Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy, Runcorn
Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy is a secondary school for pupils aged 11 to 16 in Runcorn, part of St Joseph Catholic Multi Academy Trust. It has a Church of England/Roman Catholic religious character. Its 2026 GCSE results were the 3rd-highest of the 5 schools in Runcorn with published results, and 2,932nd of 3,298 across England. It was 38% full in 2025.
- GCSE results
- Below England average
- Demand
- Every first choice offered
- Attendance
- Below England average
- Progress (2024)
- Well below average
Year 7 applications for September 2027 close in 4 days
Deadline Saturday 31 October 2026. Apply to Halton (the council where you live). Offers on 1 March.
Data last updated 27 Oct 2026
Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy in detail
Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy in its own words
From the headteacher's welcome: "The vision at Blessed Carlo Acutis is about creating a community that is faith centred and supportive of reaching our true potential. We create opportunities for our young people through a curriculum which inspires and challenges, along with an enrichment programme which develops the whole person in the image of God."
Headteacher's welcome (school website)
Source: The school's own website
Results
In 2026, pupils at Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy averaged an Attainment 8 score of 37.5, the average grade across their best eight GCSEs. The average state school scored 40.1 in Halton and 47 across England.
23% passed English and maths at grade 5 or above, against 34% in Halton and 47% in England.
That is up from 33.3 in 2025.
Its most recent Progress 8 score, for 2024, was -1.37: pupils made well below average progress compared with pupils nationally who started secondary school at the same level. Progress 8 was not published for 2026.
Disadvantaged pupils averaged an Attainment 8 of 31, against 47.3 for other pupils at the school - a gap of 16.3 points.
Pupils sat GCSEs in 20 subjects; after English and maths, the most popular were Religious Studies, Combined Science and History.
Getting a place at Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy
For September 2026 entry, 57 families put Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy as their first choice and 111 named it as one of their preferences, for 59 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. Every family who put it first was offered a place there for 2026 entry.
Admissions history and your chances at Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state secondary schools to Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy are The Heath School (0.6 miles, Requires improvement, Attainment 8 41); The Grange School (0.6 miles, Good, Attainment 8 36); Ormiston Bolingbroke Academy (1.7 miles, Requires improvement, Attainment 8 37); and Sandymoor Ormiston Academy (2.6 miles, Good, Attainment 8 43.2).
Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy's 2026 results were higher than 2 of these 4 schools.
The Heath SchoolThe Grange SchoolOrmiston Bolingbroke AcademySandymoor Ormiston Academy
The trust
Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy is one of 11 schools run by St Joseph Catholic Multi Academy Trust, an academy trust.
What parents say
16 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy (as of September 2025): 56% would recommend the school, 81% say their child is happy there and 50% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.
The strongest agreement was that their child is happy at the school (81%); the weakest, that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (50%).
Where pupils go next
Of the 89 pupils who finished Year 11 in 2023/24, 89% stayed in education or training for at least two terms, including 83% to a further education college and 1% to an apprenticeship.
Who goes there
61.7% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well above the average state school (25%), and 8.4% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
In 2026, 58 pupils (17.5%) received SEN support and 10 (3%) had an education, health and care plan, against 16.2% and 4.6% at the average state school. The most common need among them is social, emotional and mental health needs.
Staffing
Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy had 28 teachers in 2026, one for every 13 pupils: more teachers per pupil than a typical secondary school, at about one for every 17.
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Runcorn Rail Station, about 1.5 miles away in a straight line.
9 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is St Chads School (outside), 150 metres away.
The area around the school
Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy stands in is among the 10% most deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy issued 79 suspensions, 21.8 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and 3 permanent exclusions.
Primary schools nearby
The primary schools closest to Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy are Woodside Primary School (0.1 miles), Halton Lodge Nursery & Primary School (0.3 miles), The Holy Spirit Catholic Primary School (0.4 miles) and Castle View Primary School (0.5 miles). Admission does not depend on which primary a child attends unless the school's policy names feeder schools.
Woodside Primary SchoolHalton Lodge Nursery & Primary SchoolThe Holy Spirit Catholic Primary SchoolCastle View Primary School
Sources: DfE school performance data (averages: state mainstream schools); DfE school-level applications and offers; council admissions booklets; DfE appeals statistics; DfE multi-academy trust performance data; Ofsted Parent View; DfE destination measures; DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; DfE school workforce census; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); data.police.uk street-level crime; DfE exclusions statistics
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 2 years agoOverall
Quality of Education
Behaviour & Attitudes
Personal Development
Leadership & Management
Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy has had no graded Ofsted inspection since it took its current form in March 2022. Before that, as St Chads Catholic and Church of England High School (URN 135731), it was rated Inadequate in November 2019.
Ofsted Insights
From Ofsted's March 2025 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
This is a warm, welcoming school where pupils feel safe and proud to belong. Staff provide clear teaching and have recently strengthened the curriculum so all pupils can build their knowledge step by step. The school offers lots of opportunities for personal development including sports, residential visits, and leadership roles.
