Venerable Bede Church of England AcademySt Aidan's Catholic Academy
Inspection, results, pupils and attendance side by side in Sunderland.
Summary of the comparison
Venerable Bede Church of England Academy and St Aidan's Catholic Academy are secondary schools in Sunderland.
Venerable Bede Church of England Academy scores 29 out of 100 (grade F, weak) and St Aidan's Catholic Academy scores 70 out of 100 (grade B, strong). St Aidan's Catholic Academy is ahead on our composite score.
Venerable Bede Church of England Academy was judged in need of attention and St Aidan's Catholic Academy was judged exceptional.
On GCSE Attainment 8, the latest published figures are 44.1 for Venerable Bede Church of England Academy and 51.2 for St Aidan's Catholic Academy.
GCSE Attainment 8 has held broadly level at Venerable Bede Church of England Academy (44.8 in 2021-22, 44.1 in 2024-25) and has fallen at St Aidan's Catholic Academy (57.5 in 2021-22, 51.2 in 2024-25).
Side-by-side comparison
| Measure | SunderlandVenerable Bede Church of England Academy | SunderlandSt Aidan's Catholic Academy | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overview | |||
| Our score | F29/100 | B70/100Stronger figure | |
| Local ranking | 18th of 18 in Sunderland | 1st of 18 in Sunderland Stronger figure | |
| Inspection | Ofsted: Requires improvement | Ofsted: OutstandingStronger figure | |
| School type | Academy converter | Academy converter | |
| Phase | Secondary | Secondary | |
| Age range | 11-16 | 11-18 | |
| Gender | Mixed | Boys | |
| Pupils on roll | 843 | 992 | |
| Capacity | 900 | 1,000 | |
| Location | Sunderland, SR2 0SX | Sunderland, SR2 7HJ | |
| GCSE results | |||
| Attainment 8 | 44.1 | 51.2 Stronger figure | 46.0 |
| Grade 5+ in English & maths | 38.8% | 62.6% Stronger figure | 45.4% |
| Grade 4+ in English & maths | 60.7% | 78.0% Stronger figure | 64.8% |
| Entering EBacc | 44.4% | 72.4% Stronger figure | 40.5% |
| EBacc average point score | 3.90 | 4.68 Stronger figure | 4.09 |
| Cohort | 178 | 123 | |
| A-level results | |||
| A-level entries | Not reported | 61 | |
| A-level average points | Not reported | 33.0 | 35.0 |
| A-level average grade | Not reported | C+ | |
| Best 3 A-levels points | Not reported | 37.0 | 35.8 |
| AAB+ incl. facilitating subjects | Not reported | 16.2% | 17.5% |
| Pupils | |||
| Pupils in the census | 843 | 992 | |
| Free school meals (ever 6) | 32.3% | 19.5% | |
| English as an additional language | 2.1% | 25.1% | |
| SEN support | 14.5% | 10.0% | |
| SEN with an EHC plan | 1.4% | 0.5% | |
| Attendance | |||
| Overall absence | 12.7% | 6.1% Stronger figure | 6.2% |
| Persistent absence | 32.9% | 18.6% 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.
Venerable Bede Church of England Academy
St Aidan's Catholic Academy
Full profiles: Venerable Bede Church of England Academy · St Aidan's Catholic Academy