St Bede's Catholic School and Byron Sixth Form College, Peterlee

From the headteacher's welcome: "I am delighted to introduce you to our disciplined, deeply caring Catholic community where every young person is nurtured to grow, thrive and achieve their full potential. At St. Bede's, our distinctive Catholic ethos guides everything we do. It shapes our commitment to academic excellence, inclusion, compassion, and the formation of confident, responsible young people."

In 2026, pupils at St Bede's Catholic School and Byron Sixth Form College averaged an Attainment 8 score of 42.1, the average grade across their best eight GCSEs. The average state school scored 44.6 in County Durham and 47 across England.

40% passed English and maths at grade 5 or above, against 42% in County Durham and 47% in England.

That is down from 44.5 in 2025.

Its most recent Progress 8 score, for 2024, was -0.22: pupils made 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 33.7, against 47.9 for other pupils at the school - a gap of 14.2 points.

Pupils sat GCSEs in 21 subjects; after English and maths, the most popular were Religious Studies, Combined Science and Geography.

For September 2026 entry, 103 families put St Bede's Catholic School and Byron Sixth Form College as their first choice and 267 named it as one of their preferences, for 107 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. Every family who put it first was offered a place there for 2026 entry.

The nearest other state secondary schools to St Bede's Catholic School and Byron Sixth Form College are The Academy at Shotton Hall (0.6 miles, Outstanding, Attainment 8 55); Dene Academy (1.2 miles, Good, Attainment 8 41.2); Easington Academy (1.7 miles, Good, Attainment 8 51); and Wellfield School (2.1 miles, Attainment 8 47.3).

St Bede's Catholic School and Byron Sixth Form College's 2026 results were higher than 1 of these 4 schools.

St Bede's Catholic School and Byron Sixth Form College 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 140 pupils who finished Year 11 in 2023/24, 89% stayed in education or training for at least two terms, including 51% to a further education college, 5% to an apprenticeship and 3% into work.

Of the 31 students who left the sixth form in 2023/24, 65% went on to university or other higher education, 13% to apprenticeships and 13% into work. 30% went to one of the most selective third of universities.

37.9% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well above the average state school (25%), and 7.1% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.

In 2026, 152 pupils (17.1%) received SEN support and 27 (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 autism.

The nearest railway station is Horden, about 1.7 miles away in a straight line.

12 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Grampian Dr - Hulme Court (ne-bound), 90 metres away.

Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood St Bede's Catholic School and Byron Sixth Form College stands in is among the 20% most deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.

In August 2026, police recorded 345 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, criminal damage and arson and anti-social behaviour. That is well above the typical figure around schools in County Durham (84), as is usual near a town centre.

In 2024/25, St Bede's Catholic School and Byron Sixth Form College issued 635 suspensions, 67.8 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and 14 permanent exclusions.

The primary schools closest to St Bede's Catholic School and Byron Sixth Form College are Our Lady of the Rosary Catholic Primary School (0.2 miles), Howletch Lane Primary School (0.3 miles), Shotton Hall Primary School (0.5 miles) and Acre Rigg Infant School (0.6 miles). Admission does not depend on which primary a child attends unless the school's policy names feeder schools.