Cardinal Wiseman Catholic School

Birmingham · B44 9SR

General information Secondary School · 11-16 years Who goes here 788 pupils, 46.8% FSM

Educational attainment Ofsted report card

Parent score Rate this school No reviews yet - be the first SEN 16.9% on SEN support Behaviour 8.2% absence rate Staff 13.4% turnover Financials £9,347 per pupil Environment Buildings and facilities

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Cardinal Wiseman Catholic School

General Information

Address: Old Oscott Hill, Kingstanding, Birmingham, B44 9SR – View on map
Phone: 01213606383
Website: Visit school website
Headteacher: Mr Robert Swanwick
Age range: 11-16 years
Demand for places (Year 7, September 2026): 158 families put it first for 160 places – 10 for every 10 places. 89% of them were offered a place. 1 of the 160 places went to families living outside the council area. Children putting it first, for every 10 places: 2023 10 · 2024 11 · 2025 11 · 2026 10
Sixth form: No
Intake: Mixed
Religious character: Roman Catholic
Nursery provision: No

Who goes here

788 pupils out of 645 places At or near capacity

Pupils eligible for free school meals: 368
% eligible for free school meals: 46.8%
Pupil mix: 7 in 10 (similar to the Birmingham average)
English as an additional language: 26% (England 22%)

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Teacher turnover: 13.4% a year (Birmingham 17.9%, typical in England 15.5%)
Where they went: about 44% moved to another school, 56% 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 Birmingham: suspensions by reason

Suspensions for sexual misconduct: 108 (1.2 per 1,000 pupils; England 1.7)
Permanent exclusions for sexual misconduct: 2
Suspensions for bullying: 152 (1.7 per 1,000 pupils; England 1.9)
Suspensions for abuse against sexual orientation or gender identity: 47 (0.5 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 Birmingham, 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: 8.2%
Persistently absent pupils: 27.8%
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

No dedicated Unit or Resourced Provision

SEN Unit and Resourced Provision

Most mainstream schools don't have a dedicated SEN Unit or Resourced Provision - it isn't a mark against a school that doesn't, just a different kind of setup than one that does.

Pupils on SEN Support: 16.9%
Pupils with an EHC Plan: 1.3%
Data year: 2025/26

Most common needs - SEN Support

Specific learning difficulty: 33 pupils
Moderate learning difficulty: 29 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 28 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 22 pupils
Speech, language and communications needs: 16 pupils

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Moderate learning difficulty: 3 pupils
Specific learning difficulty: 2 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 2 pupils
Speech, language and communications needs: 1 pupil
Hearing impairment: 1 pupil

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

Ofsted report card April 2026

Ofsted's new report cards grade each part of school life separately, instead of giving one overall word.

Safeguarding Met
Inclusion Strong standard
Curriculum and teaching Strong standard
Achievement Expected standard
Attendance and behaviour Strong standard
Personal development and wellbeing Strong standard
Leadership and governance Strong standard

Before this, under the old system, Ofsted rated the school Good (2021). The report card above replaces that grade.

How Ofsted report cards work

Since November 2025, Ofsted grades each area of a school on its own five-point scale, and no longer gives a single word like “Good” or “Outstanding”. Safeguarding (keeping children safe) is simply met or not met.

Exceptional The very best practice nationally
Strong standard Above what Ofsted expects
Expected standard What Ofsted expects of every school
Needs attention Some weaknesses the school needs to fix
Urgent improvement Serious weaknesses needing urgent action

“Expected standard” is a sound result – it's what Ofsted expects a good school to do. Report cards aren't directly comparable with the old single grades, which is why we don't turn them into one.

Attainment 8 score: 47.0
Compared with the area: in line with the Birmingham average (47.7)
Compared with schools with similar pupils: Well above (+5.8 points against an expected 41.2)
Grade 4+ in English and maths: 69% (Birmingham 66%, England 65%) Improving
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 schoolBirmingham averageEngland↗ Improving Up 3.0 points since 2022/23. In 2024/25 this school was in line with the Birmingham average (47.7).

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.

35th of 85 secondary schools in Birmingham for Attainment 8

#33King Edward VI King's Norton School for Boys47.6
#34King Edward VI Sheldon Heath Academy47.4
#35Cardinal Wiseman Catholic School47.0
#36Ark St Alban's Academy46.9
#37Yardleys School46.7

Click to see the full ranking

Attainment 8 ranking

Illustrative MVP scores - not based on verified data yet.

