Blessed William Howard Catholic SchoolSir Graham Balfour High School
Inspection, results, pupils and attendance side by side in Stafford.
Summary of the comparison
Blessed William Howard Catholic School and Sir Graham Balfour High School are secondary schools in Stafford.
Blessed William Howard Catholic School scores 66 out of 100 (grade C, average) and Sir Graham Balfour High School scores 58 out of 100 (grade C, average). Blessed William Howard Catholic School is ahead on our composite score.
Blessed William Howard Catholic School was judged Good and Sir Graham Balfour High School was judged Good.
On GCSE Attainment 8, the latest published figures are 52.0 for Blessed William Howard Catholic School and 45.0 for Sir Graham Balfour High School.
GCSE Attainment 8 has held broadly level at Blessed William Howard Catholic School (51.8 in 2021-22, 52.0 in 2024-25) and has fallen at Sir Graham Balfour High School (47.4 in 2021-22, 45.0 in 2024-25).
Side-by-side comparison
| Measure | StaffordBlessed William Howard Catholic School | StaffordSir Graham Balfour High School | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overview | |||
| Our score | C66/100Stronger figure | C58/100 | |
| Local ranking | 7th of 70 in Staffordshire Stronger figure | 22nd of 70 in Staffordshire | |
| Inspection | Ofsted: Good | Ofsted: Good | |
| School type | Academy converter | Academy converter | |
| Phase | Secondary | Secondary | |
| Age range | 11-18 | 11-18 | |
| Gender | Mixed | Mixed | |
| Pupils on roll | 957 | 998 | |
| Capacity | 1,065 | 1,042 | |
| Location | Stafford, ST17 9AB | Stafford, ST16 1NR | |
| GCSE results | |||
| Attainment 8 | 52.0 Stronger figure | 45.0 | 46.0 |
| Grade 5+ in English & maths | 52.4% Stronger figure | 37.6% | 45.4% |
| Grade 4+ in English & maths | 75.0% Stronger figure | 56.6% | 64.8% |
| Entering EBacc | 73.8% Stronger figure | 36.4% | 40.5% |
| EBacc average point score | 4.67 Stronger figure | 4.07 | 4.09 |
| Cohort | 164 | 173 | |
| A-level results | |||
| A-level entries | 49 | 35 | |
| A-level average points | 31.5 | 36.1 Stronger figure | 35.0 |
| A-level average grade | C | B- | |
| Best 3 A-levels points | 32.0 | 36.5 Stronger figure | 35.8 |
| AAB+ incl. facilitating subjects | 4.8% | 6.1% Stronger figure | 17.5% |
| Pupils | |||
| Pupils in the census | 957 | 998 | |
| Free school meals (ever 6) | 22.1% | 21.3% | |
| English as an additional language | 13.2% | 8.0% | |
| SEN support | 13.2% | 15.3% | |
| SEN with an EHC plan | 2.3% | 2.6% | |
| Attendance | |||
| Overall absence | 6.2% Stronger figure | 8.8% | 6.2% |
| Persistent absence | 16.1% Stronger figure | 22.8% | 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
A-level average points
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.
Blessed William Howard Catholic School
Sir Graham Balfour High School
Full profiles: Blessed William Howard Catholic School · Sir Graham Balfour High School