St Michael's Catholic Academy Review 2026: Faith-led 11–16 with a clear enrichment offer

Friday lunchtime Mass, a visible virtues curriculum, and an enrichment programme that includes everything from Dungeons and Dragons to Duke of Edinburgh, this is a Catholic secondary where personal formation is treated as part of the core job, not an optional extra. The academy is part of Bishop Hogarth Catholic Education Trust, and sits within the Stockton-on-Tees admissions system for Year 7 entry.

Leadership is currently under Mrs Clare Humble. The academy’s Catholic Schools Inspectorate inspection (09–10 April 2025) graded the overall quality of Catholic education as 1, which corresponds to Outstanding in the report’s grading key, a useful lens for families prioritising Catholic life and religious education.

Academically, the most recent FindMySchool GCSE ranking places the school 2nd locally in Billingham and 2,779th in England (a position that sits below England average overall). This is a school whose appeal often rests on ethos, structure, and pastoral depth as much as headline exam metrics.

The academy’s Catholic character is explicit and routine-driven. The Micah theme, Act Justly, Love Tenderly and Walk Humbly with your God, is presented as a reference point for decision-making and day-to-day conduct, and the virtues curriculum is positioned as something students see repeatedly across the building and their materials.

Chaplaincy is unusually detailed for an 11–16. The school describes daily prayer, weekly year-group Celebration of the Word, and weekly Friday Mass at 12:30pm, alongside retreats and outward-facing service initiatives. A distinctive feature is the breadth of Catholic life experiences offered over time, including retreats at Emmaus Youth Village, participation in the annual Youth Festival, and opportunities for pilgrimage (including Rome and Holy Island, as described by the academy). For families seeking a school where Catholic practice is clearly structured, this is a strong match; for families wanting a lighter-touch faith presence, it is worth understanding how frequently prayer and liturgy appear across the week.

The 2022 Ofsted inspection report describes the school as caring and welcoming, with harmonious relationships and pupils who feel safe and looked after. That matters because culture is often the determining factor for students who need predictability, calm corridors, and adults who know them well.

For GCSE outcomes, the most recent FindMySchool ranking places St Michael’s Catholic Academy 2,779th in England and 2nd in Billingham for GCSE performance (FindMySchool ranking based on official data). This sits below England average overall when expressed as a percentile band.

In the underlying attainment measures, Attainment 8 is 43.9. Progress 8 is -0.23, which indicates that, on average, students make slightly less progress than peers nationally with similar starting points. EBacc average point score is 3.64, and the percentage achieving grade 5 or above across EBacc is 4.1%.

What that means in practice is that families should look for evidence of improving consistency in classroom delivery, and for clarity on how assessment is used to close gaps, particularly for students who are capable but need tight feedback loops to keep pace.

A consistent theme in the academy’s external evaluations is curriculum intent that is stronger than day-to-day consistency in delivery. Ofsted notes well-designed curriculum plans that sequence knowledge, with an example in English where genre knowledge is built over time, and teachers with strong subject knowledge who present information clearly. The same report also identifies that assessment is not always precise enough, which can allow misconceptions to develop when gaps are missed.

Reading support is another stated priority. Ofsted describes leaders placing emphasis on supporting weakest readers, including plans for phonics training that were not yet implemented for all relevant staff at the time of inspection. For parents, the practical implication is simple: if your child arrives in Year 7 below age-related expectations in reading, ask how screening works, what the intervention timetable looks like, and how quickly support starts.

Religious education is presented as a strength in the Catholic Schools Inspectorate report, with subject specialist staffing and a focus on religious literacy and disciplined writing. For families who value RE as academically serious, this is a differentiator, particularly when combined with the chaplaincy programme and use of the chapel as a reflective learning space.

As an 11–16 school, the key transition point is post-16. Ofsted describes pupils being prepared for next steps, referencing a Year 10 “College Discovery Week” experience that supports post-16 applications, and the wider personal development curriculum covering practical risks and life readiness.

Because the school does not have its own sixth form, families should treat Year 9 and Year 10 as the point to get organised. Ask early about careers interviews, college application support, and how option choices at GCSE align with the local post-16 landscape. Where a student is considering apprenticeships or technical pathways, check how the school meets Baker Clause expectations around encounters with training providers, and how those opportunities are scheduled so they do not depend on parental initiative.

Year 7 admissions sit within the Stockton-on-Tees coordinated process, with the local authority handling the common application route. For September 2026 entry, the school’s published admissions number is set at 180 for Year 7.

