St Peter and St Paul, Catholic Voluntary Academy Review 2026: A small Catholic secondary where sixth form support is a clear strength

A secondary school with sixth form that sits at the heart of Catholic life in Lincoln, this academy blends a strong parish link with the practicalities of serving a mixed-intake community. Recent external evidence presents a clear split. Day-to-day culture is described as polite, respectful and safe, with behaviour improving and sixth form provision judged positively; academic outcomes and consistency of curriculum delivery remain the key pressure points.

Leadership stability is a defining feature. Caroline Hewerdine is named as headteacher in the latest published inspection documentation, and the school’s own staff listing shows Mrs C Hewerdine leading the senior team.

Families considering St Peter and St Paul should be aware of two time-sensitive admissions realities. Year 7 entry is coordinated through local authority timelines (for Lincolnshire, the national closing date for applications for September 2026 entry is 31 October 2025), and Catholic prioritisation requires an additional supplementary form to be returned by the same date.

The academy’s Catholic identity is not a bolt-on; it is built into routines, language, and the way students contribute to wider community life. Masses run across the liturgical year, and pupils take visible roles in readings, bidding prayers, offertory and altar serving. The relationship with the local parish is active, including pupils participating in parish worship and service projects.

A distinctive recent development is the creation of an on-site chapel. Saint Patrick’s Chapel seats 60, was blessed during a pastoral visit, and includes pupil-designed artwork. Year 7 stained-glass work based on the parish church, Year 9 chalk drawings of the Beatitudes, and planned Stations of the Cross give the space a clear “student-made” character rather than a generic refurbishment.

The tone is shaped by the reality of being relatively small for an 11 to 18 school. Smallness can work two ways. It can mean students are well known to staff and that support is genuinely personalised, especially post-16. It can also mean limited margin for inconsistency, because gaps in classroom practice show up quickly in outcomes. The most recent published evidence leans into this theme: sixth form teaching and support are described as stronger and more consistent than in the lower school, while whole-school consistency remains the improvement priority.

Faith life also appears to be inclusive in intent. The academy references diversity-focused activity, and the choir is repeatedly used as an example of bringing students together across backgrounds. Where schools sometimes talk about inclusion in abstract terms, here it is attached to specific structures, including worship, parish events, and student roles.

The latest Ofsted inspection (30 April and 1 May 2024) rated the academy Requires Improvement overall; behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and sixth form provision were graded Good.

On GCSE outcomes, the school’s 2024 profile sits below England average in the FindMySchool ranking picture. Ranked 3,298th in England and 10th in Lincoln for GCSE outcomes (FindMySchool ranking based on official data), the academy sits in the bottom 40% of schools in England on that measure.

The published GCSE metrics reinforce the ranking position. The 2024 Attainment 8 figure is 37, and the Progress 8 score is -0.58, indicating students made below-average progress from their starting points compared with similar pupils nationally.

EBacc indicators are also low on the published dataset used here. The percentage achieving grades 5 or above in the EBacc is 7.4, and the average EBacc APS is 3.28. Those figures suggest that, for families prioritising strong outcomes in the core academic suite, it is important to interrogate subject pathways, staffing stability and how the school is addressing inconsistency.

At A-level, the picture remains challenging on headline grades. About 20.93% of entries were graded A* to B in the most recent published data used here. In FindMySchool’s A-level ranking (based on official data), the academy is ranked 2,414th in England and 10th in Lincoln, again placing it in the bottom 40% on that measure.

For parents comparing options locally, FindMySchool’s Local Hub pages can help you set these outcomes alongside nearby schools in the same travel radius, so you can weigh results against faith ethos, pastoral fit, and journey time.

Curriculum intent is clearly set out. The academy describes a broad Key Stage 3 offer aligned to national curriculum requirements, followed by GCSE and post-16 pathways across both academic and vocational options.

Key Stage 4 subject structure is published with exam boards and course titles, which is helpful for families trying to understand what sits behind a headline “options” conversation. Core GCSEs include English language, English literature, mathematics, combined science, and GCSE religious studies, with languages and humanities available alongside creative and practical courses such as art and food preparation and nutrition.

The central issue is consistency of delivery rather than lack of planning. The most recent inspection narrative describes sequencing and planning as established, but identifies variable classroom checks for prior knowledge and understanding, and variable expectations around the quality of work and use of feedback. The practical implication for families is that the experience can depend heavily on subject area and teacher, particularly lower down the school, even while post-16 practice is described as stronger and more consistent.

For some students, that context makes targeted support and structured routines especially important. The school’s timetable structure and form time create regular touchpoints, and the published description of weaker-reader support suggests literacy intervention is part of the plan rather than an afterthought.

Where Students Go Next

The academy does not publish a detailed Russell Group or Oxbridge breakdown in the sources reviewed here. Instead, the most reliable destination picture comes from the official 16 to 18 leavers data supplied for the 2023/24 cohort.

For that cohort, 44% progressed to university. Apprenticeships accounted for 9%, employment 19%, and further education 6%. With a cohort size of 32, this suggests a mixed set of next steps, including direct employment alongside higher education, which can be a good fit for students seeking practical progression routes rather than a purely university-focused culture.

The sixth form also frames progression as a structured programme rather than a last-minute Year 13 scramble. Published materials describe enrichment time tied to UCAS preparation, apprenticeship applications and employment preparation, with an expectation that administrative elements of UCAS are completed by the end of Year 12 to free Year 13 for higher-value work such as personal statements and references.