Key Strengths
- Well-designed curriculum that helps all pupils, including those with SEND, build knowledge in logical steps
- Strong behaviour management systems with calm, orderly classrooms and good pupil conduct
- Effective support for reading with swift help for pupils who need it
- Comprehensive personal development programme including careers guidance
- Effective safeguarding arrangements and warm, welcoming school culture
Areas for Improvement
- Some older pupils have gaps in knowledge from the previous weak curriculum that need to be addressed quickly
- Teachers' checks on learning do not always uncover gaps in understanding or give pupils enough chance to progress when ready
- Too many pupils, including vulnerable ones, have poor attendance rates despite recent improvements
Safeguarding
Safeguarding arrangements are effective, with staff creating an open and positive culture that puts pupils' interests first.
Extracurricular Activities
Sports clubs, residential visits, student chaplain roles, school council membership, peer mentoring
Blessed Carlo Acutis is a secondary academy that has made positive changes to its curriculum and school culture under new leadership. However, the quality of education requires improvement as some pupils have not yet benefited fully from these changes.
About
Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy, formerly St Chad's Catholic and Church of England Academy, is a coeducational secondary school in Runcorn, Cheshire, England.
From Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
At a Glance
61.7%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
16 responsesSource: Ofsted Parent View, responses as at September 2025 - % who strongly agree or agree
Secondary Performance (GCSE)
Academic year 2025/26GCSE Results
2025/26 academic year
Progress 8 has declined from -0.62 to -1.37 (2023 to 2024). Attainment 8 has declined from 39.3 to 37.5 (2023 to 2026). GCSE English & Maths 5+ has declined from 26% to 23% (2023 to 2026).
Performance by Group
| Group | Progress 8 | Attainment 8 | Eng+Maths 5+ |
|---|---|---|---|
| All pupils | - | 37.5 | 22.9% |
| Disadvantaged(42) | - | 31.0 | 14.3% |
| Not known to be disadvantaged(28) | - | 47.3 | 35.7% |
| Boys(27) | - | 34.3 | 22.2% |
| Girls(43) | - | 39.6 | 23.3% |
Show more breakdowns (1)
| Non mobile(66) | - | 38.5 | 24.2% |
2025/26 academic year - DfE performance tables data
GCSE Subjects Offered
2025/26 academic year - entries by number of pupils
After GCSEs - Leaver Destinations
After GCSEs (Year 11) - 89 students
2023/24 data
Exclusions & Suspensions
3
Permanent exclusions
0.83%
Exclusion rate
79
Suspensions
21.76%
Suspension rate
36 pupils received one or more suspensions out of 363 pupils
2024/25 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby secondary schools
Keep up with Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
You apply to the council where you live. Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy is in Halton; for families living there:
Apply to Halton for free school transport. Its policy is on the council's website.
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 10
- Fatal
- 2
- Serious
- 2
- Children hurt
- 0
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 10 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: 2 fatal, 2 serious and 6 slight.
No children aged 0 to 15 were among the people hurt.
1 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included.
The typical figure for schools in Halton is 9.5 (the median across 70 schools, same distance and years).
Serious and slight counts use the Department for Transport's severity adjustment, which allows for changes in how police forces record injuries; they are estimates, rounded to whole numbers. Distances are in a straight line. Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19), Open Government Licence v3.0.
Commute and house prices
Your chances of a place at Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy
Will you get a place at Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy:
- The straight-line distance from your home to Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy.
- We hold no last distance offered figures from Halton, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy for 2022 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in Halton got their first choice, and how often appeals there succeed.
- The nearest state schools to your home, with Ofsted rating, demand and last distance offered where published.
- Key dates for September 2027 entry and how to apply.
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Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
38%
Available places
363 pupils
950 places
587 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Runcorn
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Runcorn
Across Halton council
Places available
1,690
Applications
1,471
Got 1st preference
96.2%
Got preferred school
99.2%
All secondary applications across Halton council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Every first choice offered
Inspection History
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
58
SEN Support
10
EHC Plans
20.5%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
332
Total Pupils
140
Boys
192
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
28
Teachers
11.9:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£51,650
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£8,486
Per pupil
£3367k
Total funding
£221k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
11.6%
Overall absence
38.3%
Persistent absence
394
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
Feeder Primary Schools
Primary schools that likely feed into this school, based on proximity
Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy
Showing 10 of 15 linked schools
Questions parents ask about Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy
What are GCSE results like at Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy?
In the 2026 results, pupils at Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy achieved an Attainment 8 score of 37.5. 23% passed GCSE English and maths at grade 5 or above.
What is Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy's Ofsted rating?
Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy has had no graded Ofsted inspection since it took its current form in March 2022. Before that, as St Chads Catholic and Church of England High School (URN 135731), it was rated Inadequate in November 2019.
What is the catchment area for Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy?
No fixed boundary. When Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy is oversubscribed, Halton allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy?
Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy was not full in 2025: it ran at 38% of its 950 places.
How big are the classes at Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy?
Classes at Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy average 21.3 pupils (2025/26).
How many pupils go to Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy?
Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy has around 332 pupils on roll. 62% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy?
11.6% of sessions were missed at Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy in 2024/25. 38.3% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy?
Apply through Halton's coordinated admissions process, naming Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy on your application. Applications for Year 7 places starting in September 2027 close on Saturday 31 October 2026, and offers are made on Monday 1 March 2027.
How many road collisions happen near Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 10 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: 2 fatal, 2 serious and 6 slight. No children aged 0 to 15 were among the people hurt. 1 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included. The typical figure for schools in Halton is 9.5 (the median across 70 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy?
Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy is at Grangeway, Runcorn, Cheshire, WA7 5YH.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)