Ashington Academy
Academy sponsor led · sixth form · 964 pupils
81% stayed in education · Attainment 8 47.1
Academy converter
St Benet Biscop Catholic Academy
- Pupils on roll
- 994of 1,140 places
- Free school meals
- 33.1%
- Year 11 cohort 2025
- 187
- Ofsted
- Good, 17 January 2023Read the Ofsted report
Results below include those reported under the school’s previous registration: St Benet Biscop Catholic Voluntary Aided High School (URN 122367, until 1 March 2015).
What the data says
Of the 201 pupils who finished Year 11 at St Benet Biscop Catholic Academy in 2023, 40% stayed on in St Benet Biscop Catholic Academy’s own sixth form (Northumberland average 43%), 46% went to a further education college and 5% started an apprenticeship.
Among the 61 students who left the sixth form in 2023, 44% went to university (Northumberland 48%, England 37%), and 23% of level 3 students progressed to one of the most selective universities, against 19% nationally; 21% started an apprenticeship, well above the 7% England average.
Religious Studies is unusually popular at GCSE: 94% of the year group took it, against 31% of pupils across England.
GCSE results in 2025 were below the national picture: Attainment 8 of 41.3 against 46.1 across England and 44.0 in Northumberland, with 31% of pupils getting grade 5 or above in both English and maths (England 45%).
Where pupils went after Year 11
Destinations of the 2023 Year 11 leavers, measured the following year: the share in a sustained place for at least two terms. Compared with all state-funded schools in Northumberland and England.
School sixth formSixth form collegeFurther education collegeOther educationApprenticeshipEmploymentNo sustained destination
| Measure | This school | Northumberland | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils in the cohort | 201 | 3,151 | 607,348 |
| Any sustained destination | 94% | 91% | 92% |
| Stayed in education | 86% | 81% | 86% |
| — school sixth form | 40% | 43% | 34% |
| — sixth form college | 0% | 0% | 13% |
| — further education college | 46% | 36% | 37% |
| — other education | 0% | 2% | 2% |
| Apprenticeship | 5% | 6% | 3% |
| Employment | 3% | 4% | 3% |
| No sustained destination | 4% | 7% | 6% |
| Destination unknown | 2% | 3% | 3% |
Where students went after sixth form
Destinations of students who finished 16–18 study in 2023, measured the following year.
University (higher education)Further educationOther educationApprenticeshipEmploymentNo sustained destination
| Measure | This school | Northumberland | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Students in the cohort | 61 | 1,385 | 541,441 |
| Any sustained destination | 93% | 87% | 79% |
| University (higher education) | 44% | 48% | 37% |
| — most selective universities (top third), of level 3 students | 23% | 28% | 19% |
| Further education | 5% | 3% | 5% |
| Apprenticeship | 21% | 11% | 7% |
| Employment | 21% | 25% | 28% |
| No sustained destination | 7% | 10% | 16% |
GCSE results 2025
| Measure | This school | Northumberland | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Attainment 8 (average points per pupil) | 41.3 | 44.0 | 46.1 |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 31% | 42% | 45% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 56% | 63% | 65% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate subjects | 11% | 32% | 41% |
| EBacc average point score | 3.40 | 3.82 | 4.09 |
| Disadvantaged pupils in the cohort | 26% | 27% | 28% |
| Attainment 8 — disadvantaged pupils | 30.2 | 30.9 | 34.9 |
| Attainment 8 — other pupils | 45.2 | 48.9 | 50.4 |
| Pupils with high prior attainment (Key Stage 2) | — | — | — |
| English as an additional language | 4% | 3% | 19% |
Progress 8 is not available for 2025 and 2026: these cohorts had no Key Stage 2 tests in 2020 and 2021, so there is no baseline. Attainment 8 shows results without taking pupils’ starting points into account.
Subjects taken at GCSE
Entries in 2025 as a share of the Year 11 cohort, and the share of entries graded 7–9 and 4–9, compared with all entries in England.