Rank School Score

#1King Edward VI Camp Hill School for Girls80.4
#2Sutton Coldfield Grammar School for Girls79.4
#3Bishop Vesey's Grammar School77.1
#4King Edward VI Five Ways School75.9
#5King Edward VI Camp Hill School for Boys75.7
#6King Edward VI Handsworth School74.2
#7King Edward VI Handsworth Grammar School for Boys72.0
#8King Edward VI Aston School71.2
#9Eden Girls' Leadership Academy, Birmingham62.1
#10Eden Boys' School, Birmingham61.3
#11St Paul's School for Girls61.0
#12Eden Boys' Leadership Academy, Birmingham East60.8
#13King Edward VI Lordswood School for Girls56.8
#14Kings Norton Girls' School56.6
#15Bishop Walsh Catholic School56.0
#16The Arthur Terry School55.4
#17Birmingham Ormiston Academy54.1
#18Selly Park Girls' School52.4
#19Hillcrest School and Sixth Form Centre52.1
#20Plantsbrook School51.8
#21Nishkam High School51.3
#22E-ACT Heartlands Academy50.3
#23St Thomas Aquinas Catholic School49.9
#24Bordesley Green Girls' School & Sixth Form49.8
#25Fairfax49.1
#26Starbank School49.0
#27Hodge Hill Girls' School48.7
#28Queensbridge School48.5
#29Ark Victoria Academy48.4
#30Bishop Challoner Catholic College48.4
#31Wheelers Lane Technology College48.4
#32King Edward VI Handsworth Wood Girls' Academy48.0
#33King Edward VI King's Norton School for Boys47.6
#34King Edward VI Sheldon Heath Academy47.4
#35Cardinal Wiseman Catholic School47.0
#36Ark St Alban's Academy46.9
#37Yardleys School46.7
#38King Edward VI Northfield School for Girls46.0
#39St Edmund Campion Catholic School45.8
#40Small Heath Leadership Academy45.7
#41The University of Birmingham School45.5
#42Hodge Hill College45.1
#43Ninestiles, an Academy44.9
#44St John Wall Catholic School44.7
#45Aston Manor Academy44.6
#46Dame Elizabeth Cadbury School44.6
#47Harborne Academy44.6
#48Arena Academy44.5
#49Ark Boulton Academy44.2
#50Aston University Engineering Academy44.1
#51Holy Trinity Catholic School44.0
#52E-ACT North Birmingham Academy43.9
#53Lordswood Boys' School43.3
#54Holyhead School43.2
#55Washwood Heath Academy42.9
#56Broadway Academy42.7
#57Hall Green School42.5
#58Hamstead Hall Academy42.1
#59Lift Four Dwellings Secondary42.1
#60Waverley School41.9
#61Archbishop Ilsley Catholic School41.7
#62Colmers School and Sixth Form College41.7
#63King Edward VI Balaam Wood Academy41.4
#64Erdington Academy40.6
#65Stockland Green School40.3
#66Kings Heath Secondary School40.0
#67Bartley Green School39.9
#68Moseley School and Sixth Form39.7
#69The Royal Sutton School39.7
#70Holte School39.4
#71Saltley Academy39.4
#72Rockwood Academy39.1
#73Cockshut Hill School38.3
#74Fortis Academy37.9
#75Turves Green Boys' School37.3
#76Ark Kings Academy36.5
#77Bournville School36.5
#78City Academy36.4
#79Tile Cross Academy35.6
#80Jewellery Quarter Academy35.2
#81Star King Solomon Academy34.1
#82George Dixon Academy33.3
#83Lift Greenwood31.8
#84E-ACT Shenley Academy31.6
#85Waverley Studio College21.9

Leaver Destinations

In education, employment, or training a year later: 85.0%
Went into further education: 77.0%
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

Science Double Award
Maths (General)
Religious Studies
English Literature
English Language
Geography
History
Spanish
Business Studies
Computer Science
Art & Design
Polish
Italian
French Language
Arabic
Persian Language
Portuguese
Punjabi

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

Financials

Spending per pupil: £9,347 (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.

