The FMS Inspection Score is FindMySchool's proprietary analysis based on official Ofsted and ISI inspection reports. It converts ratings into a standardised 1–10 scale for fair comparison across all schools in England.
Disclaimer: The FMS Inspection Score is an independent analysis by FindMySchool. It is not endorsed by or affiliated with Ofsted or ISI. Always refer to the official Ofsted or ISI report for the full picture of a school’s inspection outcome.
Fifty metres from Goring railway station, St Oscar Romero Catholic School is unusually easy to reach by train, and it combines that practical convenience with a clear identity as a Catholic, mixed secondary with sixth form. The school’s recent trajectory is striking. In April 2025, Ofsted judged all key areas as Outstanding, including sixth form provision, under the current framework that grades each judgement area rather than awarding a single overall grade.
Academic performance indicators are also strong. On FindMySchool’s GCSE outcomes ranking, the school is placed 1,091st in England and 1st locally within Worthing, which sits above England average and within the top 25% of schools in England. The most recent Progress 8 figure is +0.89. These data points, taken together, suggest a school that expects a lot, supports students closely, and has built systems that translate intent into results.
A consistent theme across official material is ambition paired with a strong sense of belonging. Ofsted describes a school where pupils thrive, feel they belong, and benefit from relationships that are respectful and positive. The language is not just about outcomes, it is about how pupils experience school day to day, including the way staff remove barriers and notice effort.
The Catholic character is explicit and practical rather than peripheral. The mission statement frames the school as a welcoming and diverse learning community, with faith expressed through service, justice, truth, and care for creation. The phrase “aspire not to have more, but to be more” appears as a guiding line, and it connects directly to how the school talks about student leadership, charity, and community responsibility.
House life is one way this identity is made concrete. Houses are named Attenborough, Kolbe, Malala, and Teresa, with house charity choices and fundraising built into the rhythm of the year. The school also references “Aim High Rewards” for academic and extracurricular participation, which signals a culture that tries to recognise contribution beyond test scores.
On paper, GCSE performance is a clear strength. The FindMySchool ranking places the school 1,091st in England for GCSE outcomes and 1st in Worthing (FindMySchool ranking based on official data). This places performance above England average, within the top 25% of schools in England (10th to 25th percentile).
The underlying measures reinforce that picture. An Attainment 8 score of 54.1 indicates a strong overall GCSE score profile across subjects. Progress 8 of +0.89 indicates students make well above average progress from their starting points, which matters for families who want reassurance that strong results are not only driven by prior attainment.
EBacc measures look more mixed. The average EBacc average point score is 4.85, and 21.6% of pupils achieved grade 5 or above in the EBacc measure reported here. This does not necessarily mean curriculum narrowing, but it can indicate a school making specific entry choices or prioritising different pathways for different students. Parents who are particularly focused on an EBacc-heavy route should ask how subject guidance and option pathways are structured in Key Stage 4.
What can be said with confidence is that Ofsted graded sixth form provision as Outstanding in April 2025, and the inspection report states that sixth form students achieve highly and are fully integrated into the wider school community.
Parents comparing results locally can use the FindMySchool Local Hub page to view GCSE performance side by side with nearby schools using the Comparison Tool, which is often the fastest way to understand what “strong” looks like in the local context.
England ranks and key metrics (where available)
GCSE 9–7
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% of students achieving grades 9-7
The April 2025 inspection report provides a detailed picture of classroom practice. Teaching is described as highly effective across subjects, with teachers having expert subject knowledge and using explanation and questioning well. Staff also make regular checks on understanding, then adapt teaching so it matches where pupils are in their learning. The practical implication for families is consistency. In a school of over 1,000 pupils, consistency is usually the difference between a promising curriculum plan and one that reliably works for most students.
The school also places a clear emphasis on literacy. Ofsted notes deliberate reading practice and literacy development, both in tutor time and across the curriculum, with targeted support for pupils who need to catch up. For students who arrive in Year 7 without confident reading fluency, this focus often determines whether they can access demanding subject vocabulary later.
