St Benedict's Catholic High School

St Benedict’s is a much larger than average Catholic high school which serves a wide catchment area in West Cumbria. The proportion of students entitled to free school meals is just below average, although many students come from backgrounds of relative social deprivation. The overwhelming majority of students come from White British backgrounds and very few students are at an early stage of learning English. The proportion of students with learning difficulties and/or disabilities is just above average and an average number have a statement of special educational needs. The school has been a specialist engineering college since 2002 and has the Healthy Schools Award. It recently became one of only ten schools nationally to achieve advanced status in study support and also recently achieved the International Schools Award. A new headteacher took up her post in March 2008.