Cardinal Newman Catholic School A Specialist Science College

Luton · LU2 7AE

General information Secondary School · 11-18 years Who goes here 1655 pupils, 18.8% FSM

Parent score Rate this school No reviews yet - be the first SEN Resourced provision · 11.2% on SEN support Behaviour 6.6% absence rate Staff 14.9% turnover Financials £6,348 per pupil Environment Buildings and facilities

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Cardinal Newman Catholic School A Specialist Science College

General Information

Address: Warden Hill Road, Luton, LU2 7AE – View on map
Phone: 01582597125
Website: Visit school website
Headteacher: Helen Fay
Age range: 11-18 years
Demand for places (Year 7, September 2026): 250 families put it first for 261 places – 10 for every 10 places. 94% of them were offered a place. 19 of the 261 places went to families living outside the council area. Children putting it first, for every 10 places: 2023 12 · 2024 11 · 2025 12 · 2026 10
Sixth form: Yes
Intake: Mixed
Religious character: Roman Catholic
Nursery provision: No

Who goes here

1655 pupils out of 1400 places At or near capacity

Pupils eligible for free school meals: 256
% eligible for free school meals: 18.8%
Pupil mix: 8 in 10 (similar to the Luton average)
English as an additional language: 31% (England 22%)

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Teacher turnover: 14.9% a year (Luton 18.2%, typical in England 15.5%)
Where they went: about 35% moved to another school, 65% left state schools altogether (retirement, other careers, independent schools, abroad)
Data years: 2022/23 to 2024/25 (average of 3 years, DfE school workforce census)

Teachers who moved school or left state schools in the year after each November, as a share of all the school's teachers. Some turnover is healthy – retirements, promotions, moving house.

Behaviour

Awaiting Data

About this Behaviour status

We've asked this school for real behaviour figures under Freedom of Information and haven't had a response yet.

Across Luton: suspensions by reason

Suspensions for sexual misconduct: 51 (3.1 per 1,000 pupils; England 1.7)
Permanent exclusions for sexual misconduct: 2
Suspensions for bullying: 38 (2.3 per 1,000 pupils; England 1.9)
Suspensions for abuse against sexual orientation or gender identity: 10 (0.6 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.8)
Data year: 2024/25 (DfE suspensions and exclusions statistics)

These are figures for all state secondary schools in Luton, not this school's own – the government doesn't publish them school by school. A suspension can have up to three reasons. Most sexual harassment between pupils never leads to a suspension, so these figures show only part of the picture.

Attendance

Overall absence: 6.6%
Persistently absent pupils: 17.0%
Data year: 2024/25

About persistent absence

A pupil is counted as "persistently absent" if they miss 10% or more of their possible school sessions - roughly one day in every two weeks. Schools and Ofsted both pay close attention to this figure specifically, since it can highlight a pattern the overall absence rate alone might hide.

SEN

Resourced provision for AutismVisual impairment 18 places · 16 pupils at the last count

Places are usually for children with an EHC Plan and are arranged through the council, not the normal school application.

Pupils on SEN Support: 11.2%
Pupils with an EHC Plan: 4.4%
Data year: 2025/26

Most common needs - SEN Support

Social, emotional and mental health: 52 pupils
Speech, language and communications needs: 47 pupils
Specific learning difficulty: 28 pupils
Moderate learning difficulty: 27 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 12 pupils

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Autistic spectrum disorder: 31 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 15 pupils
Speech, language and communications needs: 9 pupils
Vision impairment: 8 pupils
Moderate learning difficulty: 6 pupils

These figures show the makeup of the school.

About these SEND figures

These figures give a sense of the makeup of the school - they aren't a judgement on the quality of support provided.

Parent score - no reviews yet –

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Behaviour

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Openness

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Teaching Quality

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School Ethos

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Ability to Deal with Problems

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Headteacher Approval

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SafeguardingSafeguarding (parent rating)How parents rate the school on keeping children safe - how safe their child feels, and how well concerns are listened to and acted on. It's parents' experience, not an inspection result; Ofsted checks safeguarding separately.

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Would recommend –

Educational Attainment

Good 2024 report

About this Ofsted rating

Ofsted changed how it rates schools in the last couple of years, so ratings from different years aren't always on the same scale - that's why we show the year alongside every rating.

Attainment 8 score: 50.0
Compared with the area: 4.3 points above the Luton average (45.7)
Compared with schools with similar pupils: As expected (−0.7 points against an expected 50.7)
Grade 4+ in English and maths: 70% (Luton 64%, England 65%) Broadly steady
Data year: 2024/25

View the School Context Comparator – how this school's results compare with schools teaching similar pupils.

GCSE results over time

This schoolLuton averageEngland→ Broadly steady No clear rise or fall since 2022/23 (changes this small are normal from one year group to the next). In 2024/25 this school was 4.3 points above the Luton average (45.7).

