Academy@Worden
Academy converter · 660 pupils
74% stayed in education · Attainment 8 43.2
Voluntary controlled school
Balshaw's Church of England High School
- Pupils on roll
- 921of 925 places
- Free school meals
- 13.4%
- Year 11 cohort 2025
- 188
- Ofsted
- Good, 2 February 2023Read the Ofsted report
What the data says
Balshaw's Church of England High School has no sixth form. Of the 177 pupils who finished Year 11 there in 2023, 5% moved to a sixth form college, 79% to a further education college and 6% started an apprenticeship.
Food Preparation and Nutrition is unusually popular at GCSE: 33% of the year group took it, against 8% of pupils across England.
GCSE results in 2025 were above the national picture: Attainment 8 of 52.3 against 46.1 across England and 45.1 in Lancashire, with 57% of pupils getting grade 5 or above in both English and maths (England 45%).
As an 11–16 school, Balshaw's Church of England High School is judged on where pupils go at 16 rather than on A level results.
Where pupils went after Year 11
Destinations of the 2023 Year 11 leavers, measured the following year: the share in a sustained place for at least two terms. Compared with all state-funded schools in Lancashire and England.
School sixth formSixth form collegeFurther education collegeOther educationApprenticeshipEmploymentNo sustained destination
| Measure | This school | Lancashire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils in the cohort | 177 | 13,296 | 607,348 |
| Any sustained destination | 92% | 90% | 92% |
| Stayed in education | 84% | 81% | 86% |
| — school sixth form | 0% | 12% | 34% |
| — sixth form college | 5% | 20% | 13% |
| — further education college | 79% | 48% | 37% |
| — other education | 0% | 2% | 2% |
| Apprenticeship | 6% | 5% | 3% |
| Employment | 2% | 4% | 3% |
| No sustained destination | 6% | 7% | 6% |
| Destination unknown | 2% | 2% | 3% |
GCSE results 2025
| Measure | This school | Lancashire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Attainment 8 (average points per pupil) | 52.3 | 45.1 | 46.1 |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 57% | 44% | 45% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 79% | 64% | 65% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate subjects | 55% | 34% | 41% |
| EBacc average point score | 4.83 | 3.95 | 4.09 |
| Disadvantaged pupils in the cohort | 14% | 26% | 28% |
| Attainment 8 — disadvantaged pupils | 39.7 | 32.7 | 34.9 |
| Attainment 8 — other pupils | 54.4 | 49.3 | 50.4 |
| Pupils with high prior attainment (Key Stage 2) | — | — | — |
| English as an additional language | 3% | 12% | 19% |
Progress 8 is not available for 2025 and 2026: these cohorts had no Key Stage 2 tests in 2020 and 2021, so there is no baseline. Attainment 8 shows results without taking pupils’ starting points into account.
Subjects taken at GCSE
Entries in 2025 as a share of the Year 11 cohort, and the share of entries graded 7–9 and 4–9, compared with all entries in England.
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England | Grades 7–9 | England | Grades 4–9 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| English Language | 188 | 100% | 89% | 28% | 20% | 85% |
| Mathematics | 188 | 100% | 88% | 18% | 22% | 82% |
| English Literature | 187 | 99% | 86% | 19% | 21% | 79% |
| Combined Science | 154 | 82% | 65% | 12% | 9% | 73% |
| History | 119 | 63% | 41% | 24% | 26% | 67% |
| Business Studies | 70 | 37% | 18% | 23% | 20% | 76% |
| Geography | 70 | 37% | 41% | 21% | 25% | 77% |
| Food Preparation and Nutrition | 62 | 33% | 8% | 21% | 21% | 74% |
| Spanish | 59 | 31% | 19% | 31% | 27% | 95% |
| Design and Technology | 49 | 26% | 11% | 0% | 23% | 45% |
| French | 45 | 24% | 18% | 29% | 29% | 80% |
| Fine Art | 42 | 22% | 9% | 14% | 28% | 93% |
| Biology | 34 | 18% | 23% | 50% | 45% | 91% |
| Chemistry | 33 | 18% | 23% | 61% | 47% | 97% |
| Physics | 33 | 18% | 23% | 45% | 46% | 97% |
| Computer Science | 30 | 16% | 13% | 10% | 30% | 47% |
| Religious Studies | 28 | 15% | 31% | 50% | 32% | 89% |
| Film Studies | 22 | 12% | 1% | 23% | 20% | 77% |
| Drama | 16 | 9% | 7% | 38% | 27% | 75% |
| Physical Education | 13 | 7% | 11% | 8% | 24% | 92% |
| Arabic | 2 | 1% | 1% | — | 47% | — |
| Art and Design | 1 | 1% | 7% | — | 24% | — |
| Russian | 1 | 1% | 0% | — | 87% | — |
| Polish | 1 | 1% | 1% | — | 84% | — |
Technical awards and other Key Stage 4 qualifications
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sports / Movement Science | 27 | — | — |
| Childcare Skills | 15 | — | — |
| Music performance: Group | 9 | — | — |
| Building / Construction Operations (General / Combined) | 8 | — | — |
Other secondary schools in Lancashire
Accrington Academy
Academy sponsor led · 953 pupils
79% stayed in education · Attainment 8 39.4
Accrington St Christopher's Church of England High School
Academy converter · sixth form · 1,280 pupils
85% stayed in education · Attainment 8 50.7
Albany Academy
Academy converter · 725 pupils
76% stayed in education · Attainment 8 43.7
Alder Grange School
Community school · sixth form · 899 pupils
82% stayed in education · Attainment 8 37.0
All Hallows Catholic High School
Voluntary aided school · 911 pupils
82% stayed in education · Attainment 8 55.6
Sources: Department for Education school and college performance tables 2024/2025 (Key Stage 4 and 16–18 results, subject entries, destination measures for 2023 leavers); Get Information About Schools register as at 19 September 2026; Ofsted management information as at 31 August 2026. Small numbers are suppressed by DfE and shown as “—”. How to read these figures.