St Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Lanchester
Consett Road, Lanchester, Durham, DH7 0RD
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Roman Catholic
- Trust
- BISHOP WILKINSON CATHOLIC EDUCATION TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mrs Catherine Hammill
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Diocese
- Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle
- Sponsor
- Bishop Wilkinson Catholic Education Trust
- Constituency
- North Durham
- Setting
- Larger rural: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,450
- Pupils on roll
- 1,240
- URN
- 138172
- Local authority
- County Durham
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01207520424
About this school
St Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Lanchester is a Roman Catholic secondary academy in Durham. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 1,240 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected St Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Lanchester, 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
- Expected standard
- Curriculum and teaching
- Expected standard
- Achievement
- Expected standard
- Attendance and behaviour
- Expected standard
- Personal development and wellbeing
- Expected standard
- Leadership and governance
- Expected 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 | 245 | 233 | 224 |
| Attainment 8 score | 49.6 | 49.8 | 44.9 |
| Progress 8 score | -0.04 -0.22 to +0.13 | +0.22 +0.04 to +0.41 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 50% | 50.6% | 42.4% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 72% | 74.7% | 69.2% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 59% | 58.8% | 51.3% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 4.5 | 4.6 | 4.1 |
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 Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Lanchester has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | County Durham average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 49.6 | 39.2 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 49.8 | 38 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 44.9 | 38.4 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 9.1% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 9.4% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 8.6% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,375 |
| 2023/24 | 1,315 |
| 2024/25 | 1,258 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Lanchester compares
St Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Lanchester ranked 19th of 30 secondary schools in County Durham for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 57% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 13% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 44.9 | 8.6% | 19.7% | 1,240 | — |
| North Durham Academy | 39.8 | 12.2% | 52% | 935 | 3.7 miles |
| Tanfield School | 57.5 | 6.6% | 32.8% | 739 | 3.7 miles |
| Consett Academy | 44.2 | 8.5% | 35.6% | 1,493 | 3.8 miles |
| Durham Academy | 37.4 | 12.2% | 62.1% | 405 | 5.4 miles |
| Hermitage Academy | 49.1 | 7.4% | 31.2% | 881 | 6.3 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
-
Graded inspection report17 March 2026
- 21 March 2023
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 19.74%
- English as an additional language
- 6.4%
- Overall absence
- 8.57%
- Persistent absence
- 20.68%
Location
Nearby schools
-
North Durham Academy3.7 miles
Secondary · Stanley
-
Tanfield School3.7 miles
Secondary · Stanley
-
Consett Academy3.8 miles
Secondary · Consett
-
Durham Academy5.4 miles
Secondary · Durham
-
Hermitage Academy6.3 miles
Secondary · Chester le Street
Other schools in Durham
St Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Lanchester ranks 5th of the 6 ranked secondary schools in Durham.
- Belmont Community School Secondary
- Durham Academy Secondary
- Durham Johnston Comprehensive School Secondary
- Framwellgate School Durham Secondary
- St Leonard's Catholic School, Durham Secondary
- Langley Moor Nursery School Nursery
- All Saints' Catholic Primary School, Lanchester Primary
- Bearpark Primary School Primary
- Belmont Cheveley Park Primary School Primary
- Belmont CofE (Controlled) Primary School Primary
- Blue Coat CofE (Aided) Junior School Primary
- Brandon Primary Academy Primary
Common questions
- What ages does St Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Lanchester teach?
- St Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Lanchester teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in Durham.
- Who is the headteacher of St Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Lanchester?
- The headteacher of St Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Lanchester is Mrs Catherine Hammill, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has St Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Lanchester been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Lanchester, 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 Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Lanchester?
- St Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Lanchester has 1,240 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is St Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Lanchester full?
- St Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Lanchester has capacity for 1,450 pupils and 1,240 on roll (86%), so it has space against 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 Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Lanchester a faith school?
- Yes. St Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Lanchester is designated Roman Catholic, in the Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle.
- Is St Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Lanchester a selective school?
- No. St Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Lanchester is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Is St Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Lanchester part of an academy trust?
- St Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Lanchester is part of BISHOP WILKINSON CATHOLIC EDUCATION TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have St Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Lanchester's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 49.6 in 2022/23 and 44.9 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 Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Lanchester compare with other schools in County Durham?
- St Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Lanchester ranked 19th of 30 secondary schools in County Durham for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 57% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 13% 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 Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Lanchester's absence rate?
- St Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Lanchester's overall absence rate is 8.6% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Lanchester's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College, Lanchester'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.