Our Lady's Catholic High School

Preston · PR2 3SQ

General information Secondary School · 11-16 years Who goes here 902 pupils, 17.8% FSM

Parent score Rate this school No reviews yet - be the first SEN 10.3% on SEN support Behaviour 5.9% absence rate Staff 9.4% turnover Financials £7,551 per pupil Environment Buildings and facilities

We haven't asked this school for its behaviour and staffing figures yet. Sign up to tell us you'd like them, and we'll email you when they arrive.

Notify me

Your email address

Leave this empty

We'll email you a link to confirm first. Your address is only used for news about this school, and every email has a link to stop them. Privacy

Our Lady's Catholic High School

General Information

Address: St Anthony's Drive, Fulwood, Preston, PR2 3SQ – View on map
Phone: 01772326900
Website: Visit school website
Headteacher: Mr Richard Charnock
Age range: 11-16 years
Demand for places (Year 7, September 2026): 163 families put it first for 175 places – 9 for every 10 places. 91% of them were offered a place. No places went to families living outside the council area. Children putting it first, for every 10 places: 2023 12 · 2024 10 · 2025 9 · 2026 9
Sixth form: No
Intake: Mixed
Religious character: Roman Catholic
Nursery provision: No

Who goes here

902 pupils out of 900 places At or near capacity

Pupils eligible for free school meals: 161
% eligible for free school meals: 17.8%
Pupil mix: 5 in 10 (less mixed than the Preston average)
English as an additional language: 15% (England 22%)

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Teacher turnover: 9.4% a year (Preston 13.7%, typical in England 15.5%) Low turnover
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. "Low turnover" means it's among the quarter of similar schools in England where teachers are most likely to stay.

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 Lancashire: suspensions by reason

Suspensions for sexual misconduct: 88 (1.2 per 1,000 pupils; England 1.7)
Permanent exclusions for sexual misconduct: 8
Suspensions for bullying: 163 (2.2 per 1,000 pupils; England 1.9)
Suspensions for abuse against sexual orientation or gender identity: 76 (1.0 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 Lancashire (the council area this school is in), 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: 5.9%
Persistently absent pupils: 12.7%
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: 10.3%
Pupils with an EHC Plan: 2.3%
Data year: 2025/26

Most common needs - SEN Support

SEN support but no specialist assessment of type of need: 18 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 18 pupils
Specific learning difficulty: 14 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 12 pupils
Moderate learning difficulty: 11 pupils

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Autistic spectrum disorder: 8 pupils
Moderate learning difficulty: 6 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 2 pupils
Other difficulty or disability: 2 pupils
Specific learning difficulty: 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 –

Be the first to review — win £100 of books for your school Every honest review enters you into our prize draw

Behaviour

–

Openness

–

Teaching Quality

–

School Ethos

–

Ability to Deal with Problems

–

Headteacher Approval

–

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.

–

Would recommend –

Educational Attainment

Good 2022 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: in line with the Preston average (49.2)
Compared with schools with similar pupils: As expected (+0.4 points against an expected 49.6)
Grade 4+ in English and maths: 71% (Preston 69%, 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 schoolPreston averageEngland↗ Improving Up 2.1 points since 2022/23. In 2024/25 this school was in line with the Preston average (49.2).

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.

5th of 10 secondary schools in Preston for Attainment 8

#3Archbishop Temple Church of England High School55.4
#4Corpus Christi Catholic High School50.2
#5Our Lady's Catholic High School50.0
#6Eden Boys' School, Preston49.8
#7Ashton Community Science College44.6

Click to see the full ranking

Attainment 8 ranking

Illustrative MVP scores - not based on verified data yet.

Rank School Score

#1Broughton High School59.3
#2Preston Muslim Girls High School56.2
#3Archbishop Temple Church of England High School55.4
#4Corpus Christi Catholic High School50.2
#5Our Lady's Catholic High School50.0
#6Eden Boys' School, Preston49.8
#7Ashton Community Science College44.6
#8Fulwood Academy41.4
#9Moor Park High School39.3
#10Christ The King Catholic High School35.9

Leaver Destinations

In education, employment, or training a year later: 88.0%
Went into further education: 76.0%
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

English Language
Maths (General)
Religious Studies
English Literature
Science Double Award
Geography
History
Art & Design
Business Studies
French Language
Sociology
D & T
Computer Science
Biology
Chemistry (General)
Physics (General)
Sports Studies
Food Technology
Spanish
Music Studies (General)
Polish
Speech & Drama
Gujarati
Dance: General

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

7th of 8 secondary schools in Preston for Ofsted rating

#5Corpus Christi Catholic High SchoolGood
#6Fulwood AcademyGood
#7Our Lady's Catholic High SchoolGood
#8Christ The King Catholic High SchoolInadequate

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

#1Broughton High SchoolOutstanding
#2Eden Boys' School, PrestonOutstanding
#3Preston Muslim Girls High SchoolOutstanding
#4Ashton Community Science CollegeGood
#5Corpus Christi Catholic High SchoolGood
#6Fulwood AcademyGood
#7Our Lady's Catholic High SchoolGood
#8Christ The King Catholic High SchoolInadequate

Financials

Spending per pupil: £7,551 (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.

7th of 10 secondary schools in Preston for spending per pupil

#5Corpus Christi Catholic High School£8,021
#6Fulwood Academy£7,695
#7Our Lady's Catholic High School£7,551
#8Broughton High School£7,465
#9Eden Boys' School, Preston£7,244

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

#1Christ The King Catholic High School£9,740
#2Ashton Community Science College£9,510
#3Moor Park High School£9,159
#4Preston Muslim Girls High School£9,022
#5Corpus Christi Catholic High School£8,021
#6Fulwood Academy£7,695
#7Our Lady's Catholic High School£7,551
#8Broughton High School£7,465
#9Eden Boys' School, Preston£7,244
#10Archbishop Temple Church of England High School£6,838

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

Have you rated Our Lady's Catholic High School yet? Your experience helps other parents.

Rate this school

General Information

Who goes here

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Behaviour

Across Lancashire: 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