The Blue Coat CofE School

Academy converter·Secondary school Oldham·OL1 3SQ
Composite score
73.9
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#272
National rank
#25
In North West
#1
In Oldham
Top 8%
Nationally

Performance (KS4 GCSE)

Attainment 8 score
59.1
National avg ≈ 46
Progress 8 score
—
% achieving 9–5 in English & Maths
74%
% achieving 9–4 in English & Maths
88%
% EBacc grade 5+
46%
EBacc average points score
5.49

Ofsted judgements

Legacy framework · Read full report ↗

Overall effectiveness
Outstanding
Quality of education
Outstanding
Behaviour and attitudes
Outstanding
Personal development
Outstanding
Leadership and management
Outstanding
Safeguarding effective?
Yes
Sixth form provision
Outstanding

Getting a place

Offered a place after putting it first
37%
611 first choices, 232 places
First choices per place
2.63
more first choices than places
Applications naming the school
1,624
any preference, for 232 places
Applications from another council area
18%
First preferences per place, last five years▶ 0.00
01234
1 per place
2.7720222.1620232.5220242.6320252.632026

Red dashed line = one first choice per place. How to read this

We do not have a checked cut-off distance for The Blue Coat CofE School yet. Oldham does publish allocation figures and we are working through them council by council — we only show a distance once we have found it in the council’s own document.

Application figures: DfE, school level applications and offers (2026 intake).

School profile

Age range
11–18
Pupils on roll
1,669
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
Church of England
Admissions
Non-Selective

Pupil background

% FSM ever-6
16.9%
Typical secondary: 27.5%
% EAL
14.9%
Typical secondary: 12.0%

Special educational needs

% SEN support
5.3%
Typical secondary: 13.7%
% with an EHC plan
3.1%
Typical secondary: 2.9%

Attendance

Overall absence
5.0%
Typical secondary: 8.9%
Persistently absent
11.6%
Typical secondary: 25.7%

Staffing & funding

Pupils per teacher
15.4
Typical secondary: 16.7
Spend per pupil
£7,469
Typical secondary: £7,815

“Typical” = the median secondary school in England. What this means

What pupils do next

The share of this school's Year 11 leavers in education, training or employment for at least two terms afterwards.

In education, training or work
97%
249 pupils tracked
Stayed in education
93%
Apprenticeship
3%
Employment
2%

DfE, KS4 destination measures.

Nearby secondary schools

Location

The Blue Coat CofE School at a glance

Located in Oldham, The Blue Coat CofE School is a secondary school, classified by the DfE as a converter academy with a Church of England religious character. The school educates roughly 1,669 pupils aged 11 to 18. Ofsted judged the school to be 'Outstanding' at its most recent inspection. The school's average Attainment 8 score in the latest GCSE results was 59.1 — well above the national average (national average: 46). Its Attainment 8 score has risen by 3.0 points year on year. On our composite score, which combines the DfE attainment measures above, this places it among the top 8% of secondary schools in England.

74% of pupils achieved a grade 5 or above in both English and maths, well above the national average of about 45%. 88% achieved a standard pass (grade 4+) in English and maths. The Blue Coat CofE School is oversubscribed: about 4 in 10 of the families who made it their first choice were offered a Year 7 place for September 2026, with 611 first choices for 232 places. After Year 11, 97% of its leavers went on to education, an apprenticeship or work that they stayed in for at least two terms. Overall pupil absence was 5.0%. There are about 15.4 pupils per teacher. When comparing schools, it is still worth visiting in person to see whether the atmosphere and approach suit your child. This overview is generated automatically from the latest published DfE performance tables and Ofsted data; figures are rounded, and you can check the originals via the official links above.

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