Cardinal Newman Catholic High SchoolBridgewater High School

Inspection, results, pupils and attendance side by side in Warrington.

Summary of the comparison

Cardinal Newman Catholic High School and Bridgewater High School are secondary schools in Warrington.

  • Cardinal Newman Catholic High School scores 54 out of 100 (grade D, below average) and Bridgewater High School scores 66 out of 100 (grade C, average). Bridgewater High School is ahead on our composite score.

  • Cardinal Newman Catholic High School was judged Good and Bridgewater High School was judged Good.

  • On GCSE Attainment 8, the latest published figures are 45.1 for Cardinal Newman Catholic High School and 55.0 for Bridgewater High School.

  • GCSE Attainment 8 has held broadly level at Cardinal Newman Catholic High School (46.9 in 2021-22, 45.1 in 2025-26) and has fallen at Bridgewater High School (57.0 in 2021-22, 55.0 in 2025-26).

Side-by-side comparison

Cardinal Newman Catholic High School versus Bridgewater High School compared on inspection, results, pupils and attendance.
Measure WarringtonCardinal Newman Catholic High SchoolWarringtonBridgewater High SchoolEngland average
Overview
Our scoreD54/100C66/100Stronger figure
Local ranking10th of 13 in Warrington 3rd of 13 in Warrington Stronger figure
InspectionOfsted: GoodOfsted: Good
School typeVoluntary aided school Academy converter
PhaseSecondary Secondary
Age range11-16 11-16
GenderMixed Mixed
Pupils on roll808 1,683
Capacity825 1,560
LocationWarrington, WA4 1RX Warrington, WA4 3AE
GCSE results
Attainment 845.1 55.0 Stronger figure46.2
Grade 5+ in English & maths42.4% 59.6% Stronger figure46.3%
Grade 4+ in English & maths63.6% 81.3% Stronger figure64.8%
Cohort165 327
Pupils
Pupils in the census855 1,674
Free school meals (ever 6)30.5% 13.9%
English as an additional language23.0% 11.3%
SEN support16.7% 10.0%
SEN with an EHC plan1.9% 3.6%
Attendance
Overall absence9.4% 6.9% Stronger figure6.2%
Persistent absence27.4% 15.9% Stronger figure15.8%

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.

Cardinal Newman Catholic High School

Bridgewater High School

Full profiles: Cardinal Newman Catholic High School · Bridgewater High School