Bedford High SchoolSt Mary's Catholic High School
Inspection, results, pupils and attendance side by side.
Summary of the comparison
Bedford High School and St Mary's Catholic High School are secondary schools.
Bedford High School scores 56 out of 100 (grade C, average) and St Mary's Catholic High School scores 56 out of 100 (grade C, average). Our score is the same for each of them on the data available.
Bedford High School was judged Good and St Mary's Catholic High School was judged Good.
On GCSE Attainment 8, the latest published figures are 49.2 for Bedford High School and 47.1 for St Mary's Catholic High School.
GCSE Attainment 8 has risen at Bedford High School (42.4 in 2021-22, 49.2 in 2025-26) and has held broadly level at St Mary's Catholic High School (47.4 in 2021-22, 47.1 in 2025-26).
Side-by-side comparison
| Measure | LeighBedford High School | ManchesterSt Mary's Catholic High School | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overview | |||
| Our score | C56/100 | C56/100 | |
| Local ranking | 10th of 19 in Wigan | 7th of 19 in Wigan Stronger figure | |
| Inspection | Ofsted: Good | Ofsted: Good | |
| School type | Community school | Voluntary aided school | |
| Phase | Secondary | Secondary | |
| Age range | 11-16 | 11-18 | |
| Gender | Mixed | Mixed | |
| Pupils on roll | 1,111 | 1,537 | |
| Capacity | 1,210 | 1,569 | |
| Location | Leigh, WN7 2LU | Manchester, M29 7EE | |
| GCSE results | |||
| Attainment 8 | 49.2 Stronger figure | 47.1 | 46.2 |
| Grade 5+ in English & maths | 49.3% Stronger figure | 45.8% | 46.3% |
| Grade 4+ in English & maths | 65.0% | 70.4% Stronger figure | 64.8% |
| Cohort | 203 | 253 | |
| A-level results | |||
| A-level entries | Not reported | 89 | |
| A-level average points | Not reported | 30.1 | 35.0 |
| A-level average grade | Not reported | C | |
| Best 3 A-levels points | Not reported | 33.4 | 35.8 |
| AAB+ incl. facilitating subjects | Not reported | 20.0% | 17.5% |
| Pupils | |||
| Pupils in the census | 1,101 | 1,561 | |
| Free school meals (ever 6) | 38.2% | 20.0% | |
| English as an additional language | 11.4% | 10.0% | |
| SEN support | 15.5% | 9.9% | |
| SEN with an EHC plan | 2.8% | 2.1% | |
| Attendance | |||
| Overall absence | 9.0% | 8.7% Stronger figure | 6.2% |
| Persistent absence | 25.2% | 21.4% Stronger figure | 15.8% |
marks the stronger figure on measures with a clear direction. Rows describing a school's intake, such as free school meals, English as an additional language and SEN, carry no marker: they describe who a school serves, not how well it serves them.
Historical trends
Each solid line is one school; the dashed line is the national average.
GCSE Attainment 8
GCSE Progress 8
Overall absence
Free school meal eligibility (ever 6)
Pupils on roll
Ethnicity over time
One panel per school: the largest groups across this comparison, one colour per group, on a shared scale.
Bedford High School
St Mary's Catholic High School
Full profiles: Bedford High School · St Mary's Catholic High School