Curriculum breadth is stressed in the school’s own curriculum overview, including subject entitlement through Key Stage 3 and the inclusion of creative and practical subjects alongside core academic areas. Music is a good example of how the school combines timetabled learning with participation. Year 7 has a timetabled choir, Year 8 has timetabled cornet class, and there are further opportunities through ensembles such as Chamber Choir, Concert Band, and Cornet Club.
The sixth form story is unusually current, which can be attractive to students who want to help shape something new. The school opened its sixth form in September 2024. The inspection report describes it as quickly established and already embedded in the wider school community.
The school’s post-16 offer is central to how destinations should be read. Since the sixth form opened in September 2024, the oldest cohort is still relatively early in the provision’s life cycle. That means the usual long-run signals, such as multi-year university destination patterns, are not yet as mature as in a long-established sixth form.
What is clear is the intent and structure around next steps. Ofsted reports timely careers guidance and strong preparation for future choices. That usually shows up in structured guidance, guidance before GCSE option choices, and practical preparation for both academic and technical pathways.
In sixth form, the enrichment programme is designed to be more than an add-on. The school states that Wednesday afternoons are protected enrichment time for all sixth form students, with opportunities including leadership roles, mentoring younger pupils, and community volunteering. There are also named academic pathways, including Getting to Oxbridge and Romero Medics, which signal that high-tariff applications and competitive courses are part of the planning.
Admissions are competitive in many parts of Worthing, and families considering St Oscar Romero should plan early. The school is voluntary aided, with governors as the admissions authority, while West Sussex County Council administers the coordinated process. The school states that it does not operate a catchment area; applications are ranked by oversubscription category and then distance.
A key practical point is that you do not need to be Catholic to apply, but faith evidence can change the category your child is placed in. The school advises families to complete the Supplementary Information Form (SIF) alongside the local authority application, and notes that baptism evidence or a letter from a priest or pastor can place a child in a higher category under the policy.
For Year 7 entry in September 2026, West Sussex sets the wider timetable. Applications open on Monday 8 September 2025 and close on Friday 31 October 2025. Offer day is Monday 2 March 2026. For Catholic schools using a SIF, West Sussex guidance states that the completed SIF and supporting documents should be returned to the school by 31 October 2025 for the normal admissions round.
The school also publishes its own open event timing. For the 2026 entry round, it lists an open evening on 1 October 2025. Dates change each year, but this suggests a predictable early-October pattern for Year 6 families.
Parents making distance-based decisions should use the FindMySchoolMap Search to check their precise home-to-school distance and avoid assumptions based on a nearby postcode. Even where a school does not operate a formal catchment boundary, distance can become decisive once categories are applied.
Applications
624
Total received
Places Offered
178
Subscription Rate
3.5x
Apps per place
Pastoral systems are unusually explicit on the school website, particularly around safeguarding. The school identifies its Designated Safeguarding Lead as Mr S Bell, and names a broader safeguarding and pastoral team, including deputy safeguarding leads and a named attendance officer. For families, clarity about roles matters because it signals that safeguarding is structured rather than informal.
The April 2025 inspection report states that safeguarding arrangements are effective. This is the most important single baseline statement for any parent, and it aligns with the website’s emphasis on shared responsibility and training.
Pastoral provision is also tied to the school’s faith life and community expectations. The mission and ethos content describes daily prayer as part of the pattern of tutor time, assemblies, and liturgies, alongside Masses and chapel-based prayer opportunities. For some families, this is a major attraction. For others, it is something to understand clearly in advance, particularly if the family is supportive of a faith setting but not used to regular worship as part of school life.
Extracurricular life is strongest when it is not just a list of clubs, but a set of pathways that help students find their place. Here, the school’s named programmes make that easier to understand.
