St Thomas More Catholic Voluntary AcademyHope Valley College
Inspection, results, pupils and attendance side by side.
Summary of the comparison
St Thomas More Catholic Voluntary Academy and Hope Valley College are secondary schools.
St Thomas More Catholic Voluntary Academy scores 53 out of 100 (grade D, below average) and Hope Valley College scores 55 out of 100 (grade C, average). Hope Valley College is ahead on our composite score.
St Thomas More Catholic Voluntary Academy was judged the expected standard and Hope Valley College was judged Good.
On GCSE Attainment 8, the latest published figures are 42.1 for St Thomas More Catholic Voluntary Academy and 50.5 for Hope Valley College.
GCSE Attainment 8 has fallen at St Thomas More Catholic Voluntary Academy (48.7 in 2021-22, 42.1 in 2025-26) and has held broadly level at Hope Valley College (50.7 in 2021-22, 50.5 in 2025-26).
Side-by-side comparison
| Measure | BuxtonSt Thomas More Catholic Voluntary Academy | Hope ValleyHope Valley College | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overview | |||
| Our score | D53/100 | C55/100Stronger figure | |
| Local ranking | 26th of 45 in Derbyshire | 22nd of 45 in Derbyshire Stronger figure | |
| Inspection | Ofsted: Good | Ofsted: Good | |
| School type | Academy converter | Academy sponsor led | |
| Phase | Secondary | Secondary | |
| Age range | 11-16 | 11-18 | |
| Gender | Mixed | Mixed | |
| Pupils on roll | 407 | 518 | |
| Capacity | 450 | 684 | |
| Location | Buxton, SK17 6AF | Hope Valley, S33 6SD | |
| GCSE results | |||
| Attainment 8 | 42.1 | 50.5 Stronger figure | 46.2 |
| Grade 5+ in English & maths | 38.6% | 53.3% Stronger figure | 46.3% |
| Grade 4+ in English & maths | 60.2% | 71.4% Stronger figure | 64.8% |
| Cohort | 88 | 105 | |
| Pupils | |||
| Pupils in the census | 419 | 541 | |
| Free school meals (ever 6) | 30.8% | 23.8% | |
| English as an additional language | 7.6% | 1.5% | |
| SEN support | 17.9% | 14.8% | |
| SEN with an EHC plan | 4.3% | 10.7% | |
| Attendance | |||
| Overall absence | 8.3% Stronger figure | 11.3% | 6.2% |
| Persistent absence | 23.2% Stronger figure | 28.6% | 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 Thomas More Catholic Voluntary Academy
Hope Valley College
Full profiles: St Thomas More Catholic Voluntary Academy · Hope Valley College