12th of 88 secondary schools in Birmingham for spending per pupil

#10Moseley School and Sixth Form£9,374
#11Kings Heath Secondary School£9,373
#12Cardinal Wiseman Catholic School£9,347
#13King Edward VI Balaam Wood Academy£9,313
#14Hillcrest School and Sixth Form Centre£9,291

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

#1Bishop Challoner Catholic College£10,588
#2Holte School£10,296
#3Ark St Alban's Academy£9,920
#4Harborne Academy£9,838
#5Ark Kings Academy£9,821
#6St John Wall Catholic School£9,747
#7Ark Boulton Academy£9,710
#8Cockshut Hill School£9,679
#9Yardleys School£9,558
#10Moseley School and Sixth Form£9,374
#11Kings Heath Secondary School£9,373
#12Cardinal Wiseman Catholic School£9,347
#13King Edward VI Balaam Wood Academy£9,313
#14Hillcrest School and Sixth Form Centre£9,291
#15Turves Green Boys' School£9,279
#16Selly Park Girls' School£9,217
#17Colmers School and Sixth Form College£9,105
#18Aston University Engineering Academy£9,051
#19Bartley Green School£9,029
#20George Dixon Academy£9,018
#21Dame Elizabeth Cadbury School£8,906
#22King Edward VI Northfield School for Girls£8,868
#23Holy Trinity Catholic School£8,856
#24Bordesley Green Girls' School & Sixth Form£8,821
#25Queensbridge School£8,794
#26Lift Greenwood£8,741
#27Hodge Hill College£8,665
#28City Academy£8,654
#29Tile Cross Academy£8,598
#30Jewellery Quarter Academy£8,568
#31Wheelers Lane Technology College£8,547
#32Fortis Academy£8,547
#33The University of Birmingham School£8,499
#34Waverley Studio College£8,463
#35Waverley School£8,420
#36Archbishop Ilsley Catholic School£8,404
#37Broadway Academy£8,369
#38Saltley Academy£8,318
#39Hodge Hill Girls' School£8,303
#40Holyhead School£8,288
#41Aston Manor Academy£8,251
#42King Edward VI Sheldon Heath Academy£8,144
#43King Edward VI King's Norton School for Boys£8,120
#44Hamstead Hall Academy£8,108
#45Lift Four Dwellings Secondary£8,103
#46Nishkam High School£8,101
#47St Thomas Aquinas Catholic School£8,082
#48Ark Victoria Academy£7,988
#49Arena Academy£7,925
#50St Edmund Campion Catholic School£7,886
#51Washwood Heath Academy£7,823
#52St Paul's School for Girls£7,712
#53Eden Girls' Leadership Academy, Birmingham£7,708
#54Erdington Academy£7,650
#55Bournville School£7,577
#56E-ACT Heartlands Academy£7,571
#57King Edward VI Aston School£7,567
#58Lordswood Boys' School£7,546
#59Small Heath Leadership Academy£7,532
#60Eden Boys' Leadership Academy, Birmingham East£7,445
#61King Edward VI Handsworth Wood Girls' Academy£7,432
#62E-ACT North Birmingham Academy£7,391
#63King Edward VI Handsworth Grammar School for Boys£7,357
#64Christ Church, Church of England Secondary Academy£7,352
#65King Edward VI Five Ways School£7,240
#66King Edward VI Lordswood School for Girls£7,216
#67Eden Boys' School, Birmingham£7,163
#68Ninestiles, an Academy£7,125
#69Bishop Vesey's Grammar School£7,098
#70King Edward VI Camp Hill School for Boys£7,029
#71King Edward VI Camp Hill School for Girls£6,966
#72BOA Digital Technologies Academy£6,947
#73Prince Albert High School£6,920
#74Rockwood Academy£6,765
#75Starbank School£6,730
#76Bishop Walsh Catholic School£6,716
#77Stockland Green School£6,627
#78King Edward VI Handsworth School£6,560
#79The Royal Sutton School£6,549
#80Plantsbrook School£6,529
#81The Arthur Terry School£6,462
#82Sutton Coldfield Grammar School for Girls£6,441
#83Birmingham Ormiston Academy£6,228
#84Fairfax£5,990
#85E-ACT Shenley Academy£5,795
#86Swanshurst School£4,844
#87Kings Norton Girls' School£4,517
#88Hall Green School£218

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 Birmingham: 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 ?

Financials

Spending Per Pupil ranking

Leaver Destinations

GCSE Subjects Offered