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Cardinal Heenan Catholic High School

Secondary · Leeds · LS6 4QE

Data updated

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Good

Earlier grade, confirmed by a later ungraded inspection

Ofsted's most recent (ungraded) visit confirmed the school remains Good. Ungraded inspections do not award a new grade.

Inspected 8 February 2023

Read the Ofsted report ↗

At a glance

916 pupils · 102% of 900 capacity (over capacity) (January 2026 census)

School type
Voluntary aided school
Age range
11–16
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
Roman Catholic
Admissions
Non-selective
Free school meals
20.7% of pupils (January 2026)
English as additional language
22.3% of pupils (2024/2025)
SEN support
11.2% of pupils (2024/2025)
EHC plan
0.9% of pupils (2024/2025)
Website
http://www.cardinalheenan.com
URN
108095

In figures

For September 2026 entry, 249 families named it first for 179 Year 7 places, 1.39 first choices per place. We hold 10 Year 7 admissions rounds for it, 2017 to 2026; none was decided by a published distance. An ungraded Ofsted inspection on 8 February 2023 confirmed its earlier grade, Good. In the 2025/26 autumn and spring terms its pupils missed 5.3% of sessions, against 6.6% across England.

Admissions demand: Year 7 entry, September 2026

1.39 first-choice applications per place

179 places offered · 249 first-choice applications · oversubscribed

First-choice applications per place, by entry year

19/20
20/21
21/22
22/23
23/24
24/25
25/26
26/27

Source: DfE applications and offers on national offer day · how demand is measured

Catchment area

Catchment area: not named in the council's figures.

Admissions cutoff distance: Year 7

Cutoff by admission criterion (2026 entry)

Other baptised Catholic children
1.73 miles

Source: the admissions authority's published figures · how cutoffs work

GCSE results (2024/2025)

175 pupils at the end of key stage 4 in 2024/2025

Attainment 8 score
58
England 46.1
Grade 4 or above in English & maths GCSEs
82.9%
England 64.8%
Grade 5 or above in English & maths GCSEs
73.1%
England 45.4%
EBacc average point score
5.1
England 4.1

Progress 8 is suspended nationally for 2024/25 and 2025/26. These cohorts sat no key stage 2 tests (COVID), so there is no baseline to measure progress from.

Source: DfE performance tables 2024/2025 · what “suppressed” means

Schools with a similar intake

Attainment 8, 2024/2025

This school58
Median of its 12 closest peers54.5
Leeds average46.4
England46.1

On attainment 8, this school is ahead of the schools that teach a comparable intake.

They are matched on intake, not location, so most are not local: see nearby schools for those you could apply to.

SchoolOfstedAttainment 8
Goldington AcademyBedford · 126 miles awayStrong standard54.3
Chilwell SchoolNottingham · 65 miles awayGood50.2
Loreto CollegeSt Albans · 153 miles awayOutstanding58.3
Clayton Hall AcademyNewcastle-under-Lyme · 65 miles awayGood45.8
Emerson Park AcademyHornchurch · 174 miles awayExpected standard44.7
All Saints Church of England AcademyStockton-on-Tees · 48 miles awayGood54.6
The Burgess Hill AcademyBurgess Hill · 208 miles awayNo current grade44.6
Our Lady's Catholic High SchoolPreston · 48 miles awayGood50
The Grey Coat HospitalLondon · 173 miles awayOutstanding66.6
Archbishop Temple Church of England High SchoolPreston · 47 miles awayGood55.4
Park House SchoolNewbury · 170 miles awayGood55.9
Prendergast SchoolLondon · 177 miles awayOutstanding64

It is not a ranking. Source: DfE performance tables 2024/2025 · how the matching works

Pupils by ethnicity (January 2026)

White British 52% (Leeds 57%, England 59%) · Black African 16% (Leeds 8%, England 5%) · Any other White background 8% (Leeds 5%, England 7%) · Any other Asian background 5% (Leeds 2%, England 3%) · Mixed White and Asian 3% (Leeds 2%, England 2%) · Any other Mixed background 2% (Leeds 3%, England 3%) · Mixed White and Black Caribbean 2% (Leeds 2%, England 2%) · White Irish 2% (Leeds 0%, England 0%) · Mixed White and Black African 2% (Leeds 1%, England 1%) · Any other Black background 2% (Leeds 1%, England 1%) · Asian Indian 1% (Leeds 3%, England 4%) · Any other ethnic group 1% (Leeds 3%, England 3%) · other groups together 2%

