Academy@Worden
Academy converter · 660 pupils
74% stayed in education · Attainment 8 43.2
Voluntary aided school
Holy Cross Catholic High School
- Pupils on roll
- 976of 975 places
- Free school meals
- 12.2%
- Year 11 cohort 2025
- 192
- Ofsted
- School remains Good, 15 September 2022Read the Ofsted report
What the data says
Holy Cross Catholic High School has no sixth form. Of the 193 pupils who finished Year 11 there in 2023, 18% moved to a sixth form college, 62% to a further education college and 4% started an apprenticeship.
GCSE results in 2025 were well above the national picture: Attainment 8 of 55.0 against 46.1 across England and 45.1 in Lancashire, with 67% of pupils getting grade 5 or above in both English and maths (England 45%).
Food Preparation and Nutrition is unusually popular at GCSE: 25% of the year group took it, against 8% of pupils across England.
As an 11–16 school, Holy Cross Catholic 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 | 193 | 13,296 | 607,348 |
| Any sustained destination | 90% | 90% | 92% |
| Stayed in education | 81% | 81% | 86% |
| — school sixth form | 1% | 12% | 34% |
| — sixth form college | 18% | 20% | 13% |
| — further education college | 62% | 48% | 37% |
| — other education | 0% | 2% | 2% |
| Apprenticeship | 4% | 5% | 3% |
| Employment | 5% | 4% | 3% |
| No sustained destination | 8% | 7% | 6% |
| Destination unknown | 2% | 2% | 3% |
GCSE results 2025
| Measure | This school | Lancashire | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Attainment 8 (average points per pupil) | 55.0 | 45.1 | 46.1 |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 67% | 44% | 45% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 79% | 64% | 65% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate subjects | 37% | 34% | 41% |
| EBacc average point score | 4.92 | 3.95 | 4.09 |
| Disadvantaged pupils in the cohort | 15% | 26% | 28% |
| Attainment 8 — disadvantaged pupils | 42.8 | 32.7 | 34.9 |
| Attainment 8 — other pupils | 57.2 | 49.3 | 50.4 |
| Pupils with high prior attainment (Key Stage 2) | — | — | — |
| English as an additional language | 6% | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mathematics | 189 | 98% | 88% | 31% | 22% | 82% |
| English Language | 188 | 98% | 89% | 24% | 20% | 85% |
| English Literature | 187 | 97% | 86% | 30% | 21% | 91% |
| Religious Studies | 186 | 97% | 31% | 40% | 32% | 78% |
| Combined Science | 159 | 83% | 65% | 18% | 9% | 79% |
| History | 101 | 53% | 41% | 50% | 26% | 82% |
| Geography | 84 | 44% | 41% | 42% | 25% | 85% |
| Food Preparation and Nutrition | 48 | 25% | 8% | 8% | 21% | 69% |
| Spanish | 41 | 21% | 19% | 39% | 27% | 90% |
| French | 41 | 21% | 18% | 44% | 29% | 90% |
| Fine Art | 41 | 21% | 9% | 12% | 28% | 61% |
| Design and Technology | 35 | 18% | 11% | 17% | 23% | 83% |
| Computer Science | 30 | 16% | 13% | 27% | 30% | 77% |
| Physics | 28 | 15% | 23% | 86% | 46% | 100% |
| Chemistry | 28 | 15% | 23% | 86% | 47% | 100% |
| Biology | 28 | 15% | 23% | 89% | 45% | 100% |
| Physical Education | 27 | 14% | 11% | 26% | 24% | 89% |
| Drama | 14 | 7% | 7% | 7% | 27% | 79% |
| Polish | 7 | 4% | 1% | 71% | 84% | 86% |
| Music | 6 | 3% | 5% | 33% | 33% | 83% |
| Italian | 2 | 1% | 0% | — | 53% | — |
| Portuguese | 1 | 1% | 0% | — | 50% | — |
| Chinese | 1 | 1% | 1% | — | 75% | — |
Technical awards and other Key Stage 4 qualifications
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sports Studies | 46 | — | — |
| Computer Appreciation / Introduction | 22 | — | — |
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.