As a Catholic academy, oversubscription is structured around faith-based criteria first, then other categories. Priority is given to Catholic looked after and previously looked after children, then Catholic children attending named Catholic feeder primaries, followed by other Catholic children. After that come other looked after children, catechumens and members of Eastern Christian Churches, then feeder-primary applicants who are not Catholic, then children of eligible staff, then other Christian denominations and other faiths (with evidence), and finally other children. Distance is used as a tie-break within categories, measured by a geographic information system, and random allocation is used if distances are identical for the last place.

For September 2026 entry, the closing date stated in the school’s admissions policy is 31 October 2025, and outcomes are issued on 1 March 2026 (or the next working day).

Practical guidance for families is to prepare documentation early. The policy makes clear that where supplementary evidence is required, it should be provided at the time of application, and evidence must reflect the position as at the closing date. If your family is seeking a faith-priority category, ensure you understand exactly what the school accepts as evidence, and do not leave this to the final week.

When judging competitiveness, parents should use the FindMySchoolMap Search to check distance-based realities once allocation data becomes available, especially if a tie-break is likely to matter for your category.

Pastoral work is unusually visible across both Ofsted and the school’s own documentation. Ofsted describes strong relationships and a personal development curriculum that includes safety, social media risks, and mental health. Safeguarding is described as effective, with trained staff and leaders who follow up referrals quickly, supported by strong relationships with external agencies.

On the academy’s wellbeing information, the school publishes a named Emotional Wellbeing and Mental Health Support Team, including a Mental Health Lead, a school therapist, SENDCo, and staff trained in specific support roles such as ELSA facilitation and emotional regulation. It also describes being a Trailblazer School with Alliance. The practical implication is that support is not limited to a single pastoral post; it appears to be structured as a team, which can reduce delays and single-point dependency.

For families, the best way to test this in reality is to ask how concerns are triaged, what the typical waiting time is for in-school therapeutic support, and how support is coordinated for students with SEND who also have anxiety, attendance challenges, or safeguarding vulnerabilities.

The enrichment offer is one of the academy’s clearer strengths because it is published in a practical, timetable-led way. In the September 2025 timetable, lunchtime and after-school options include Choir, Manga and Anime Club, Newspaper Club, Warhammer, Running Club, Sports Leaders, and Duke of Edinburgh (including Bronze and Silver groups), as well as targeted academic support such as LitFlix for GCSE English Literature catch-up. The January 2026 timetable adds clubs such as Dungeons and Dragons, Chess Club, and Pokemon Club, alongside regular Homework Club sessions.

A faith-and-service strand runs through enrichment as well. The September timetable includes SVP or Faith in Action in the chapel, and the chaplaincy page describes chaplaincy choir and Faith in Action as formal groups, plus charitable initiatives ranging from local food banks to CAFOD projects, and wider participation such as CYMFED Flame.

Sport is backed by facilities investment. The school describes a 3G pitch built to FIFA and FA standards, intended for year-round use and community access, a notable practical advantage in the North East climate where winter training time often becomes the limiting factor for sustained participation.

The published school day runs from an 8:50am student arrival to a 3:25pm end-of-day departure, with a mid-afternoon registration and reading slot built into the timetable.

For transport, the academy publishes a home-to-school transport service page that includes behavioural expectations and operational details around travel, including the use of CCTV on some contracted vehicles and structured consequences for poor conduct. For families where transport is a daily pressure point, this level of clarity is helpful, and worth reading alongside local authority eligibility rules.

• Below-average progress at GCSE. Progress 8 is -0.23, so families should ask how the school is tightening assessment and feedback so that capable students do not drift, particularly in subjects where misconceptions can compound quickly.

• Consistency of classroom implementation. Ofsted highlights strong curriculum plans but variable implementation and imprecise assessment at times. For some students this will be manageable; for others, especially those needing predictable routines and tight scaffolding, it is important to understand how leaders are standardising practice.

• Reading support is a key watchpoint. Plans to support weakest readers were described as still developing at the time of inspection, with phonics training not yet embedded across all relevant staff. If literacy is an area of need, ask what has changed since, and how quickly Year 7 interventions start.

• Faith expectations are real. The school welcomes families of other faiths and none, but Catholic practice is frequent and structured. Families should be comfortable with prayer, liturgy, and Catholic social teaching being present across the week.

St Michael’s Catholic Academy is best understood as a values-led 11–16 with a clearly organised enrichment programme and a Catholic life offer that goes well beyond occasional services. Pastoral intent and wellbeing structures are visible, and facilities investment, including the 3G pitch, strengthens the breadth of school life.

It suits families who want a school where faith, service, and structured personal development are central, and where students can be drawn into clubs and leadership as a way to build confidence. Those prioritising the strongest possible exam outcomes should look closely at subject-level support, consistency of teaching, and literacy intervention, then judge whether the school’s improvement work aligns with their child’s needs.