St Anthony's Girls' Catholic Academy, Sunderland

From the headteacher's welcome: "Welcome to St. Anthony's Girls' Catholic Academy. We are a Catholic Academy for girls aged 11-18 years, within the Mercy tradition. We are proud to be part of Bishop Chadwick Catholic Education Trust. The foundress of the Sisters of Mercy, Venerable Catherine McAuley, instructed her community to "be shining lamps, giving light to all around us"."

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

Coming up: an open evening on Saturday 31 October 2026 and an open evening on Monday 1 March 2027. Check the school's website before you go, as dates can change.

In 2026, pupils at St Anthony's Girls' Catholic Academy averaged an Attainment 8 score of 52.1, the average grade across their best eight GCSEs. The average state school scored 44.8 in Sunderland and 47 across England.

57% passed English and maths at grade 5 or above, against 46% in Sunderland and 47% in England.

That is up from 50.7 in 2025.

Its most recent Progress 8 score, for 2024, was 0.09: pupils made about 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 42.5, against 55.2 for other pupils at the school - a gap of 12.7 points.

Pupils sat GCSEs in 22 subjects; after English and maths, the most popular were Religious Studies, Combined Science and History.

For September 2026 entry, 252 families put St Anthony's Girls' Catholic Academy as their first choice and 356 named it as one of their preferences, for 208 places offered. That is 1.2 first choices for every place. 54 families who put it first were not offered a place there.

The nearest other state secondary schools to St Anthony's Girls' Catholic Academy are Thornhill Academy (0.2 miles, Good, Attainment 8 42.8); St Aidan's Catholic Academy (0.5 miles, Good, Attainment 8 53.6); Southmoor Academy (0.9 miles, Good, Attainment 8 46.8); and Sandhill View Academy (1.7 miles, Good, Attainment 8 41.1).

St Anthony's Girls' Catholic Academy's 2026 results were higher than 3 of these 4 schools.

St Anthony's Girls' Catholic Academy is one of 31 schools run by Bishop Chadwick Catholic Education Trust, an academy trust.

Across the trust's secondary schools, pupils averaged an Attainment 8 score of 48.1 in 2024/25.

Of the 238 pupils who finished Year 11 in 2023/24, 91% stayed in education or training for at least two terms, including 43% to a further education college, 3% to an apprenticeship and 3% into work.

Of the 120 students who left the sixth form in 2023/24, 72% went on to university or other higher education, 4% to apprenticeships and 14% into work. 26% went to one of the most selective third of universities.

In 2026, 150 pupils (11.6%) received SEN support and 9 (0.7%) 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 autism.

The nearest tram or metro stop is University (Tyne and Wear Metro Station), about 260 metres away (roughly a 3-minute walk).

21 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Tunstall Road-Argyle Street (n-bound), 130 metres away.

In August 2026, police recorded 665 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, anti-social behaviour and shoplifting. That is well above the typical figure around schools in Sunderland (148), as is usual near a town centre.

In 2024/25, St Anthony's Girls' Catholic Academy issued 108 suspensions, 8.3 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and 2 permanent exclusions.

The primary schools closest to St Anthony's Girls' Catholic Academy are St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Sunderland (0.4 miles); Richard Avenue Primary School (0.6 miles); Hudson Road Primary School (0.7 miles); and Barnes Infant Academy (0.8 miles). Admission does not depend on which primary a child attends unless the school's policy names feeder schools.