Best secondary schools in Cheshire (2026)
Cheshire has 61 ranked secondary schools with published results. The top-ranked is Lymm High School, in the top 9% in England. The average Attainment 8 here in 2025 was 45.6, against 46.1 for England. 1 are in England's top 10%, and 1 are rated Outstanding by Ofsted. Cheshire has no grammar schools.
| Rank | School | Attainment 8 (2023–2025 average) | Attainment 8 2025 | Trend | Grade 5+ Eng & maths | Ofsted |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 Top 9% in England |
Lymm High School Lymm |
59.2 | 59.7 | 69% | Good | |
2 Top 13% in England |
King's Leadership Academy Warrington Warrington |
56.6 | 56.0 | 65% | No rating | |
3 Top 14% in England |
Bishop Heber High School Cheshire West and Chester |
55.4 | 53.8 | 55% | Good | |
4 Top 15% in England |
Christleton High School Christleton and Waverton |
54.9 | 54.8 | 63% | Good | |
5 Top 16% in England |
Knutsford Academy Knutsford |
53.9 | 54.9 | 68% | Report card | |
6 Top 18% in England |
The Fallibroome Academy Macclesfield |
54.3 | 53.4 | 56% | Good | |
7 Top 18% in England |
Bridgewater High School Warrington |
53.9 | 51.8 | 58% | Good | |
8 Top 18% in England |
Sandbach High School and Sixth Form College Sandbach · Girls |
54.5 | 55.6 | 59% | Good | |
9 Top 18% in England |
Tarporley High School and Sixth Form College Tarporley |
53.8 | 55.1 | 68% | Good | |
10 Top 18% in England |
The County High School, Leftwich Davenham |
53.5 | 51.9 | 58% | Report card | |
11 Top 20% in England |
Poynton High School Poynton |
54.1 | 53.0 | 53% | No rating | |
12 Top 22% in England |
Weaverham High School Weaverham |
51.8 | 50.6 | 57% | Report card | |
13 Top 24% in England |
Wilmslow High School Wilmslow |
51.5 | 51.4 | 53% | No rating | |
14 Top 24% in England |
Wade Deacon High School Widnes |
51.5 | 54.0 | 62% | Outstanding | |
15 Top 26% in England |
St Gregory's Catholic High School Warrington · Roman Catholic |
51.3 | 51.0 | 53% | Good | |
16 Top 27% in England |
St Nicholas Catholic High School Hartford · Roman Catholic |
51.3 | 50.8 | 46% | Good | |
17 Top 28% in England |
The Bishops' Blue Coat Church of England High School Chester · Church of England |
51.5 | 53.8 | 58% | Good | |
18 Top 28% in England |
Brine Leas School Nantwich |
49.8 | 49.7 | 53% | No rating | |
19 Top 29% in England |
Hartford Church of England High School Hartford · Church of England |
49.6 | 50.3 | 56% | Good | |
20 Top 29% in England |
Tytherington School Macclesfield |
49.5 | 50.1 | 54% | Report card | |
21 Top 30% in England |
Upton-by-Chester High School Chester |
50.7 | 48.8 | 43% | No rating | |
22 Top 30% in England |
Alsager School Alsager |
50.3 | 51.9 | 52% | Good | |
23 Top 31% in England |
Holmes Chapel Comprehensive School Holmes Chapel |
49.9 | 48.2 | 44% | Good | |
24 Top 32% in England |
Culcheth High School Culcheth |
49.7 | 51.1 | 55% | No rating | |
25 Top 33% in England |
All Hallows Catholic College Macclesfield · Roman Catholic |
49.3 | 49.6 | 53% | Not judged | |
26 Top 34% in England |
Great Sankey High School Warrington |
49.8 | 50.5 | 48% | No rating | |
27 Top 38% in England |
St Thomas More Catholic High School Crewe · Roman Catholic |
49.4 | 47.7 | 46% | Not judged | |
28 Top 39% in England |
Sandbach School Sandbach · Boys |
48.2 | 48.2 | 50% | Not judged | |
29 Top 40% in England |
Helsby High School Helsby |
47.6 | 47.1 | 52% | No rating | |
30 Top 44% in England |
Shavington Academy Crewe |
47.3 | 47.8 | 43% | No rating | |
31 Top 48% in England |
Queen's Park High School Chester |
46.6 | 44.2 | 42% | Not judged | |
32 Top 50% in England |
Eaton Bank Academy Congleton |
47.3 | 46.9 | 40% | Not judged | |
33 Bottom 50% in England |
Penketh High School Warrington |
45.7 | 46.5 | 47% | Good | |
34 Bottom 45% in England |
Beamont Collegiate Academy Warrington |
45.9 | 45.8 | 38% | No rating | |
35 Bottom 44% in England |
Neston High School Neston (Cheshire West and Chester) |
44.9 | 43.4 | 37% | No rating | |
36 Bottom 43% in England |
