St Bede's Catholic High School, Lytham

About St Bede's Catholic High School, Lytham

St Bede’s Catholic High School in Lytham is a state secondary for 11 to 16 year olds, and it is genuinely popular with local families. The school has 829 pupils on roll, just four over its official capacity of 825, so it is running very close to full. The demand is clear: for the 2025/26 intake, the school received 521 applications for 161 places, an oversubscription ratio of 3.24 to one. Of those, 188 put it as their first preference, and 160 first-preference offers were made. The proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals sits at 13.4%, which is slightly above the national average for secondary schools (around 13% in recent years) and gives a sense of the school’s mixed intake. It is a Roman Catholic school, and the headteacher is Paul Marsden. The school does not have a sixth form, so pupils leave at 16.

Academically, St Bede’s produces results that are broadly in line with the national average, though with some variation by subject. Its Progress 8 score is -0.17, which places it in the ‘Average’ banding nationally. That is slightly below the Lancashire local authority average of -0.11, but still within the range of a typical school. The Attainment 8 score is 50.2, and 54.5% of pupils achieved a grade 5 or above in English and maths (the basics measure). The EBacc average point score is 4.34, with 16.4% of pupils entering the EBacc and achieving a grade 5 or above. Looking at the breakdown, Progress 8 in maths is -0.35, while in English it is -0.13, and in the EBacc subjects it is -0.2. In its most recent Ofsted inspection in February 2025, the school was rated Good across all four graded areas: quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, and leadership and management. The previous inspection in 2014 also rated it Good overall.

The school offers a strong range of facilities, including a swimming pool, theatre, chapel, sports hall, gymnasium, and dedicated music and art studios. There are plenty of extracurricular options, from the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award and Model UN to coding, choir, and gardening club. Sports on offer include football, basketball, tennis, and martial arts. For pupils with additional needs, the school provides support for a range of SEND categories, including autistic spectrum disorder, speech and language needs, and social, emotional and mental health difficulties. Parent View responses from 151 families show that 70% would recommend the school. The strongest positive feedback was on clubs and activities (91% agree or strongly agree) and on the school letting parents know how their child is doing (71% agree or strongly agree). However, only 47% of parents felt that SEND children receive the support they need, and 43% disagreed that concerns are dealt with properly. This is a school that suits families who want a Catholic secondary with a broad curriculum, strong facilities, and a clear sense of community, but who are aware that it is academically solid rather than exceptional.

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