Ofsted: Outstanding trending_up Popular emoji_events #26 in Hertfordshire public Top 6% UK

Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School

verifiedData: DfE 2024/25–2025/26 · Ofsted

personMr Declan Linnane

corporate_fareTHE DIOCESE OF WESTMINSTER ACADEMY TRUST

location_onSt Albans, AL4 0TT

language Visit Website phone 1727860079

verified

Ofsted

Outstanding

Inspected 2023

groups

Students

1,037

trending_up

Attainment 8

56.4

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GCSE Rank

#26 in Hertfordshire

#388 of 3,216 nationally

summarize

Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School is a Academy converter secondary school in St Albans, serving ages 11-18. Rated Outstanding by Ofsted — the highest possible grade. Demand is above capacity (1.1×) — apply through your local authority on time.

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School Summary

Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School is an academy converter in St Albans, Hertfordshire, admitting pupils aged 11-18. It has a sixth form offering post-16 education. It is part of THE DIOCESE OF WESTMINSTER ACADEMY TRUST. The school has approximately 1,097 pupils on roll, of whom 12% are eligible for free school meals.

In 2025, pupils achieved an Attainment 8 score of 56.4, placing the school #26 in Hertfordshire and #388 of 3,216 nationally. 64.60% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in English and Maths. 29.4% of all GCSE entries were graded 9–7.

The sixth form offers 21 A-level subjects. 54.6% of A-level entries were graded A*–B, with 20.0% at A*–A. A-level value added: +0.21 — students made above-average progress at sixth form.

Ofsted last inspected the school in 2023. The school's current overall rating is Outstanding. Inspectors assessed quality of education as Outstanding, behaviour and attitudes Outstanding, personal development Outstanding, and leadership and management Outstanding.

The school is oversubscribed — in the most recent cycle, there were 1.1× as many applications as places, making a successful application competitive.

The pupil-to-qualified-teacher ratio is 17.8:1. There are no current teaching vacancies.

In the 2024/25 academic year, there were no permanent exclusions. The average suspension rate was 1.5 per 1,000 pupils per term.

verified Source: DfE 2024/25–2025/26 · Ofsted

Academic Performance

verified Data: UK Gov 2024/25

analytics

Secondary Performance Trends (KS4)

2025

Progress 8 Score

Attainment 8

56.4

Grade 5+ E&M

64.60%

Grade 9–7 (all GCSEs)29.4%

Entering EBacc80.60%

EBacc APS5.28

2024

Progress 8 Score

0.75

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

54.4

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc76.40%

EBacc APS5.07

2023

Progress 8 Score

0.70

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

52.6

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc83%

EBacc APS4.87

2022

Progress 8 Score

0.6

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

52.3

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc75%

EBacc APS4.73

2021

Progress 8 Score

Attainment 8

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc70%

EBacc APS-

2019

Progress 8 Score

0.64

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

55.4

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc68%

EBacc APS5.03

2018

Progress 8 Score

-0.01

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

45.4

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc40%

EBacc APS4

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Student Destinations (After Secondary)

This module shows what students did after finishing Key Stage 4 (GCSEs). It reflects how well the school prepares pupils for the real world.

2025

Stayed in Education / Employment

97%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)94%

Apprenticeships2%

Employment0%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)1%

2024

Stayed in Education / Employment

94%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)88%

Apprenticeships1%

Employment4%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)4%

2023

Stayed in Education / Employment

96%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)92%

Apprenticeships2%

Employment3%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)2%

2022

Stayed in Education / Employment

97%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)96%

Apprenticeships1%

Employment0%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)3%

2021

Stayed in Education / Employment

98%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)96%

Apprenticeships1%

Employment0%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)2%

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Sixth Form (A-Level) Performance

A-level results for students who stayed in sixth form at this school. Value added measures how much progress students made relative to their GCSE starting point.

2025

A-Level Value Added

+0.21

vs expected from GCSEs

Pupils make above-average progress at A-level.

Avg Grade

B-

Students

Grade Breakdown

Achieving A*3.4%

Achieving A*–A20.0%

Achieving A*–B54.6%

VA Banding Above average

Retention rate98.4%

A-level subjects offered21

2024

A-Level Value Added

-0.23

vs expected from GCSEs

Pupils make below-expected progress at A-level.