Source: DfE schools, pupils and their characteristics, January 2026 census · how to read these figures

Attendance (2025/26 autumn and spring terms)

Sessions missed (overall absence)
5.3%
England 6.6%
Pupils missing 10%+ of sessions (persistent absence)
11%
England 17.5%

Suspensions and permanent exclusions (2024/25)

8.60 suspensions per 100 pupils and 0 permanent exclusions · England, secondary schools: 21.24 suspensions and 0.23 permanent exclusions per 100 pupils · Leeds: 21.53 suspensions and 0.03 permanent exclusions per 100 pupils

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Source: DfE pupil absence data, autumn and spring terms, and DfE suspensions and permanent exclusions, school-level file · how absence is measured · how to read exclusions

Staffing

Pupils per qualified teacher
17.5
England 18.5

Full-time-equivalent, 2025/26.

Teacher retention (2024/25)

87% of teachers stayed at the school the following year · 5% moved to another state school · 8% left the state-funded sector

Vacancies (November 2025)

0% of teaching posts vacant, 0% filled temporarily · England, council-maintained secondaries: 0.22% vacant, 0.42% temporary

Teacher pay (November 2025)

Mean salary of full-time qualified teachers £54,718; 10.5% on the leadership pay range · England, secondary schools: £53,766, 11.3%

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Source: DfE School Workforce Census · how these figures are counted

Spending per pupil (2025-26)

This school£7,786
Typical secondary school£7,846

Where the money went (2025-26)

Share of spending, with the median for secondary schools in brackets: Staff 78% (77%) · premises 10% (6%) · occupation (energy, rates, cleaning) 3% (7%) · supplies and services 15% (10%) · educational supplies 5% (6%) · bought-in professional services 4% (2%) · catering 1% (3%)

Reserves (2025-26)

Revenue reserve £348,095; in-year balance -£65,856

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Higher spending is not a measure of quality. Source: council-maintained school finance return, 2025-26, DfE · how spending is compared

Where pupils go after GCSEs

In sustained education, work or training
91%
Continuing in education
86%
Apprenticeship
3%
Employment
2%

Destinations measured the year after leaving, DfE destination measures in the 2024/2025 performance tables.

Inspection history since 2015

Source: Ofsted management information · ungraded visits and the two inspection systems

The area around the school

Child poverty (IDACI)
8/10less deprived than most of England
Overall deprivation (IMD)
7/10less deprived than most of England
Census 2021This areaEngland
Adults with a degree or higher45.7%33.9%
Adults with no qualifications18%18.1%
In managerial or professional work40.4%33.2%
Households deprived in two or more ways15.8%18.1%
Residents in very good health48%48.5%
Homes owned by the occupier76.6%62.3%
Social housing12%17.1%
Privately rented11.4%20.5%
Detached houses9.9%22.9%
Flats12.3%22.2%
Homes with four or more bedrooms23.7%21.1%
Households with no car or van20.8%23.5%

These figures describe the area, not the pupils. Source: Census 2021 (ONS) and English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG) for small area E01011505 · how to read area figures

What homes cost nearby

Median sale price
£330,000323 sales within 1 km, January 2024 to September 2026
Typical range
£265,000–£390,500the middle half of sales
England median
£300,000all sales over the same period
Detached (60)£425,000
Semi-detached (207)£329,000
Terraced (30)£291,000
Flat (26)£176,000

Homes around this school are dearer than most school neighbourhoods in England, comparing the median within 1 km across every state school.

Source: HM Land Registry sales within 1 km since January 2024 · how sales are counted. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. This data is licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Postcodes located with OS Code-Point Open: contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026; contains Royal Mail data © Royal Mail copyright and database right 2026; contains National Statistics data © Crown copyright and database right 2026.

Roads around the school

Child pedestrian casualties
2an urban school averages 2.0
Collisions at school-run times
5an urban school averages 5.7
All reported collisions
11an urban school averages 30.5
Of those, serious or fatal
3an urban school averages 6.1

A high count usually reflects traffic, not an unsafe school. Source: DfT road casualty statistics (STATS19), collisions within 500 m, 2021–2025 · what is counted

Nearby schools