St Nicholas Catholic High School
Greenbank Lane, Hartford, Northwich, CW8 1JW
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Voluntary aided school
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Roman Catholic
- Headteacher
- Mr Craig Burns
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Diocese
- Diocese of Shrewsbury
- SEN provision
- ASD - Autistic Spectrum Disorder
- Constituency
- Mid Cheshire
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,240
- Pupils on roll
- 1,201
- URN
- 111450
- Local authority
- Cheshire West and Chester
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01606706000
About this school
St Nicholas Catholic High School is a Roman Catholic voluntary aided secondary school in Northwich. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 1,201 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected St Nicholas Catholic High School, 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
Overall judgement at the last full inspection
This inspection took place under the previous framework, which gave a single overall grade. Ofsted now publishes report cards instead, so newer inspections of other schools will look different. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Good
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Good
- Personal development
- Good
- Leadership and management
- Good
- Sixth form
- Good
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 208 | 197 | 197 |
| Attainment 8 score | 53.2 | 49.9 | 50.8 |
| Progress 8 score | +0.36 +0.17 to +0.56 | +0.17 -0.03 to +0.37 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 59% | 51.8% | 45.7% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 82% | 76.1% | 72.1% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 58% | 64.5% | 59.4% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 4.8 | 4.5 | 4.7 |
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 Nicholas Catholic High School has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Cheshire West and Chester average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 53.2 | 41.2 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 49.9 | 40.4 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 50.8 | 38.6 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 8.5% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 8.8% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 8.2% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,208 |
| 2023/24 | 1,202 |
| 2024/25 | 1,220 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St Nicholas Catholic High School compares
St Nicholas Catholic High School ranked 6th of 20 secondary schools in Cheshire West and Chester for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 78% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 15% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 50.8 | 8.2% | 14% | 1,201 | — |
| Hartford Church of England High School | 50.3 | 8.1% | 18.7% | 1,102 | 0.4 miles |
| The County High School, Leftwich | 51.9 | 7.6% | 15.8% | 1,046 | 0.9 miles |
| The Rudheath Senior Academy | 35.7 | 12.4% | 34.6% | 576 | 1.9 miles |
| Weaverham High School | 50.6 | 8% | 19% | 1,154 | 2.4 miles |
| The Winsford Academy | 30.6 | 16.7% | 44.9% | 945 | 3.6 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.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 14.03%
- English as an additional language
- 13.4%
- Overall absence
- 8.24%
- Persistent absence
- 22.48%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Hartford Church of England High School0.4 miles
Secondary · Northwich
-
The County High School, Leftwich0.9 miles
Secondary · Northwich
-
The Rudheath Senior Academy1.9 miles
Secondary · Northwich
-
Weaverham High School2.4 miles
Secondary · Northwich
-
The Winsford Academy3.6 miles
Secondary · Winsford
Other schools in Northwich
St Nicholas Catholic High School ranks 2nd of the 5 ranked secondary schools in Northwich.
- Hartford Church of England High School Secondary
- The County High School, Leftwich Secondary
- The Rudheath Senior Academy Secondary
- Weaverham High School Secondary
- Antrobus St Mark's CofE Primary School Primary
- Barnton Community Nursery and Primary School Primary
- Charles Darwin Community Primary School Primary
- Comberbach Nursery and Primary School Primary
- Crowton Christ Church CofE Primary School Primary
- Cuddington Primary School Primary
- Davenham CofE Primary School Primary
- Great Budworth CofE Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does St Nicholas Catholic High School teach?
- St Nicholas Catholic High School teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in Northwich.
- Who is the headteacher of St Nicholas Catholic High School?
- The headteacher of St Nicholas Catholic High School is Mr Craig Burns, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has St Nicholas Catholic High School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St Nicholas Catholic High School, 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 Nicholas Catholic High School?
- St Nicholas Catholic High School has 1,201 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is St Nicholas Catholic High School full?
- St Nicholas Catholic High School has capacity for 1,240 pupils and 1,201 on roll (97%), so it is close to full. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is St Nicholas Catholic High School a faith school?
- Yes. St Nicholas Catholic High School is designated Roman Catholic, in the Diocese of Shrewsbury.
- Is St Nicholas Catholic High School a selective school?
- No. St Nicholas Catholic High School is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- What SEN provision does St Nicholas Catholic High School have?
- The schools register lists St Nicholas Catholic High School's special educational needs provision as: ASD - Autistic Spectrum Disorder. Contact the school to discuss how it would support a particular child.
- How have St Nicholas Catholic High School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 53.2 in 2022/23 and 50.8 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 Nicholas Catholic High School compare with other schools in Cheshire West and Chester?
- St Nicholas Catholic High School ranked 6th of 20 secondary schools in Cheshire West and Chester for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 78% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 15% 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 Nicholas Catholic High School's absence rate?
- St Nicholas Catholic High School's overall absence rate is 8.2% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St Nicholas Catholic High School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St Nicholas Catholic High School'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.