Holy Cross Catholic High School
Myles Standish Way, Chorley, PR7 3LS
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Voluntary aided school
- Ages
- 11 to 16
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Roman Catholic
- Headteacher
- Mr Greg Lindley
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Diocese
- Archdiocese of Liverpool
- Constituency
- Chorley
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 975
- Pupils on roll
- 976
- URN
- 119803
- Local authority
- Lancashire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01257262093
About this school
Holy Cross Catholic High School is a Roman Catholic voluntary aided secondary school in Chorley. It teaches children aged 11 to 16 and has 976 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
Confirmed by a short inspection, not a full one
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 15 September 2022, where inspectors confirmed the school remains Good. The school's last full inspection took place before September 2019, so its area grades are not part of Ofsted's current published data. Older reports are on the school's Ofsted page.
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 193 | 187 | 192 |
| Attainment 8 score | 52.3 | 56.9 | 55.0 |
| Progress 8 score | +0.34 +0.14 to +0.54 | +0.75 +0.55 to +0.96 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 63% | 65.8% | 66.7% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 76% | 84.5% | 79.2% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 31% | 37.4% | 37% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 4.6 | 5.1 | 4.9 |
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 Holy Cross 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 | Lancashire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 52.3 | 38.1 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 56.9 | 37.6 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 55 | 37 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 7.9% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 7% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 7% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 987 |
| 2023/24 | 984 |
| 2024/25 | 977 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Holy Cross Catholic High School compares
Holy Cross Catholic High School ranked 11th of 81 secondary schools in Lancashire for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 87% 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 | 55 | 7% | 13% | 976 | — |
| Albany Academy | 43.7 | 8.9% | 29.5% | 725 | 0.6 miles |
| Southlands High School | 42.1 | 9.9% | 28.6% | 821 | 0.8 miles |
| Parklands High School | 44.4 | 6.7% | 28.5% | 1,102 | 1.4 miles |
| St Michael's Church of England High School | 58.9 | 4.1% | 3.4% | 1,134 | 1.6 miles |
| Standish Community High School | 49.7 | 7.3% | 17.4% | 1,276 | 3.7 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)
- 13%
- English as an additional language
- 6.6%
- Overall absence
- 6.96%
- Persistent absence
- 16.98%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Albany Academy0.6 miles
Secondary · Chorley
-
Southlands High School0.8 miles
Secondary · Chorley
-
Parklands High School1.4 miles
Secondary · Chorley
-
St Michael's Church of England High School1.6 miles
Secondary · Chorley
-
Standish Community High School3.7 miles
Secondary · Wigan
Other schools in Chorley
Holy Cross Catholic High School ranks 2nd of the 5 ranked secondary schools in Chorley.
- Albany Academy Secondary
- Parklands High School Secondary
- Southlands High School Secondary
- St Michael's Church of England High School Secondary
- Duke Street Nursery School Nursery
- Highfield Nursery School Nursery
- Abbey Village Primary School Primary
- Adlington Primary School Primary
- Adlington St Paul's Church of England Primary School Primary
- Balshaw Lane Community Primary School Primary
- Brindle St James' Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School Primary
- Brinscall St John's CofE and Methodist Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does Holy Cross Catholic High School teach?
- Holy Cross Catholic High School teaches children aged 11 to 16. It is a secondary school in Chorley.
- Who is the headteacher of Holy Cross Catholic High School?
- The headteacher of Holy Cross Catholic High School is Mr Greg Lindley, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Holy Cross Catholic High School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Holy Cross 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 big is Holy Cross Catholic High School?
- Holy Cross Catholic High School has 976 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 16.
- Is Holy Cross Catholic High School full?
- Holy Cross Catholic High School has capacity for 975 pupils and 976 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 Holy Cross Catholic High School a faith school?
- Yes. Holy Cross Catholic High School is designated Roman Catholic, in the Archdiocese of Liverpool.
- Is Holy Cross Catholic High School a selective school?
- No. Holy Cross Catholic High School is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- How have Holy Cross Catholic High School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 52.3 in 2022/23 and 55 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Holy Cross Catholic High School rank locally?
- Holy Cross Catholic High School ranked 11th of 81 secondary schools in Lancashire for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 87% 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 Holy Cross Catholic High School's absence rate?
- Holy Cross Catholic High School's overall absence rate is 7% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Holy Cross Catholic High School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Holy Cross 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 30 June 2026.