Music is one of the clearest examples of structured participation. Alongside curriculum music, there is timetabled choir in Year 7 and timetabled cornet class in Year 8, with additional ensembles including Chamber Choir, Concert Band, and Cornet Club. The department also references Mac-based music technology using GarageBand, Logic, and Sibelius, which is a practical indicator that GCSE and A-level musicians have access to industry-standard tools rather than only basic classroom provision. The school also references trips to performances locally and to major venues, which matters for students who build confidence through exposure to live music.
The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award is offered at Bronze level within the main school, framed as a personal development programme that combines volunteering, physical activity, skill development, and expedition. This tends to suit students who gain motivation from clear milestones and shared challenge, and it can be particularly useful for students who need a structured reason to try something outside their usual comfort zone.
In sixth form, enrichment is treated as part of the timetable rather than an optional extra. The school states that Wednesday afternoons are protected for enrichment, and highlights a sixth form-only Mountain Challenge in Morocco, Gold Duke of Edinburgh opportunities, and academic pathways such as Getting to Oxbridge and Romero Medics. The implication is that sixth form students are expected to build a portfolio of experience and responsibility, not only a set of grades.
House life also plays a practical role here. House fundraising supports selected charities, and the school lists examples such as St Barnabas House, Guild Care, Marie Curie, Mary’s Meals, and Turning Tides. For students who benefit from purposeful activity and leadership roles, these house structures can be a meaningful route into belonging.
The published school day runs from tutor or assembly at 08:40, with lessons ending at 15:00. The school also lists a supervised homework club running from 15:00 to 16:00, with the library closing at 16:00, which can be valuable for students who work better with structure.
Transport is unusually straightforward. The school states that Goring railway station is about 50 metres from the north gate, with regular trains east and west, and that Coastline buses stop nearby.
Faith criteria can affect priority. You do not need to be Catholic to attend, but the admissions process includes faith-related categories. If you want faith criteria to be considered, the Supplementary Information Form and supporting evidence must be submitted by the published deadlines.
The sixth form is new, which brings both opportunity and uncertainty. It opened in September 2024, and while it has already been graded Outstanding, multi-year destination patterns will naturally take time to establish.
EBacc route clarity is worth checking early. With the published EBacc measures families who want a strongly EBacc-focused programme should ask how options are guided, which languages are offered, and how pathways are structured in Key Stage 4.
Timetable structure expects organisation. A 15:00 finish with a supervised homework club until 16:00 can work very well for some students, but it helps to plan transport and after-school routines realistically.
St Oscar Romero Catholic School is a high-expectation secondary that has paired ambition with systems that appear to work at scale. The April 2025 Ofsted judgements, alongside strong Progress 8 and a top local position in Worthing on FindMySchool’s GCSE ranking, point to a school that is both demanding and organised.
Best suited to families who value clear structure, an explicit Catholic ethos, and a school culture that rewards contribution as well as attainment. For students who want to help shape a growing post-16 provision, the new sixth form and its defined enrichment pathways will be a major attraction. The key challenge for many families will be understanding admissions categories and meeting deadlines, particularly where faith evidence is relevant.
The latest Ofsted inspection in April 2025 graded every judgement area as Outstanding, including sixth form provision. GCSE performance indicators are also strong, with well above average progress in the latest Progress 8 figure.
This is a state school, so there are no tuition fees. Families should still expect the usual additional costs that apply in most state secondaries, such as uniform, optional trips, and optional music tuition where relevant.
Applications are made through West Sussex County Council’s coordinated process, with the normal closing date on 31 October 2025 and offers released on 2 March 2026. The school advises completing its Supplementary Information Form as well, particularly if you want faith criteria to be considered.
The school states that it does not operate a catchment area. Applications are ranked by oversubscription category and then distance, so proximity can still matter once categories are applied.
For Level 3 courses, the school sets published minimum requirements including five GCSE grades 9 to 5 including at least grade 5 in English Language and Mathematics, plus an average point score requirement for A-level study. Subject-specific requirements may also apply.
Get in touch with the school directly
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