SCHOOL PROFILE

Bishop Walsh Catholic School

Secondary Academy converter URN 140524
Open
Pupils 8,834,192 Latest school census
Capacity 1,000 Published school capacity
Capacity used 107.6% Pupils as a share of capacity
Age range 11 – 18 Statutory age range
OFSTED

Latest ungraded inspection

8 January 2025
Latest published outcome Standards maintained
SCHOOL DETAILS

About this school

School type Academy converter
Phase Secondary
Gender Mixed
Religious character Roman Catholic
Local authority Birmingham
Trust ST. JOHN PAUL II MULTI ACADEMY COMPANY
Census date 15 January 2026
PUPIL PROFILE

School community

Latest published pupil characteristics for 2025/26.

2025/26
Total pupils 1,076 1,076 full-time · 0 part-time
Female pupils 505 46.9% of pupils
Male pupils 571 53.1% of pupils

Free school meals

Pupils eligible for free school meals.

12.6%
12.2 pts below England
School 12.6%
Birmingham 45.4%
West Midlands 30.6%
England 24.8%

English as an additional language

Pupils whose first language is not English.

17.2%
3.1 pts below England
School 17.2%
Birmingham 38.9%
West Midlands 22.4%
England 20.3%

Young carers

Pupils recorded as young carers.

0.6%
0.4 pts below England
School 0.6%
Birmingham 0.5%
West Midlands 0.6%
England 1.0%

Ethnicity

Largest recorded pupil groups.

White British
63.0%
678
Any other White background
11.7%
126
African
4.5%
48
Any other Mixed background
3.3%
36
Irish
3.0%
32
Indian
2.7%
29
Council, regional and national comparisons are pupil-weighted using published school census counts.
ADDITIONAL NEEDS

Special educational needs

Pupils receiving SEN support or with an education, health and care plan.

2025/26
Pupils with SEN 14.2% 153 of 1,076 pupils
6.6 pts below England England: 20.8%
School 14.2%
Birmingham 20.7%
West Midlands 21.1%
England 20.8%
SEN support 13.1% 141 pupils
England 14.8% 1.7 pts below
EHC plans 1.1% 12 pupils
England 6.0% 4.9 pts below
PRIMARY NEEDS

Most common identified needs

Pupils
Social, emotional & mental health 43
Autistic spectrum disorder 33
No specialist assessment yet 30
Specific learning difficulty 24
Speech, language & communication 7
Vision impairment 7

SEN comparisons are pupil-weighted using published 2025/26 Department for Education school-level data. Primary needs combine pupils receiving SEN support and pupils with EHC plans.

ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE

Key stage 4 outcomes

Published Department for Education results for 2024/25.

2024/25
ATTAINMENT 8

Average attainment score

56.0 16.8 pts above England
School 56.0
Birmingham 40.9
West Midlands 38.3
England 39.2
English & maths grade 5+ 64.5% England 36.0% 28.5 pts above England
English & maths grade 4+ 80.2% England 51.4% 28.8 pts above England
EBacc entry 22.7% England 30.6% 7.9 pts below England
EBacc average point score 4.66 England 3.41
Progress 8 Not available for 2024/25

Latest published: 0.41 · 2023/24

Comparisons are averages of published school-level results for open schools. They are not pupil-weighted official local authority attainment rates.

ATTENDANCE & ABSENCE

Attendance profile

Published Department for Education absence data for 2024/25. Lower absence rates are generally better.

2024/25
ABSENCE RATE

Overall absence

6.23%

Percentage of possible sessions missed.

0.01 pts higher than England
School 6.23%
Birmingham 7.01%
West Midlands 6.28%
England 6.22%
ABSENCE RATE

Persistent absence

16.53%

Pupils missing 10% or more of sessions.

0.72 pts higher than England
School 16.53%
Birmingham 20.05%
West Midlands 16.42%
England 15.82%
ABSENCE RATE

Severe absence

1.72%

Pupils missing 50% or more of sessions.

0.08 pts lower than England
School 1.72%
Birmingham 2.18%
West Midlands 1.82%
England 1.80%
Council, regional and national comparisons are averages of published school-level percentages rather than pupil-weighted official absence rates.
HOW DOES IT COMPARE?

School context

Comparison with open secondary schools.

CAPACITY

Capacity utilisation

107.6% 15.3 pts above England
Bishop Walsh Catholic School
107.6%
Birmingham
97.8%
West Midlands
94.1%
England
92.3%
Benchmarks use open schools in the same phase. Capacity utilisation is calculated from published pupil and capacity figures.
Sources: Department for Education · Get Information about Schools · Ofsted monthly management information