St Paul's Catholic College

St Paul’s Catholic College demonstrates exceptionally high performance across all areas, receiving an overall rating of outstanding in its first inspection under section 5. The school excels in creating a supportive environment that fosters inclusivity and respect among pupils, encouraging them to pursue their ambitions and meet high expectations. With robust support structures in place for students, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), the school ensures that all pupils can thrive academically and socially. Furthermore, the dedicated leadership team actively promotes well-being among staff and students alike, reflecting the positive relationships within the school community.

Strengths

• Outstanding quality of education across all year groups
• Exceptional support for pupils with SEND
• Highly motivated and ambitious student body
• Strong focus on personal development and well-being
• Effective leadership with a commitment to inclusivity
• Positive and warm interactions between pupils and staff
• Robust safeguarding arrangements
• Well-sequenced and coherent curriculum

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 Paul's Catholic College attended 94.2% of sessions (the national figure for secondary schools was 91.6%). 12.8% 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, 2.6% of pupils at St Paul's Catholic 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 St Paul's Catholic College had 16.0 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for secondary schools was 16.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 14.9% 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, 16.3% of pupils at St Paul's Catholic College were on SEN support (nationally 14.1%) and 2.4% 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 St Paul's Catholic College received £7,196 and spent £7,170 for each of its 1,191 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £759,000 (£637 per pupil).

Across all 13 schools of Bosco Catholic Education Trust, income was £6,193 and spending £6,300 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 Burgess Hill · West Sussex local authority: places and applications

St Paul's Catholic College is part of Bosco Catholic Education Trust, which runs 18 schools. The nearest others:

• St Wilfrid's Catholic Primary School Burgess Hill
• St Joseph's Catholic Primary School Haywards Heath
• St Robert Southwell Catholic Primary School, Horsham Horsham
• St Peter's Catholic Primary School Shoreham-By-Sea
• Our Lady Queen of Heaven Catholic Primary School Crawley
• St Mary's Catholic Primary School Worthing
• St Wilfrids Catholic Primary School Littlehampton
• Annecy Catholic Primary School Seaford
• St Philip's Catholic Primary School Arundel
• St Catherine's Catholic Primary School, Littlehampton Littlehampton

What is St Paul's Catholic College's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for St Paul's Catholic College is Outstanding, from an inspection in April 2023.

When was St Paul's Catholic College last inspected by Ofsted?

St Paul's Catholic College was last inspected in April 2023.

How many pupils does St Paul's Catholic College have?

St Paul's Catholic College has 1,160 pupils on roll.

What age range does St Paul's Catholic College cover?

St Paul's Catholic College for pupils aged 11 to 18.

What are St Paul's Catholic College's GCSE results?

In 2026 its average Attainment 8 score was 57.8, and 68% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in both English and maths GCSE.

Where is St Paul's Catholic College?

St Paul's Catholic College is at Jane Murray Way, Burgess Hill, West Sussex, RH15 8GA.