Ofsted: Good trending_up Popular emoji_events #1 in St. Helens public Top 13% UK

Rainford High School

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

personMr Ian Young

corporate_fareEVERYONE MATTERS SCHOOLS TRUST

location_onSt Helens, WA11 8NY

language Visit Website phone 1744885914

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Ofsted

Good

Inspected 2015

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Students

1,652

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Attainment 8

50.6

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GCSE Rank

#1 in St. Helens

#861 of 3,216 nationally

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Rainford High School is a Academy converter secondary school in St Helens, serving ages 11-18. Rated Good by Ofsted. Demand is above capacity (1.2×) — apply through your local authority on time.

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School Summary

Rainford High School is an academy converter in St Helens, St. Helens, admitting pupils aged 11-18. It has a sixth form offering post-16 education. It is part of EVERYONE MATTERS SCHOOLS TRUST. The school has approximately 1,675 pupils on roll, of whom 16% are eligible for free school meals.

In 2025, pupils achieved an Attainment 8 score of 50.6, placing the school #1 in St. Helens and #861 of 3,216 nationally. 56.20% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in English and Maths. 23.0% of all GCSE entries were graded 9–7.

The sixth form offers 18 A-level subjects. 31.7% of A-level entries were graded A*–B, with 9.3% at A*–A. A-level value added: -0.26 — students made below-average progress at sixth form.

Ofsted last inspected the school in 2015. The school's current overall rating is Good.

The school is oversubscribed — in the most recent cycle, there were 1.2× as many applications as places, making a successful application competitive.

The pupil-to-qualified-teacher ratio is 17.3:1. There are no current teaching vacancies.

In the 2024/25 academic year, there were 2 permanent exclusions. The average suspension rate was 5.6 per 1,000 pupils per term.

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

Academic Performance

verified Data: UK Gov 2024/25

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Secondary Performance Trends (KS4)

2025

Progress 8 Score

Attainment 8

50.6

Grade 5+ E&M

56.20%

Grade 9–7 (all GCSEs)23.0%

Entering EBacc47.70%

EBacc APS4.43

2024

Progress 8 Score

0.03

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

47.8

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc41.90%

EBacc APS4.17

2023

Progress 8 Score

0.03

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

50.4

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc43%

EBacc APS4.40

2022

Progress 8 Score

0.07

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

53.4

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc24%

EBacc APS4.46

2021

Progress 8 Score

Attainment 8

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc27%

EBacc APS-

2019

Progress 8 Score

-0.11

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

50.8

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc31%

EBacc APS4.33

2018

Progress 8 Score

-0.09

vs National Avg

Attainment 8

55.5

Grade 5+ E&M

Entering EBacc15%

EBacc APS4.58

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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

94%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)89%

Apprenticeships2%

Employment3%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)4%

2024

Stayed in Education / Employment

93%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)87%

Apprenticeships2%

Employment4%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)6%

2023

Stayed in Education / Employment

94%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)85%

Apprenticeships6%

Employment3%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)4%

2022

Stayed in Education / Employment

96%

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

Apprenticeships3%

Employment2%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)3%

2021

Stayed in Education / Employment

95%

Education (e.g. Sixth Form/College)86%

Apprenticeships5%

Employment5%

Not in Education / Employment (NEET)4%

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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

-0.26

vs expected from GCSEs

Pupils make below-expected progress at A-level.

Students

Grade Breakdown

Achieving A*3.3%

Achieving A*–A9.3%

Achieving A*–B31.7%

VA Banding Below average

Retention rate96.2%

A-level subjects offered18

2024

A-Level Value Added

-0.21

vs expected from GCSEs

Pupils make below-expected progress at A-level.

Avg Grade

C+

Students

Retention rate100.00%

2023

Avg Grade

Students

Retention rate88.90%

2022

Avg Grade

Students

Retention rate100.0%

Source: DfE A Level and Other 16-18 Results

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Report Archive

No digital report timeline available.

Inspection History

2 Evaluations

2015-03-17

Requires Improvement S5 Reinspection Visit 2 EIF

Good

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Good

2014-02-27

None EIF

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

7.8%per term

warning Above Average

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

Pupils Suspended 1+ Times

4.5%(75 pupils)

Spring term 2025

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

Permanent Exclusions

1pupils

gavel Exclusion recorded

National average: 7.398% of pupils excluded per term.

Pastoral Context: In the Spring term of 2025, this school served a headcount of 1,675 pupils. During this period, there were 130 temporary suspensions. The school's suspension rate was 7.8%, which is above 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)	1,675	130	7.8%	7.3%	1
2024/25 (Autumn term)	1,672	58	3.5%	7.8%	1
2023/24 (Summer term)	1,709	82	4.8%	7.4%	4
2023/24 (Spring term)	1,716	120	7.0%	7.1%	2
2023/24 (Autumn term)	1,717	118	6.9%	8.2%	3
2022/23 (Summer term)	1,646	87	5.3%	6.6%	2
2022/23 (Spring term)	1,652	92	5.6%	6.4%	0
2022/23 (Autumn term)	1,662	63	3.8%	5.9%	0
2021/22 (Summer term)	1,624	35	2.2%	4.7%	0
2021/22 (Spring term)	1,620	63	3.9%	4.9%	1
2021/22 (Autumn term)	1,628	56	3.4%	4.4%	1
2020/21 (Summer term)	1,662	45	2.7%	3.6%	2
2020/21 (Spring term)	1,670	16	1.0%	1.0%	1
2020/21 (Autumn term)	1,675	38	2.3%	3.9%	0
2019/20 (Summer term)	1,620	7	0.4%	0.0%	0
2019/20 (Spring term)	1,620	24	1.5%	3.2%	0
2019/20 (Autumn term)	1,614	17	1.1%	4.2%	2
2018/19 (Summer term)	1,579	13	0.8%	3.1%	0
2018/19 (Spring term)	1,588	43	2.7%	3.8%	0
2018/19 (Autumn term)	1,603	41	2.6%	3.8%	0
2017/18 (Summer term)	1,575	53	3.4%	3.4%	0
2017/18 (Spring term)	1,581	56	3.5%	3.0%	0
2017/18 (Autumn term)	1,603	55	3.4%	3.7%	0

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 148 pupils

Autistic Spectrum Disorder 84 pupils

Social, Emotional & Mental Health 84 pupils

Moderate Learning Difficulty 36 pupils

Speech, Language & Communication 17 pupils

Other Difficulty/Disability 11 pupils

Visual Impairment 7 pupils

Physical Disability 7 pupils

Severe Learning Difficulty 4 pupils