Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School
Colney Heath Lane, St Albans, AL4 0TT
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Roman Catholic
- Trust
- THE DIOCESE OF WESTMINSTER ACADEMY TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mrs Anne Atkinson
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Diocese
- Archdiocese of Westminster
- Constituency
- St Albans
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,056
- Pupils on roll
- 1,134
- URN
- 137938
- Local authority
- Hertfordshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01727860079
About this school
Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School is a Roman Catholic secondary academy in St Albans. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 1,134 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
- Outstanding
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Outstanding
- Personal development
- Outstanding
- Leadership and management
- Outstanding
- Sixth form
- Outstanding
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 179 | 174 | 175 |
| Attainment 8 score | 52.6 | 54.4 | 56.4 |
| Progress 8 score | +0.70 +0.48 to +0.93 | +0.75 +0.53 to +0.96 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 54% | 59.2% | 64.6% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 79% | 82.2% | 82.9% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 83% | 76.4% | 80.6% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 4.9 | 5.1 | 5.3 |
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 Nicholas Breakspear 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 | Hertfordshire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 52.6 | 44.6 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 54.4 | 44.2 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 56.4 | 44.1 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 5.4% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 5.1% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 4.7% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,037 |
| 2023/24 | 1,067 |
| 2024/25 | 1,097 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School compares
Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School ranked 26th of 78 secondary schools in Hertfordshire for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 89% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 69% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 56.4 | 4.7% | 12.1% | 1,134 | — |
| Beaumont School | 62.6 | 5.2% | 5.3% | 1,722 | 0.7 miles |
| Verulam School | 52.5 | 7.4% | 15.1% | 987 | 1.3 miles |
| Loreto College | 58.3 | 8% | 15% | 952 | 1.8 miles |
| Sandringham School | 65.1 | 5.1% | 8.4% | 1,777 | 1.8 miles |
| St Albans Girls' School | 58.8 | 7.4% | 11.9% | 1,423 | 2.4 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.
Inspection history
- 14 November 2023
-
Ungraded inspection report20 October 2021
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 12.11%
- English as an additional language
- 32.4%
- Overall absence
- 4.67%
- Persistent absence
- 10.02%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Beaumont School0.7 miles
Secondary · St Albans
-
Verulam School1.3 miles
Secondary · St Albans
-
Loreto College1.8 miles
Secondary · St Albans
-
Sandringham School1.8 miles
Secondary · St Albans
-
St Albans Girls' School2.4 miles
Secondary · St Albans
Other schools in St Albans
Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School ranks 6th of the 9 ranked secondary schools in St Albans.
- Beaumont School Secondary
- Loreto College Secondary
- Sandringham School Secondary
- St Albans Girls' School Secondary
- The Marlborough Science Academy Secondary
- Townsend Church of England School Secondary
- Verulam School Secondary
- Muriel Green Nursery School Nursery
- Aboyne Lodge Junior Mixed and Infant School Primary
- Alban City School Primary
- Bernards Heath Infant and Nursery School Primary
- Bernards Heath Junior School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School teach?
- Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in St Albans.
- Who is the headteacher of Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School?
- The headteacher of Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School is Mrs Anne Atkinson, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Nicholas Breakspear 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 Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School?
- Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School has 1,134 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School full?
- Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School has capacity for 1,056 pupils and 1,134 on roll (107%), 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 Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School a faith school?
- Yes. Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School is designated Roman Catholic, in the Archdiocese of Westminster.
- Is Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School a selective school?
- No. Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Who runs Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School?
- Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School is part of THE DIOCESE OF WESTMINSTER ACADEMY TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 52.6 in 2022/23 and 56.4 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School rank locally?
- Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School ranked 26th of 78 secondary schools in Hertfordshire for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 89% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 69% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School's absence rate?
- Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School's overall absence rate is 4.7% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Nicholas Breakspear 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 1 July 2026.