Birchwood Community High School Warrington |
44.9 | 47.9 | 43% | Not judged | |
37 Bottom 42% in England |
The Catholic High School, Chester Chester · Roman Catholic |
44.7 | 46.7 | 44% | Report card | |
38 Bottom 40% in England |
The Heath School Runcorn |
43.9 | 42.5 | 37% | Not judged | |
39 Bottom 39% in England |
Sandymoor Ormiston Academy Runcorn |
43.2 | 44.4 | 43% | Good | |
40 Bottom 36% in England |
Congleton High School Congleton |
42.9 | 44.8 | 41% | No rating | |
41 Bottom 32% in England |
Ormiston Chadwick Academy Widnes |
41.8 | 41.2 | 38% | Good | |
42 Bottom 31% in England |
The Macclesfield Academy Macclesfield |
42.7 | 42.7 | 34% | Requires improvement | |
43 Bottom 29% in England |
Sir Thomas Boteler Church of England High School Warrington · Church of England |
42.5 | 46.1 | 41% | Report card | |
44 Bottom 26% in England |
Cardinal Newman Catholic High School Warrington · Roman Catholic |
42.2 | 41.9 | 23% | Good | |
45 Bottom 22% in England |
Middlewich High School Middlewich |
40.2 | 41.2 | 34% | Good | |
46 Bottom 21% in England |
Saints Peter and Paul Catholic High School Widnes · Roman Catholic |
40.6 | 41.4 | 33% | No rating | |
47 Bottom 20% in England |
Ruskin Community High School Crewe |
40.5 | 37.9 | 26% | No rating | |
48 Bottom 14% in England |
The Whitby High School Ellesmere Port |
38.5 | 38.9 | 31% | Good | |
49 Bottom 12% in England |
Ellesmere Port Catholic High School, a Voluntary Academy Ellesmere Port · Roman Catholic |
38.7 | 36.9 | 21% | Report card | |
50 Bottom 11% in England |
Ormiston Bolingbroke Academy Runcorn |
37.3 | 35.9 | 33% | Report card | |
51 Bottom 11% in England |
Padgate Academy Warrington |
37.3 | 39.4 | 30% | Good | |
52 Bottom 9% in England |
Chester International School Chester |
36.6 | 34.5 | 23% | Good | |
53 Bottom 9% in England |
The Rudheath Senior Academy Rudheath |
35.9 | 35.7 | 28% | No rating | |
54 Bottom 9% in England |
Ellesmere Port Church of England College Ellesmere Port · Anglican/Church of England |
37.3 | 39.0 | 26% | Good | |
55 Bottom 7% in England |
The Grange School Runcorn |
35.0 | 36.4 | 24% | Good | |
56 Bottom 5% in England |
Blacon High School, A Specialist Sports College Chester |
35.2 | 33.2 | 17% | Report card | |
57 Bottom 3% in England |
The Oaks Academy Crewe |
34.2 | 35.4 | 20% | Good | |
58 Bottom 3% in England |
Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy Runcorn · Church of England/Roman Catholic |
33.3 | 33.3 | 19% | Not judged | |
59 Bottom 2% in England |
The Winsford Academy Winsford |
31.0 | 30.6 | 14% | Not judged | |
60 Bottom 1% in England |
Sir William Stanier School Crewe |
28.2 | 28.4 | 11% | Report card | |
61 Bottom 1% in England |
Cheshire Studio School Crewe |
23.3 | 24.0 | 0% | No rating |
Best secondary school in each town
- Warrington · best: King's Leadership Academy Warrington
- Macclesfield · best: The Fallibroome Academy
- Widnes · best: Wade Deacon High School
- Chester · best: The Bishops' Blue Coat Church of England High School
- Crewe · best: St Thomas More Catholic High School
- Runcorn · best: The Heath School
- Ellesmere Port · best: The Whitby High School
Also see
Questions
What is the best secondary school in Cheshire?
On exam results over the last three years, Lymm High School is the top-ranked secondary school in Cheshire, in the top 9% of schools in England.
How are the schools ranked?
By published Department for Education exam results averaged over three years: for secondary schools, Attainment 8 plus a quarter of the share getting grade 5+ in English and maths; for primary schools, the share reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths plus half the share reaching the higher standard. The order uses the three-year average, so a school can rank above one with a higher single-year result. Schools with fewer than 10 pupils taking the tests are not ranked. Exam results are only part of the picture: visit, read the Ofsted report and check admissions rules, as living nearby does not guarantee a place.