St Monica's RC High School, a Voluntary Academy

About St Monica's RC High School, a Voluntary Academy

St Monica's RC High School, a Voluntary Academy, sits within Bury local authority and ranks 4th out of 14 secondary schools in the area by Progress 8 score, placing it comfortably in the top third locally. Among its closest peers in the borough, it sits alongside Holy Cross College, The Derby High School, and Parrenthorn High School, all of which also achieve positive Progress 8 scores. The school is a Roman Catholic 11-16 mixed state secondary, led by headteacher Emma Keenan, and currently has 1,066 pupils on roll against a capacity of 1,150. Its most recent Ofsted inspection, carried out in January 2025, judged the school as Good across all four graded categories: quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, and leadership and management. This marks a notable improvement from its previous inspection in February 2023, when the school was rated Requires Improvement overall, with behaviour and attitudes and leadership and management both graded as Requires Improvement at that time.

Academically, St Monica's performs well above the local average. Its Progress 8 score of 0.21 is classified as Above average nationally and compares very favourably with the Bury local authority average of -0.02. The school's Attainment 8 score stands at 51.1, and 58.6% of pupils achieved a grade 5 or above in English and maths GCSEs, with 77.7% achieving a grade 4 or above. The English Baccalaureate average point score is 4.39, though only 25.1% of pupils entered the EBacc combination of subjects. Progress in English is particularly strong at 0.32, while maths progress sits at 0.19. The school does not have a sixth form, so all pupils leave at 16. In the 2023/24 exam year, the school ranked 1,059th nationally out of 3,141 schools, placing it in the top third of all state secondary schools in England.

The school was oversubscribed for 2025/26 entry, receiving 271 applications for 189 places, with 156 first-preference offers made. Facilities include a swimming pool, tennis courts, science labs, playing fields, and a chapel. The school offers a broad range of sports and clubs, including rowing, gymnastics, the Duke of Edinburgh's Award, and a gardening club. Parent View responses from 88 parents between September 2024 and September 2025 show strong satisfaction: 86% agreed or strongly agreed that their child is happy, and 90% felt their child is safe. However, SEND support is a more mixed picture: of the 18% of respondents with SEND children, 56% agreed the school gives the support needed, while 44% disagreed. The school's SEND provisions cover autistic spectrum disorder, speech and language needs, and social, emotional and mental health difficulties, among others. This is a school that suits families looking for strong academic progress in a Catholic setting, with good facilities and a clear improvement trajectory, though those with SEND children may want to investigate support arrangements further.

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