St Mary's Catholic School, Bishop's Stortford

From the headteacher's welcome: "St Mary's Catholic School has a strong tradition and history of providing an excellent education for every child with Christ at the heart of all that we do. Our commitment to the pastoral care, academic achievement and spiritual development of your child is what makes St Mary's such a wonderful community."

In 2026, pupils at St Mary's Catholic School averaged an Attainment 8 score of 56.8, the average grade across their best eight GCSEs. The average state school scored 50.6 in Hertfordshire and 47 across England.

64% passed English and maths at grade 5 or above, against 53% in Hertfordshire and 47% in England.

That is in line with 2025, when the score was 57.6.

Its most recent Progress 8 score, for 2024, was 0.43: 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 54.6, against 57.1 for other pupils at the school - a gap of 2.5 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, 147 families put St Mary's Catholic School as their first choice and 484 named it as one of their preferences, for 182 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. 8 families who put it first were not offered a place there.

The nearest other state secondary schools to St Mary's Catholic School are TLC Live Online School (0.5 miles); Hockerill Anglo-European College (0.7 miles, Good, Attainment 8 62.3); The Hertfordshire & Essex High School and Science College (0.8 miles, Outstanding, Attainment 8 62); and Avanti Grange Secondary School (1 mile).

Each of them had higher 2026 results than St Mary's Catholic School.

St Mary's Catholic School is one of 9 schools run by St Francis of Assisi Catholic Academy Trust, an academy trust.

150 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about St Mary's Catholic School (as of September 2025): 77% would recommend the school, 87% say their child is happy there and 59% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.

The strongest agreement was that their child feels safe (89%); the weakest, that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (59%).

Of the 186 pupils who finished Year 11 in 2023/24, 96% stayed in education or training for at least two terms, including 28% to a further education college, 2% to an apprenticeship and 1% into work.

Of the 107 students who left the sixth form in 2023/24, 72% went on to university or other higher education, 2% to apprenticeships and 15% into work. 29% went to one of the most selective third of universities.

9.3% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well below the average state school (25%), according to the 2026 school census.

In 2026, 91 pupils (8.2%) received SEN support and 13 (1.2%) 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 a specific learning difficulty such as dyslexia.

The nearest railway station is Bishops Stortford Rail Station, about 880 metres away (roughly a 11-minute walk).

7 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is St Catherine's Court (outside), 150 metres away.

Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood St Mary's Catholic School stands in is among the 10% least deprived neighbourhoods in England. On income deprivation affecting children it is in the 8th decile, where the 1st is the most deprived. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.

In August 2026, police recorded 273 crimes within a mile of the school, most often anti-social behaviour, violence and sexual offences and shoplifting. That is well above the typical figure around schools in Hertfordshire (138), as is usual near a town centre.

In 2024/25, St Mary's Catholic School issued 53 suspensions, 4.7 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.

The primary schools closest to St Mary's Catholic School are Windhill21 (0.1 miles), St Michael's Church of England Primary School (0.2 miles), St Joseph's Catholic Primary School B/S (0.3 miles) and Northgate Primary School (0.4 miles). Admission does not depend on which primary a child attends unless the school's policy names feeder schools.