Baptist Catholic Comprehensive School, Woking have?

St John the Baptist Catholic Comprehensive School, Woking has 1,512 pupils on roll.

What age range does St John the Baptist Catholic Comprehensive School, Woking cover?

St John the Baptist Catholic Comprehensive School, Woking for pupils aged 11 to 18.

What are St John the Baptist Catholic Comprehensive School, Woking's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 60.5, and 81% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is St John the Baptist Catholic Comprehensive School, Woking?

St John the Baptist Catholic Comprehensive School, Woking is at Elmbridge Lane, Kingfield, Woking, Surrey, GU22 9AL.