A council (local authority) in the North West
In short: Most primary schools here are rated Good or better, about the same as across England. Results at 11 are close to England, and results at 16 were below England in 2026. Missing school is a bigger problem than across England.
Knowsley at a glance
How Knowsley's schools compare with England, area by area.
Primary and secondary schools are ranked by Eduscope score, which weighs up results, inspections, attendance and more. Nurseries, special and independent schools aren't ranked. A high score isn't everything: always visit.
50 mainstream schools in Knowsley, best first
Results well above the England average.
44 first choices, 29 offers made
Met the standard at 1186%
England 62%
Results well above the England average.
112 first choices, 59 offers made
Met the standard at 1180%
England 62%
Results above the England average.
25 first choices, 28 offers made
Met the standard at 1165%
England 62%
6 mainstream schools in Knowsley, best first
Results below the England average.
269 first choices, 201 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1640.6
England 46.2
Results below the England average.
256 first choices, 236 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1639.8
England 46.2
Results well below the England average.
284 first choices, 217 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1634.3
England 46.2
43 in Knowsley, highest Ofsted grade first
Liverpool, L33 7ET · Nursery
Nurseries don't sit tests, so there are no results to compare.
Liverpool, L32 0TG · Nursery
Nurseries don't sit tests, so there are no results to compare.
Whiston, L35 3SR · Nursery
Nurseries don't sit tests, so there are no results to compare.
3 in Knowsley, by the school's Eduscope score
Results below the England average.
269 first choices, 201 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1640.6
England 46.2
Liverpool, L36 7TA · Special · Secondary · Ages 11 to 19
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
Liverpool, L32 3XP · Special · All-through · Ages 3 to 19
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
6 in Knowsley. Eduscope doesn't rank these.
Kirby, L32 9PW · Special · 16+ · Ages 16 to 25
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Liverpool, L36 7SY · Special · Primary · Ages 4 to 11
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
Liverpool, L36 7TA · Special · Secondary · Ages 11 to 19
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
1 in Knowsley. Eduscope doesn't rank these.
Liverpool, L36 5SJ · Independent · Secondary · Ages 11 to 18
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
Each dot is a school or nursery, coloured by its latest Ofsted grade. Point at a dot to see its name, or use the list.
Apply through the council where you live, even for a school in another council's area. Independent schools take applications directly.
Knowsley is a metropolitan borough in the North West with 50 mainstream primary schools and 6 mainstream secondary schools. Towns with the most schools include Huyton with Roby, Prescot and Kirkby. 39.2% of secondary offers are for a school in another council, against 8.0% across England. Faith schools are common, with 31 in the area, and they can put families of their faith first when they're full.
From Knowsley council's website, checked 7 November 2026. Check the council's pages before you apply.
School admissions team: schooladmissions@knowsley.gov.uk · 0151 443 5142
If a date falls on a weekend or bank holiday, offers go out the next working day.
86.6%got their first-choice primary school in Knowsley in 2026. England: 92.4%. Ranked 138 of 151 councils. 96.3% got one of their top three.15.9% were offered a primary school in another council. England: 3.6%.
78.1%got their first-choice secondary school in Knowsley in 2026. England: 83.6%. Ranked 108 of 151 councils. 93.5% got one of their top three.39.2% were offered a secondary school in another council. England: 8.0%.
Source: DfE applications and offers, 2026. A low rate shows high demand, not poor schools.
4 of 37 primary appeals heard in Knowsley succeeded in 2025. 15 of 118 secondary appeals heard in Knowsley succeeded in 2025.
| Term | Starts | Half term | Ends |
|---|---|---|---|
| Autumn | 1 Sept | 26 Oct to 30 Oct | 18 Dec |
| Spring | 4 Jan | 15 Feb to 19 Feb | 25 Mar |
| Summer | 12 Apr | 31 May to 4 Jun | 21 Jul |
For schools that follow the council's dates. Academies, faith and foundation schools can set their own, and schools add training days. Source, checked 6 November 2026.
Pick a stage to see every Knowsley school for that age, with filters for type, faith and Ofsted grade.
Ages 0 to 4
All 28 inspected are Good or better.
43nurseries
Ages 4 to 11
100% Good or better. 61% met the standard at 11.
