The Sacred Heart Language College

The Sacred Heart Language College is a high-performing girls’ secondary school where pupils experience a broad, ambitious curriculum and achieve strong outcomes. Inspectors found the quality of education, personal development and leadership to be exceptional, with teaching that builds knowledge logically, checks understanding carefully and supports pupils with SEND well. Pupils feel safe, attend well and benefit from a strong reading culture and a wide range of enrichment and leadership opportunities. Behaviour in lessons is good: pupils are motivated, calm and proud of their work. However, some pupils’ conduct during social times and around the school site falls short of the school’s high expectations, and a few lack urgency in getting to lessons on time. This is the main area for improvement. This was the school’s first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic and its first section 5 inspection as an academy. It converted to academy status in 2019 and is part of the Blessed Holy Family Catholic Academy Trust; its predecessor school had been judged outstanding. Safeguarding arrangements are effective, and governors and trustees fulfil their duties well.

Strengths

• Broad, highly ambitious curriculum enriched by subjects such as classical civilisation and health studies
• Teachers have strong subject knowledge and deliver lessons clearly and enthusiastically
• Curriculum content is thoughtfully sequenced and regularly revisited so pupils retain knowledge
• Pupils produce high-quality work and take pride in their learning
• Pupils with SEND are identified swiftly and supported effectively to achieve well
• Strong culture of reading with effective support for pupils who need additional help
• Pupils are highly motivated and focused in lessons
• Well-developed PSHE and pastoral curriculum helps pupils become critical thinkers
• Wide range of leadership roles, clubs, enrichment activities and careers guidance
• Effective safeguarding arrangements and strong governance and trust oversight

Areas for Improvement

• Some pupils’ conduct around school and during social times does not consistently meet the school’s high expectations
• A few pupils lack urgency in getting to lessons on time

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 The Sacred Heart Language College attended 91.9% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 27.3% 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, 4.3% of pupils at The Sacred Heart Language College 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 The Sacred Heart Language College had 14.3 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 30.0% 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, 11.1% of pupils at The Sacred Heart Language College were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 2.2% 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 2024–25 The Sacred Heart Language College received £8,327 and spent £7,935 for each of its 775 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £1,667,000 (£2,151 per pupil).

Across all 4 schools of Blessed Holy Family Catholic Academy Trust, income was £7,624 and spending £7,411 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 Harrow · Harrow local authority: places and applications

The Sacred Heart Language College is part of Blessed Holy Family Catholic Academy Trust, which runs 4 schools. The nearest others:

• St Joseph's Catholic Primary School Harrow
• St John Fisher Catholic Primary School Pinner
• St George's Primary Catholic Voluntary Academy Harrow

What is The Sacred Heart Language College's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for The Sacred Heart Language College is Good, from an inspection in December 2024.

When was The Sacred Heart Language College last inspected by Ofsted?

The Sacred Heart Language College was last inspected in December 2024.

How many pupils does The Sacred Heart Language College have?

The Sacred Heart Language College has 714 pupils on roll.

What age range does The Sacred Heart Language College cover?

The Sacred Heart Language College for pupils aged 11 to 16.

What are The Sacred Heart Language College's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 59.2, and 61% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is The Sacred Heart Language College?

The Sacred Heart Language College is at High Street, Wealdstone, Harrow, HA3 7AY.