Oaklands Catholic School, Waterlooville

Ofsted's report card from its 21 April 2026 inspection grades Oaklands Catholic School on 7 areas: 3 strong standard and 4 expected standard. Report cards replaced single-word judgements in November 2025, on a five-point scale from exceptional to urgent improvement.

Attendance and behaviour - Strong standard. "Leaders have prioritised attendance."

Inclusion - Strong standard. "Leaders' ambition for a highly inclusive culture is evident throughout the school."

Personal development and wellbeing - Strong standard. "The development of the whole person is at the heart of leaders' highly ambitious and well-structured programme for personal development."

Achievement - Expected standard. "Leaders ensure that pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who are disadvantaged, are well prepared for their next steps."

Curriculum and teaching - Expected standard. "Leaders have designed a well-sequenced and ambitious curriculum."

Leadership and governance - Expected standard. "Leaders know the school well."

Post 16 provision - Expected standard. "Students enjoy life in the sixth form."

Safeguarding standards were met.

Ofsted's next steps for the school: "Leaders should ensure that teachers' checks on pupils' understanding in all subjects are consistently effective and inform subsequent teaching, which in turn supports all pupils to achieve highly"; "Leaders should ensure that in the sixth form teachers maximise opportunities to deepen students' knowledge and understanding, enabling more students to achieve at a high level".

In its own words: "At the centre of everything we do in school is God this is what makes us different. Catholic schools are an integral part of the wider global Church and closer to home we are very much part of the local Catholic church and the Catholic Dioceses of Portsmouth ."

From the headteacher's welcome: "A very warm welcome to the Sixth Form at Oaklands Catholic College. If you are visiting these pages because of your GCSE results, congratulations for all the hard work and commitment you have shown to get to this exciting stage! It would be a great privilege to have you join us on this next stretch of your educational journey."

Clubs and activities named on the school's website include drama, STEM and Duke of Edinburgh.

In 2026, pupils at Oaklands Catholic School averaged an Attainment 8 score of 48.9, the average grade across their best eight GCSEs. The average state school scored 45.6 in Hampshire and 47 across England.

44% passed English and maths at grade 5 or above, against 43% in Hampshire and 47% in England.

That is down from 52.3 in 2025.

Its most recent Progress 8 score, for 2024, was 0.19: pupils made above 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 34.6, against 53.5 for other pupils at the school - a gap of 18.9 points.

Pupils sat GCSEs in 26 subjects; after English and maths, the most popular were Religious Studies, Combined Science and Geography.

For September 2026 entry, 251 families put Oaklands Catholic School as their first choice and 484 named it as one of their preferences, for 223 places offered. That is 1.1 first choices for every place. 44 families who put it first were not offered a place there.

The nearest other state secondary schools to Oaklands Catholic School are Crookhorn College (0.2 miles, Good, Attainment 8 41.3); Park Community School (0.9 miles, Good, Attainment 8 27.7); Purbrook Park School (1 mile, Good, Attainment 8 43.8); and The Cowplain School (1.7 miles, Good, Attainment 8 40.1).

Oaklands Catholic School's 2026 results were higher than all 4 of them.

Oaklands Catholic School is one of 3 schools run by Edith Stein Catholic Academy Trust, an academy trust.

Of the 223 pupils who finished Year 11 in 2023/24, 92% stayed in education or training for at least two terms, including 48% to a further education college, 4% to an apprenticeship and 1% into work.

Of the 122 students who left the sixth form in 2023/24, 66% went on to university or other higher education, 7% to apprenticeships and 15% into work. 16% went to one of the most selective third of universities.

11.2% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.

The largest ethnic groups are White British (59%), Asian (13%) and Mixed (10%).

In 2026, 152 pupils (10.7%) received SEN support and 50 (3.5%) 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.

The nearest railway station is Bedhampton Rail Station, about 1.5 miles away in a straight line.

6 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Oaklands School (e-bound), 90 metres away.

In August 2026, police recorded 237 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, anti-social behaviour and public order offences. That is well above the typical figure around schools in Hampshire (72), as is usual near a town centre.

In 2024/25, Oaklands Catholic School issued 89 suspensions, 6.5 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.

The primary schools closest to Oaklands Catholic School are St Peter's Catholic Primary School, Waterlooville (under 0.1 miles); Springwood Junior School (0.4 miles); Springwood Infant School (0.5 miles); and Mill Hill Primary School (0.7 miles). Admission does not depend on which primary a child attends unless the school's policy names feeder schools.