Careers education is also presented as a strength in the latest inspection narrative, including exposure to employers and education providers plus personalised guidance, with university open days described as part of the sixth form experience.

Year 7 entry (September 2026) is coordinated through your home local authority. For Lincolnshire applicants, applications open on 8 September 2025 and the national closing date is 31 October 2025; Lincolnshire also states a later final closing date for late applications and changes, but applying by 31 October remains the safest approach.

As a Catholic academy within the Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Multi-Academy Trust, the admissions policy is explicit about prioritisation when oversubscribed. Applications must be made via the Common Application Form, and families applying under faith criteria should also complete the supplementary information form and return it, with evidence where required, by 31 October.

The published admission number for Year 7 is 112. The policy also lists partner Catholic primary schools for prioritisation within the oversubscription structure.

Sixth form entry (September 2026) uses a direct application route. The determined sixth form admissions policy for 2026/27 states that internal and external applicants should complete the sixth form application by Friday 12 December 2025, with offers reviewed during the spring term and confirmed subject to grades.

Open events have run at different points in the year. A published open evening for Year 7 applicants took place in early July (3 July 2025), and earlier patterns include September events. Treat these as typical seasonal windows rather than fixed annual dates, and check the school’s latest updates for current-year scheduling.

Parents doing feasibility checks should focus on journey time as much as distance. If you are weighing multiple schools, FindMySchool’s Map Search can help you compare travel time scenarios at different times of day rather than relying on straight-line assumptions.

Pastoral systems look designed for regular contact and early identification. The academy publishes a detailed staff structure including heads of year, pastoral assistants, and a named senior safeguarding lead within the leadership team.

Published evidence paints a generally positive day-to-day picture. Students are described as feeling safe, with bullying addressed quickly, and with support available for the minority who struggle to regulate behaviour. That matters for parents deciding whether a school can feel calm even if outcomes are under pressure, because behaviour and safety form the baseline for everything else.

Attendance is a stated improvement focus in the most recent published inspection narrative, which is relevant for families whose child benefits from routine and consistent classroom time. Where attendance challenges exist at school level, parents should ask about practical routines, first-day response, and how support escalates from form tutor to pastoral leads.

Faith-based pastoral support is also visible through chaplaincy, parish connection, and student service opportunities, including charitable work and faith-in-action style activities. This tends to suit families who want formation and service to be part of school life, and who are comfortable with faith being present beyond religious education lessons.

Extracurricular life is easiest to understand when it is specific. The academy publishes a termly-style “Get Involved” programme, which gives a more realistic picture than a generic “lots of clubs” claim.

At lunchtime, regular options include Chess Club (running multiple days), Choir Practice, Badminton Club, Debating Club, Basketball Club, Dodgeball Club, and ICT Club. Quiet reading and homework support is also positioned as a daily lunchtime option through the library.

After school, the programme shows year-group targeted sport, including Year 7 football, Year 8 and 9 football, and Year 10 football, plus table tennis and badminton. A Key Stage 3 drama club also appears as an after-school option, which matters for students who want performance opportunities without committing to a specialist arts pathway.

Music and worship-based performance are a particular feature. The choir is referenced both in school communications and in inspection evidence, including participation in civic and interfaith events and major liturgies connected to the city and parishes. If your child enjoys choral singing, this looks like one of the most established “belonging” routes into school life, because it connects students across year groups as well as into parish events.

Sixth form enrichment adds a different kind of extracurricular: mentoring, paired reading support, prefect roles, charity fundraising, garden or allotment development, work experience, and engagement with external speakers and university visits. For students who are not naturally drawn to sport or performance, this sort of structured contribution can still give them a strong co-curricular record for applications.

The published school day begins with registration and form time at 8.40am and runs through five taught periods, with the final period ending at 3.15pm.

The site sits within the Birchwood area of Lincoln, which typically means many families will be weighing bus routes, cycling safety, and peak-time traffic rather than “walkable catchment” assumptions. For sixth formers, travel independence can be an advantage, particularly if the chosen Level 3 mix suits the student well.

Wraparound care is not typically a feature of secondary schools in the way it is for primaries, and specific before-school or after-school supervision beyond clubs is not clearly set out in the sources reviewed here. If this is essential for your family’s working pattern, it is worth checking what supervised spaces are available outside the published club timetable.

• Academic consistency at Key Stages 3 and 4. The curriculum is described as well planned, but delivery is not consistently strong across subjects, and published GCSE outcomes reflect that gap. This can matter most for students who need dependable routines and frequent checking for understanding.

• Attendance and missed learning time. Published evidence flags that a significant number of pupils are absent too often, and that some miss lessons through suspension. Parents may want to ask what this means in practice for classroom continuity and how the school supports improved attendance.

• Catholic character is active and visible. Masses, parish engagement, chaplaincy roles and Catholic social teaching sit at the centre of school life. This suits many families, but it is not a neutral ethos model.

• Sixth form medium-term uncertainty. The multi-academy trust has published consultation material proposing sixth form closure at the end of the 2026/27 academic year. Families considering post-16 pathways should review the latest position and contingency plans, especially if applying for entry beyond September 2026.

St Peter and St Paul, Catholic Voluntary Academy offers a clearly defined Catholic culture, strong community links through parish life, and a sixth form experience that reads as more consistent and more personalised than the lower school. The challenge lies in whole-school academic outcomes and in ensuring consistently high classroom expectations at Key Stages 3 and 4. Best suited to families who value a Catholic framework and pastoral structure, and who will actively engage with the school’s improvement journey while keeping a close eye on subject-level support and post-16 planning.