About the Attainment 8 score

Attainment 8 measures a pupil's average result across 8 GCSE-equivalent qualifications (English and maths count double). It shows how pupils performed, not how much progress they made getting there - a school with a higher score doesn't necessarily add more value, since pupils often arrive with different starting points. Progress 8 is the measure designed to account for that, but it currently can't be calculated for any school for the two most recent academic years, due to a nationwide gap in the data caused by COVID-19 disruption to Key Stage 2 testing.

3rd of 13 secondary schools in Luton for Attainment 8

#1Denbigh High School52.6
#2Challney High School for Girls50.1
#3Cardinal Newman Catholic School A Specialist Science College50.0
#4Chiltern Academy49.5
#5Icknield High School49.4

Click to see the full ranking

Attainment 8 ranking

Illustrative MVP scores - not based on verified data yet.

Rank School Score

#1Denbigh High School52.6
#2Challney High School for Girls50.1
#3Cardinal Newman Catholic School A Specialist Science College50.0
#4Chiltern Academy49.5
#5Icknield High School49.4
#6Putteridge High School49.2
#7Challney High School for Boys47.7
#8The Chalk Hills Academy45.7
#9Lealands High School44.3
#10Stopsley High School42.3
#11Queen Elizabeth School39.9
#12Lea Manor High School36.3
#13The Stockwood Park Academy35.9

Leaver Destinations

In education, employment, or training a year later: 98.0%
Went into further education: 94.0%
Data year: 2024/25

About leaver destinations

This shows where a school's Year 11 leavers were recorded the following year - in a "sustained" destination means in education, an apprenticeship, or employment for at least 6 months, not just enrolled briefly. It's a different picture from exam results alone, and can highlight schools that support pupils well beyond just their GCSE grades.

GCSE Subjects Offered

Maths (General)
English Language
English Literature
Religious Studies
Science Double Award
French Language
History
Business Studies
Geography
Art & Design
Computer Science
Polish
Media Studies
Speech & Drama
Sports Studies
Food Technology
Music Studies (General)
Physics (General)
Chemistry (General)
Biology
Portuguese
Spanish
Italian
Russian

About this subject list

This isn't the school's own description of its curriculum - it's real DfE exam entry data, showing which GCSE subjects this school's pupils were actually entered for in 2024/25. A subject not appearing here may still be taught but had no pupils entered that year, so treat this as a helpful guide rather than a complete guarantee - it's worth confirming directly with the school for the year your child would actually study.

View full Ofsted inspection report

4th of 11 secondary schools in Luton for Ofsted rating

#2Challney High School for GirlsOutstanding
#3Denbigh High SchoolOutstanding
#4Cardinal Newman Catholic School A Specialist Science CollegeGood
#5Chiltern AcademyGood
#6Icknield High SchoolGood

Click to see the full ranking

Ofsted Rating ranking

Based on real Ofsted ratings (via official DfE data) for schools on the same four-word grading scale.

Rank School Score

#1Challney High School for BoysOutstanding
#2Challney High School for GirlsOutstanding
#3Denbigh High SchoolOutstanding
#4Cardinal Newman Catholic School A Specialist Science CollegeGood
#5Chiltern AcademyGood
#6Icknield High SchoolGood
#7Lealands High SchoolGood
#8Putteridge High SchoolGood
#9Queen Elizabeth SchoolGood
#10Stopsley High SchoolGood
#11The Chalk Hills AcademyGood

Financials

Spending per pupil: £6,348 (2024-25)

About this spending figure

A higher or lower position here isn't a sign of a better or worse school - schools have different needs and circumstances - but it can help reassure you that a school has sufficient funding behind your child's education.

13th of 13 secondary schools in Luton for spending per pupil

#11Putteridge High School£7,644
#12The Chalk Hills Academy£7,271
#13Cardinal Newman Catholic School A Specialist Science College£6,348

Click to see the full ranking

Spending Per Pupil ranking

Based on official DfE financial return data (Consistent Financial Reporting / Academies Accounts Return) - not a ranking of school quality.

Rank School Score

#1Chiltern Academy£10,935
#2Lea Manor High School£9,259
#3Lealands High School£8,895
#4The Stockwood Park Academy£8,224
#5Challney High School for Girls£8,108
#6Denbigh High School£8,005
#7Icknield High School£8,001
#8Queen Elizabeth School£7,914
#9Challney High School for Boys£7,899
#10Stopsley High School£7,730
#11Putteridge High School£7,644
#12The Chalk Hills Academy£7,271
#13Cardinal Newman Catholic School A Specialist Science College£6,348

View on the Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool (GOV.UK)

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General Information

Who goes here

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Behaviour

Across Luton: suspensions by reason

Attendance

SEN

Most common needs - SEN Support

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Educational Attainment

Attainment 8 ranking

Leaver Destinations ?

GCSE Subjects Offered ?

Ofsted Rating ranking

Financials

Spending Per Pupil ranking

Leaver Destinations

GCSE Subjects Offered