Avg Grade

C+

Students

Retention rate98.10%

2023

Avg Grade

Students

Retention rate95.70%

2022

Avg Grade

Students

Retention rate100.0%

Source: DfE A Level and Other 16-18 Results

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Report Archive

14 November 2023

Inspection Report

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19 October 2021

Inspection Report

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22 June 2016

Inspection Report

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02 December 2015

Inspection Report

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10 February 2015

Inspection Report

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04 November 2014

Inspection Report

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03 June 2014

Inspection Report

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21 January 2014

Inspection Report

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09 October 2013

Inspection Report

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10 August 2012

Inspection Report

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Inspection Report

Inspection History

4 Evaluations

2023-11-14

S5 Inspection EIF

Outstanding

Education

Outstanding

Behaviour

Outstanding

Development

Outstanding

Leadership

Outstanding

2016-06-22

Requires Improvement S5 Reinspection Visit 1 Legacy

Good

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Good

2015-12-02

None Legacy

No Judgement

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

Development

Leadership

2014-11-04

None Legacy

Requires improvement

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Requires improvement

Wellbeing, SEN & Pastoral Care

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Behaviour & Discipline (Suspensions & Exclusions)

Official Department for Education (DfE) data. Suspensions measure temporary removals due to behavior, while exclusions represent permanent removals.

Suspension Rate

1.9%per term

sentiment_satisfied Below Average (Good)

National average: 7.3% for this term (secondary).

Pupils Suspended 1+ Times

1.4%(15 pupils)

Spring term 2025

Represents the proportion of unique students suspended at least once in this term.

Permanent Exclusions

0pupils

verified Excellent (Zero)

National average: 7.398% of pupils excluded per term.

Pastoral Context: In the Spring term of 2025, this school served a headcount of 1,097 pupils. During this period, there were 21 temporary suspensions. The school's suspension rate was 1.9%, which is below the termly national average of 7.3%.

View Historical Disciplinary Records (2017–2025)keyboard_arrow_down

Year / Term	Headcount	Suspensions	Susp. Rate	Nat. Avg	Perm. Excl.
2024/25 (Spring term)	1,097	21	1.9%	7.3%	0
2024/25 (Autumn term)	1,096	12	1.1%	7.8%	0
2023/24 (Summer term)	1,068	12	1.1%	7.4%	0
2023/24 (Spring term)	1,067	19	1.8%	7.1%	0
2023/24 (Autumn term)	1,065	11	1.0%	8.2%	0
2022/23 (Summer term)	1,036	6	0.6%	6.6%	0
2022/23 (Spring term)	1,037	19	1.8%	6.4%	0
2022/23 (Autumn term)	1,044	10	1.0%	5.9%	1
2021/22 (Summer term)	969	15	1.5%	4.7%	1
2021/22 (Spring term)	970	34	3.5%	4.9%	0
2021/22 (Autumn term)	971	8	0.8%	4.4%	0
2020/21 (Summer term)	891	16	1.8%	3.6%	1
2020/21 (Spring term)	894	3	0.3%	1.0%	0
2020/21 (Autumn term)	892	20	2.2%	3.9%	1
2019/20 (Summer term)	761	0	0.0%	0.0%	0
2019/20 (Spring term)	761	4	0.5%	3.2%	0
2019/20 (Autumn term)	757	9	1.2%	4.2%	0
2018/19 (Summer term)	657	12	1.8%	3.1%	0
2018/19 (Spring term)	653	11	1.7%	3.8%	0
2018/19 (Autumn term)	652	7	1.1%	3.8%	1
2017/18 (Summer term)	599	9	1.5%	3.4%	0
2017/18 (Spring term)	587	8	1.4%	3.0%	1
2017/18 (Autumn term)	590	30	5.1%	3.7%	2
2016/17 (Summer term)	560	13	2.3%	3.0%	1
2016/17 (Spring term)	568	26	4.6%	3.3%	2
2016/17 (Autumn term)	571	33	5.8%	3.1%	2

Source: DfE Suspensions and Permanent Exclusions in England. Data represents termly statistics as published by the Department for Education.

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Supported Special Educational Needs (SEN)

Primary areas of need currently supported by the school. A high number often indicates specialized internal units or high staff experience in these areas.

Specific Learning Difficulty 54 pupils

Autistic Spectrum Disorder 35 pupils

Social, Emotional & Mental Health 35 pupils

Speech, Language & Communication 31 pupils

Moderate Learning Difficulty 6 pupils

Hearing Impairment 4 pupils

Physical Disability 4 pupils

Visual Impairment 2 pupils

Other Difficulty/Disability 2 pupils

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Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School

School Summary

Academic Performance

Secondary Performance Trends (KS4)

Student Destinations (After Secondary)

Sixth Form (A-Level) Performance

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Inspection History

Admissions Insight

How Places Are Allocated

Faith Priority (Roman Catholic)

Distance to School

School Capacity

Secondary Admission Trends

Students & School Environment

School Size

Language Diversity

Inclusive Support

Attendance

Ethnicity Breakdown

Wellbeing, SEN & Pastoral Care

Behaviour & Discipline (Suspensions & Exclusions)

Supported Special Educational Needs (SEN)

Funding & Staffing

School Funding Allocation

Funding Breakdown

Staffing

Teacher Turnover

Top Secondary Schools in Hertfordshire

Dame Alice Owen's School

Watford Grammar School for Boys

Watford Grammar School for Girls

Parmiter's School

St Clement Danes School

Sandringham School