St John Henry Newman Catholic School
Scalegate Road, Carlisle, CA2 4NL
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Voluntary aided school
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Roman Catholic
- Headteacher
- Mr Declan McArdle
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Diocese
- Diocese of Lancaster
- Constituency
- Carlisle
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 700
- Pupils on roll
- 703
- URN
- 112399
- Local authority
- Cumberland
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01228404942
About this school
St John Henry Newman Catholic School is a Roman Catholic voluntary aided secondary school in Carlisle. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 703 pupils on roll.
You can read Ofsted's latest judgement for the school 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 | 81 | 95 | 127 |
| Attainment 8 score | 41.6 | 36.9 | 41.0 |
| Progress 8 score | -0.45 -0.76 to -0.14 | -0.69 -1.01 to -0.37 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 20% | 20% | 29.9% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 48% | 46.3% | 52.8% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 69% | 57.9% | 58.3% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 3.7 | 3.4 | 3.8 |
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 John Henry Newman Catholic 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 | Cumberland average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 41.6 | 36.8 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 36.9 | 34.4 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 41 | 36 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 12.4% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 14.6% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 10% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 644 |
| 2023/24 | 693 |
| 2024/25 | 694 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St John Henry Newman Catholic School compares
St John Henry Newman Catholic School ranked 11th of 19 secondary schools in Cumberland for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 41% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 8% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 41 | 10% | 33.8% | 703 | — |
| Richard Rose Central Academy | 42.3 | 10.8% | 32.5% | 1,035 | 1.4 miles |
| Trinity School | 41.4 | 10.3% | 22.1% | 1,711 | 1.7 miles |
| Richard Rose Morton Academy | 43.4 | 7.9% | 25.7% | 905 | 3.1 miles |
| Caldew School | 44.3 | 8.7% | 20.4% | 990 | 4.3 miles |
| William Howard School | 45 | 7.9% | 20.1% | 1,312 | 7.4 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)
- 33.83%
- English as an additional language
- 12.7%
- Overall absence
- 10.03%
- Persistent absence
- 28.23%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Richard Rose Central Academy1.4 miles
Secondary · Carlisle
-
Trinity School1.7 miles
Secondary · Carlisle
-
Richard Rose Morton Academy3.1 miles
Secondary · Carlisle
-
Caldew School4.3 miles
Secondary · Carlisle
-
William Howard School7.4 miles
Secondary · Brampton
Other schools in Carlisle
St John Henry Newman Catholic School ranks 5th of the 5 ranked secondary schools in Carlisle.
- Caldew School Secondary
- Richard Rose Central Academy Secondary
- Richard Rose Morton Academy Secondary
- Trinity School Secondary
- Armathwaite School Primary
- Belle Vue Primary School Primary
- Bewcastle School Primary
- Blackford CofE Primary School Primary
- Brook Street Primary School Primary
- Burgh by Sands School Primary
- Caldew Lea School Primary
- Crosby-on-Eden CofE School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does St John Henry Newman Catholic School teach?
- St John Henry Newman Catholic School teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in Carlisle.
- Who is the headteacher of St John Henry Newman Catholic School?
- The headteacher of St John Henry Newman Catholic School is Mr Declan McArdle, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was St John Henry Newman Catholic School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St John Henry Newman Catholic 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 big is St John Henry Newman Catholic School?
- St John Henry Newman Catholic School has 703 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is St John Henry Newman Catholic School full?
- St John Henry Newman Catholic School has capacity for 700 pupils and 703 on roll (100%), 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 John Henry Newman Catholic School a faith school?
- Yes. St John Henry Newman Catholic School is designated Roman Catholic, in the Diocese of Lancaster.
- Is St John Henry Newman Catholic School a selective school?
- No. St John Henry Newman Catholic School is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- How have St John Henry Newman Catholic School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 41.6 in 2022/23 and 41 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 John Henry Newman Catholic School rank locally?
- St John Henry Newman Catholic School ranked 11th of 19 secondary schools in Cumberland for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 41% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 8% 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 John Henry Newman Catholic School's absence rate?
- St John Henry Newman Catholic School's overall absence rate is 10% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St John Henry Newman Catholic School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St John Henry Newman Catholic 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.