St Francis of Assisi Catholic College
Erdington Road, Aldridge, Walsall, WS9 0RN
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Voluntary aided school
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Roman Catholic
- Headteacher
- Mr Luke Salkeld
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Diocese
- Archdiocese of Birmingham
- Constituency
- Aldridge-Brownhills
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,100
- Pupils on roll
- 1,109
- URN
- 104255
- Local authority
- Walsall
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01922740300
About this school
St Francis of Assisi Catholic College is a Roman Catholic voluntary aided secondary school in Walsall. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 1,109 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected St Francis of Assisi Catholic College, and its latest judgement is set out below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Seeing a school for yourself shows what no page can, so arrange a visit before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Ofsted no longer gives schools a single overall grade. Each area of the school's work is graded on a five-point scale, and safeguarding is judged separately.
- Inclusion
- Strong standard
- Curriculum and teaching
- Strong standard
- Achievement
- Strong standard
- Attendance and behaviour
- Strong standard
- Personal development and wellbeing
- Expected standard
- Leadership and governance
- Strong standard
- Post-16 provision
- Expected standard
- Safeguarding
- Met
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 167 | 205 | 179 |
| Attainment 8 score | 49.7 | 50.4 | 53.2 |
| Progress 8 score | -0.08 -0.30 to +0.13 | +0.10 -0.10 to +0.30 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 52% | 52.7% | 58.7% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 74% | 77.1% | 80.4% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 7% | 5.9% | 10.1% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 3.8 | 3.9 | 4.3 |
Progress 8 is paused nationally for the 2024/25 and 2025/26 school years. Those pupils sat no key stage 2 tests during the Covid pandemic, so there is no starting point to measure progress from. A blank figure here is not missing school data.
Trends over time
How St Francis of Assisi Catholic College has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Walsall average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 49.7 | 44.2 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 50.4 | 44.3 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 53.2 | 43 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 7.3% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 8.2% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 7% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,161 |
| 2023/24 | 1,158 |
| 2024/25 | 1,113 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St Francis of Assisi Catholic College compares
St Francis of Assisi Catholic College ranked 3rd of 19 secondary schools in Walsall for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 84% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 26% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 53.2 | 7% | 24.1% | 1,109 | — |
| Aldridge School - A Science College | 45.2 | 9% | 28.9% | 1,629 | 0.6 miles |
| Ormiston Shelfield Community Academy | 38.4 | 9.9% | 46.5% | 1,419 | 2.4 miles |
| The Streetly Academy | 42.1 | 8.5% | 24.3% | 1,544 | 2.4 miles |
| Barr Beacon School | 51 | 6.9% | 23.2% | 1,469 | 2.5 miles |
| Shire Oak Academy | 35 | 15.3% | 40.9% | 1,149 | 2.5 miles |
Results reflect each school's cohort as much as its teaching, and free school meals share is context, not a judgement. Small gaps between neighbouring schools are rarely meaningful on their own.
Inspection history
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 24.13%
- English as an additional language
- 16.3%
- Overall absence
- 6.98%
- Persistent absence
- 18.89%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Aldridge School - A Science College0.6 miles
Secondary · Walsall
-
Ormiston Shelfield Community Academy2.4 miles
Secondary · Walsall
-
The Streetly Academy2.4 miles
Secondary · Sutton Coldfield
-
Barr Beacon School2.5 miles
Secondary · Walsall
-
Shire Oak Academy2.5 miles
Secondary · Walsall
Other schools in Walsall
St Francis of Assisi Catholic College ranks 3rd of the 16 ranked secondary schools in Walsall.
- Aldridge School - A Science College Secondary
- Barr Beacon School Secondary
- Blue Coat Church of England Academy Secondary
- Brownhills Ormiston Academy Secondary
- Cheslyn Hay Academy Secondary
- Great Wyrley Academy Secondary
- Joseph Leckie Academy Secondary
- Ormiston Shelfield Community Academy Secondary
- Queen Mary's Grammar School Secondary
- Queen Mary's High School Secondary
- Shire Oak Academy Secondary
- Walsall Academy Secondary
Common questions
- What ages does St Francis of Assisi Catholic College teach?
- St Francis of Assisi Catholic College teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in Walsall.
- Who is the headteacher of St Francis of Assisi Catholic College?
- The headteacher of St Francis of Assisi Catholic College is Mr Luke Salkeld, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has St Francis of Assisi Catholic College been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St Francis of Assisi Catholic College, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How many pupils are at St Francis of Assisi Catholic College?
- St Francis of Assisi Catholic College has 1,109 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is St Francis of Assisi Catholic College full?
- St Francis of Assisi Catholic College has capacity for 1,100 pupils and 1,109 on roll (101%), so it is at or above its published capacity. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is St Francis of Assisi Catholic College a faith school?
- Yes. St Francis of Assisi Catholic College is designated Roman Catholic, in the Archdiocese of Birmingham.
- Is St Francis of Assisi Catholic College a selective school?
- No. St Francis of Assisi Catholic College is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- How have St Francis of Assisi Catholic College's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 49.7 in 2022/23 and 53.2 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does St Francis of Assisi Catholic College compare with other schools in Walsall?
- St Francis of Assisi Catholic College ranked 3rd of 19 secondary schools in Walsall for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 84% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 26% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is St Francis of Assisi Catholic College's absence rate?
- St Francis of Assisi Catholic College's overall absence rate is 7% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St Francis of Assisi Catholic College's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St Francis of Assisi Catholic College's key stage results are shown in the results section on this page, with the last three years so you can see the trend rather than a single year.
School details come from the Department for Education's Get Information About Schools register. Inspection outcomes come from Ofsted, and exam results from the Department for Education's school performance service. This page was last updated on 29 June 2026.