St Aidan's Catholic AcademyHetton Academy
Inspection, results, pupils and attendance side by side.
Summary of the comparison
St Aidan's Catholic Academy and Hetton Academy are secondary schools.
St Aidan's Catholic Academy scores 70 out of 100 (grade B, strong) and Hetton Academy scores 62 out of 100 (grade C, average). St Aidan's Catholic Academy is ahead on our composite score.
St Aidan's Catholic Academy was judged exceptional and Hetton Academy was judged the expected standard.
On GCSE Attainment 8, the latest published figures are 53.6 for St Aidan's Catholic Academy and 52.2 for Hetton Academy.
GCSE Attainment 8 has fallen at St Aidan's Catholic Academy (57.5 in 2021-22, 53.6 in 2025-26) and has risen at Hetton Academy (42.1 in 2022-23, 52.2 in 2025-26).
Side-by-side comparison
| Measure | SunderlandSt Aidan's Catholic Academy | Houghton le SpringHetton Academy | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overview | |||
| Our score | B70/100Stronger figure | C62/100 | |
| Local ranking | 1st of 18 in Sunderland Stronger figure | 2nd of 18 in Sunderland | |
| Inspection | Ofsted: OutstandingStronger figure | Ofsted: Good | |
| School type | Academy converter | Academy converter | |
| Phase | Secondary | Secondary | |
| Age range | 11-18 | 11-16 | |
| Gender | Boys | Mixed | |
| Pupils on roll | 1,057 | 681 | |
| Capacity | 1,000 | 900 | |
| Location | Sunderland, SR2 7HJ | Houghton le Spring, DH5 9JZ | |
| GCSE results | |||
| Attainment 8 | 53.6 Stronger figure | 52.2 | 46.2 |
| Grade 5+ in English & maths | 58.6% | 59.8% Stronger figure | 46.3% |
| Grade 4+ in English & maths | 79.3% | 80.3% Stronger figure | 64.8% |
| Cohort | 174 | 122 | |
| A-level results | |||
| A-level entries | 61 | Not reported | |
| A-level average points | 33.0 | Not reported | 35.0 |
| A-level average grade | C+ | Not reported | |
| Best 3 A-levels points | 37.0 | Not reported | 35.8 |
| AAB+ incl. facilitating subjects | 16.2% | Not reported | 17.5% |
| Pupils | |||
| Pupils in the census | 992 | 671 | |
| Free school meals (ever 6) | 19.5% | 44.4% | |
| English as an additional language | 25.1% | 3.6% | |
| SEN support | 10.0% | 16.4% | |
| SEN with an EHC plan | 0.5% | 1.9% | |
| Attendance | |||
| Overall absence | 6.1% Stronger figure | 10.0% | 6.2% |
| Persistent absence | 18.6% Stronger figure | 28.8% | 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
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.
St Aidan's Catholic Academy
Hetton Academy
Full profiles: St Aidan's Catholic Academy · Hetton Academy