A town in Bolton
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 above England in 2026. Attendance is close to the England figure.
Bolton at a glance
How Bolton'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.
60 mainstream schools in Bolton, best first
Results well above the England average.
65 first choices, 60 offers made
Met the standard at 1183%
England 62%
Results well above the England average.
108 first choices, 60 offers made
Met the standard at 1195%
England 62%
Results well above the England average.
56 first choices, 30 offers made
Met the standard at 1184%
England 62%
11 mainstream schools in Bolton, best first
Results well above the England average.
228 first choices, 177 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1656.5
England 46.2
Results well above the England average.
192 first choices, 116 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1657.0
England 46.2
Results well above the England average.
294 first choices, 293 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1654.0
England 46.2
42 in Bolton, highest Ofsted grade first
Bolton, BL1 4QB · Nursery
Nurseries don't sit tests, so there are no results to compare.
Bolton, BL7 9DE · Nursery
Nurseries don't sit tests, so there are no results to compare.
Bolton, BL7 9RY · Nursery
Nurseries don't sit tests, so there are no results to compare.
13 in Bolton, by the school's Eduscope score
Results well above the England average.
192 first choices, 116 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1657.0
England 46.2
Results well above the England average.
294 first choices, 293 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1654.0
England 46.2
Results close to the England average.
252 first choices, 259 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1644.0
England 46.2
9 in Bolton. Eduscope doesn't rank these.
Bolton, BL3 4TP · Special · Secondary · Ages 11 to 19
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
Bolton, BL7 9AB · Special · All-through · Ages 3 to 19
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
1 first choice, 1 offer made
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
Bolton, BL2 4HU · Academy · Secondary · Ages 11 to 19
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
12 in Bolton. Eduscope doesn't rank these.
Bolton, BL1 3EH · Independent · Primary · Ages 2 to 11
Independent school. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
Bolton, BL3 2AW · Independent · Secondary · Ages 11 to 16 · Girls
Independent school. Results close to the England average.
Attainment 8 at 1647.0
England 46.2
Bl1 4pa · Independent · Primary · Ages 0 to 7
Independent school. 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.
Your home council handles your application, wherever the school is. Living nearby doesn't guarantee a place: each school's admission rules decide.
Pick a stage to see every Bolton school for that age, with filters for type, faith and Ofsted grade.
Ages 0 to 4
6 Outstanding, 31 Good, 1 need to improve.
42nurseries
Ages 4 to 11
97% Good or better. 65% met the standard at 11.
70schools
Ages 11 to 16
All 5 inspected are Good or better. 51% got grade 5 in English and maths.
27schools
1 Outstanding, 5 Good, 2 need to improve. About 5 pupils per teacher.
9schools
Here's how Bolton's schools break down by type, faith and more.
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.
Worked out by Eduscope from each school's published figures. Not an official statistic for this town.
BoltonEngland
Primaries rated Good or Outstanding
Latest Ofsted grade, 38 primaries with one.
97%
England 96%
Close to England
Secondaries rated Good or Outstanding
5 of the 5 with a grade.
100%
England 93%
Met the expected standard at 11
Reading, writing and maths.
65%
England 62%
Close to England
Grade 5 or above in English and maths
At GCSE.
51%
Pupils who miss a lot of school
Missed 1 in 10 days or more. Lower is better.
17%
England 18%
Close to England
Primary pupils on free school meals
A sign of family income, not of school quality.
30%
Latest graded inspection for the 58 schools that have one.
93%
Good or Outstanding
Bolton in blue. There were no tests in 2020 and 2021 because of Covid.
Bolton has 135 schools and nurseries.
There are 11% more pupils than in 2018.
30% of primary pupils here get free school meals. Schools get extra money for each of them.
Pupils in Bolton's state schools each January.
Up 11% 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.
Bolton30%
Apply through your local council, even for academies and faith schools.
Follow any school and we'll email you when it gets a new Ofsted report or new results are out. Nothing else.
Bolton has 135 schools, including 70 primary schools, 27 secondary schools, 42 nurseries, 12 independent schools, 9 special schools. Some count in more than one group. You can browse each category using the filters on Eduscope.
The highest-ranked schools in Bolton on Eduscope are The Valley Community Primary School, The Olive School, Bolton, Beaumont Primary School. 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.
93% of inspected schools in Bolton hold a Good or Outstanding Ofsted rating, which is below the England average of 94.8%. This includes 9 schools rated Outstanding and 45 rated Good.
Across primary schools in Bolton, 65% 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 Bolton 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 Bolton is 17.3%. A pupil is classed as persistently absent if they miss 10% or more of school sessions. Across England it is 18.1%.
There are 34,575 pupils enrolled across schools in Bolton, with 20,159 in primary and 14,416 in secondary. 30.7% of pupils are eligible for free school meals.
There are 12 independent schools in Bolton. Fees vary by school and age group, with day school fees typically ranging from £10,000 to £20,000 per year. You can compare all private schools in Bolton on Eduscope, including ISI inspection ratings where available.
Start by considering your child's age, your location, and whether you prefer a state or independent school. Use Eduscope to compare 135 schools in Bolton 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.