54schools
Ages 11 to 16
2 Good, 1 need to improve. 25% got grade 5 in English and maths.
11schools
All 4 inspected are Good or better. About 7 pupils per teacher.
6schools
Here's how Knowsley's schools break down by type, faith and more.
The blue bar is the average Eduscope score of the primary schools in each town. The black line is the Knowsley average, 42.
Average primary score
46Knowsley 42
Some areas, like parts of a bigger town, are easiest to find by postcode.
Inspections, exam results and attendance, next to the figure for England where we have it.
KnowsleyEngland
Primaries rated Good or Outstanding
Latest Ofsted grade, 24 primaries with one.
100%
England 96%
Close to England
Secondaries rated Good or Outstanding
2 of the 3 with a grade.
67%
England 93%
Met the expected standard at 11
Reading, writing and maths.
61%
England 62%
Close to England
Grade 5 or above in English and maths
At GCSE.
25%
Pupils who miss a lot of school
Missed 1 in 10 days or more. Lower is better.
24%
England 18%
Primary pupils on free school meals
A sign of family income, not of school quality.
37%
Latest graded inspection for the 32 schools that have one.
97%
Good or Outstanding
Knowsley in blue. There were no tests in 2020 and 2021 because of Covid.
The latest published year for each measure. Sources and years are on our data sources page.
| Measure | Knowsley | England |
|---|---|---|
| Good or Outstanding (Ofsted) | 97% | 95% |
| Met the expected standard at 11 (KS2) | 61% | 62% |
| Attainment 8 | 34.3 | 46.2 |
| Persistent absence | 24% | 18% |
| Pupils per teacher | 17.6:1 | 17.9:1 |
| Spending per pupil | £9,248 | £8,120 |
| In education or work after 16 | 84% | 91% |
| Went on to higher education | 36% | 56% |
| Pupils with special educational needs | 27% | 21% |
| Pupils with English as an additional language | 9% | 22% |
| Pupils on free school meals | 42% | 27% |
DfE local authority code 340, ONS code E08000011.
Knowsley has 106 schools and nurseries across 3 towns and villages, the biggest being Huyton with Roby, Kirkby and Prescot.
There are 8% more pupils than in 2018.
37% of primary pupils here get free school meals. Schools get extra money for each of them.
Pupils in Knowsley's state schools each January.
Up 8% since 2018. More children can mean popular schools fill up faster.
Out of every 10 primary pupils, how many get free school meals. It's a sign of family income, not of school quality.
Knowsley37%
Follow any school and we'll email you when it gets a new Ofsted report or new results are out. Nothing else.
Knowsley has 106 schools, including 54 primary schools, 11 secondary schools, 43 nurseries, 1 independent school, 6 special schools. Some count in more than one group. You can browse each category using the filters on Eduscope.
The highest-ranked schools in Knowsley on Eduscope are Blacklow Brow School, Malvern Primary School, Cronton Church of England Primary Academy. We rank each state school against schools of the same phase across England on its Ofsted inspection, results and attendance. Independent, special and nursery schools aren't ranked.
97% of inspected schools in Knowsley hold a Good or Outstanding Ofsted rating, which is above the England average of 94.8%. This includes 5 schools rated Outstanding and 26 rated Good.
Across primary schools in Knowsley, 61% of pupils meet the expected standard in reading, writing, and maths at Key Stage 2. This is based on the latest published results from the Department for Education.
The average pupil-teacher ratio across schools in Knowsley is 17.6:1. While not a direct measure of class size, this indicates the level of teaching resource available per pupil. Across England it is 17.9:1.
The persistent absence rate across schools in Knowsley is 24.4%. A pupil is classed as persistently absent if they miss 10% or more of school sessions. Across England it is 18.1%.
There are 21,707 pupils enrolled across schools in Knowsley, with 14,923 in primary and 6,784 in secondary. 41.7% of pupils are eligible for free school meals.
There is 1 independent school in Knowsley, a special school for children with special educational needs, where councils usually pay the fees. You can compare it on Eduscope, including inspection reports where available.
Start by considering your child's age, your location, and whether you prefer a state or independent school. Use Eduscope to compare 106 schools in Knowsley by Ofsted ratings, exam results, and distance. Filter by school type, gender, religious character, and admissions policy to narrow your options.
Sources: DfE school performance tables, DfE school census and workforce, DfE pupil absence, Ofsted. Photos are stand-ins.
