St Edward's College

About St Edward's College

St Edward’s College is a Roman Catholic secondary school in the Liverpool local authority, and it sits 10th out of 30 state secondaries in the area when ranked by Progress 8. That puts it in the top third of Liverpool schools, though it’s some way behind the three highest-performing peers nearby: The Blue Coat School, Cardinal Heenan Catholic High School, and Archbishop Blanch CofE High School. The school is noticeably oversubscribed — for 167 places in 2025/26, it received 989 applications, with 290 families putting it as their first preference. That level of demand suggests strong local reputation, even if the academic data doesn’t place it among the very top. The school’s most recent Ofsted inspection, in December 2024, rated it Good across every category including behaviour, personal development, and leadership — a significant improvement from its previous Requires Improvement rating in November 2022. Parents seem broadly positive: 84% would recommend the school, and 87% strongly agree or agree that their child is happy there.

Academically, St Edward’s sits slightly below national averages but above the Liverpool average. Its Progress 8 score of -0.2 means pupils achieve about two-tenths of a grade less per subject than similar students nationally, but that’s better than the LA average of -0.4. Attainment 8 stands at 49.4, and 76.1% of pupils achieved a grade 4 or above in English and maths. At A-level, the school’s value added score is -0.04, classed as Average, with students averaging a C+ grade per entry and 33.39 points per entry. The EBacc entry rate is 54.4%, and 36.7% of pupils entered the EBacc achieved a grade 4 or above. In the Parent View survey, 88% of respondents strongly agreed or agreed that the school has high expectations for their child, and 84% felt their child does well. However, SEND support is a notable weak spot: only 45% of parents agreed that the school gives SEND children the support they need, while 45% disagreed or strongly disagreed.

The school is well equipped, with facilities including art studios, music rooms, a theatre, a chapel, a sixth form centre, and an astro turf pitch. Sports on offer include football, netball, cricket, tennis, and gymnastics, while clubs range from Eco Club and Model UN to coding and Young Enterprise. St Edward’s has a dedicated sixth form and provides support for a wide range of SEND needs, including dyslexia, autistic spectrum disorder, and speech, language and communication needs. With 1,160 pupils against a capacity of 1,028, the school is over its official capacity, and the oversubscription ratio of nearly 6:1 means applying early is essential. This is a school that suits families looking for a Catholic secondary with a strong sense of community and improving Ofsted grades, but those with children who have SEND may want to investigate the support on offer more closely before applying.

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