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England | Grades 7–9 | England | Grades 4–9 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mathematics | 184 | 98% | 88% | 12% | 22% | 61% |
| English Language | 184 | 98% | 89% | 13% | 20% | 67% |
| English Literature | 179 | 96% | 86% | 13% | 21% | 65% |
| Religious Studies | 176 | 94% | 31% | 19% | 32% | 64% |
| Combined Science | 150 | 80% | 65% | 7% | 9% | 50% |
| Geography | 106 | 57% | 41% | 11% | 25% | 53% |
| History | 72 | 39% | 41% | 14% | 26% | 53% |
| French | 37 | 20% | 18% | 8% | 29% | 73% |
| Food Preparation and Nutrition | 31 | 17% | 8% | 3% | 21% | 52% |
| Design and Technology | 30 | 16% | 11% | 3% | 23% | 27% |
| Biology | 30 | 16% | 23% | 13% | 45% | 67% |
| Physics | 29 | 16% | 23% | 14% | 46% | 76% |
| Chemistry | 29 | 16% | 23% | 21% | 47% | 86% |
| Drama | 25 | 13% | 7% | 12% | 27% | 56% |
| Fine Art | 14 | 7% | 9% | 21% | 28% | 100% |
| Statistics | 1 | 1% | 5% | — | 20% | — |
Technical awards and other Key Stage 4 qualifications
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small Business Management | 49 | 78% | — |
| Health Studies | 38 | 60% | — |
| Sports Studies | 34 | 54% | — |
| Computer Appreciation / Introduction | 32 | 51% | — |
| Childcare Skills | 16 | 25% | — |
| Music performance: Group | 13 | 21% | — |
A levels and other level 3 courses
| Measure | This school | Northumberland | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Students at the end of 16–18 study | 137 | — | — |
| — of whom A level students | 63 | 1,089 | 261,341 |
| Average A level grade | C+ | C+ | B- |
| Average points per A level entry | 32.00 | 34.22 | 35.00 |
| Average grade, best 3 A levels | C+ | B- | B- |
| AAB or better with two facilitating subjects | 12% | 17% | 18% |
| Average grade, applied general courses | — | — | — |
| Average grade, T levels | — | — | — |
A level subjects
Entries as a share of A level students, compared with the share across England.
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Media Studies | 18 | 29% | 4% |
| Psychology | 16 | 25% | 23% |
| History | 15 | 24% | 13% |
| Religious Studies | 14 | 22% | 4% |
| Drama | 13 | 21% | 2% |
| Chemistry | 13 | 21% | 17% |
| Geography | 11 | 17% | 10% |
| Biology | 11 | 17% | 20% |
| Mathematics | 10 | 16% | 31% |
| English Literature | 8 | 13% | 11% |
| English Language | 7 | 11% | 4% |
| Product Design | — | — | 2% |
| Business Studies | — | — | 13% |
| Physics | — | — | 12% |
| French | — | — | 1% |
| Fine Art | — | — | 3% |
| Spanish | — | — | 2% |
| Polish | — | — | 0% |
Applied, technical and other level 3 courses
| Subject | Qualification | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Childcare Skills | BTEC National Extended Certificate L3 - Band F - P-D* | 11 | 17% | — |
| Study Skills | Extended Project (Diploma) | 11 | 17% | — |
| Applied Business | VRQ Level 3 | 10 | 16% | — |
| Health Studies | BTEC National Extended Certificate L3 - Band F - P-D* | 8 | 13% | — |
| Health Studies | BTEC National Diploma L3 - Band J - PP-D*D* | 8 | 13% | — |
| Sports Studies | BTEC National Diploma L3 - Band J - PP-D*D* | 6 | 10% | — |
| Sports Studies | BTEC National Extended Certificate L3 - Band F - P-D* | — | — | — |
Where St Benet Biscop Catholic Academy is
Other secondary schools in Northumberland are shown for comparison; darker blue means more Year 11 leavers stayed in education. The last distance at which this school offered places is not yet on file — it comes from Northumberland’s allocation statistics.
Other secondary schools in Northumberland
Bede Academy
Academy sponsor led · sixth form · 2,030 pupils
79% stayed in education · Attainment 8 48.9
Bedlington Academy
Academy sponsor led · sixth form · 822 pupils
76% stayed in education · Attainment 8 47.4
Berwick Academy
Academy converter · sixth form · 601 pupils
73% stayed in education · Attainment 8 40.3
Coquet Community School
Community school · sixth form · 567 pupils
81% stayed in education · Attainment 8 34.9
Cramlington Learning Village
Academy converter · sixth form · 1,989 pupils
80% stayed in education · Attainment 8 46.7
Sources: Department for Education school and college performance tables 2024/2025 (Key Stage 4 and 16–18 results, subject entries, destination measures for 2023 leavers); Get Information About Schools register as at 19 September 2026; Ofsted management information as at 31 August 2026. Small numbers are suppressed by DfE and shown as “—”. How to read these figures.