When are the 2026 GCSE results for Bolton schools published?

Pupils receive their results in August, but school-by-school figures come from the DfE performance tables, which publish provisional results in the autumn (usually mid-October) and revised figures early in the new year. This table shows 2025 results, the 2024/25 academic year, and updates when the next release is imported.

What is Attainment 8?

Attainment 8 is the DfE's headline GCSE measure: the average points a school's pupils achieved across eight qualifications, with English and maths counted twice. A score of 50 means pupils averaged roughly a grade 5 across those subjects. No Progress 8 exists for 2025 because these pupils sat no Key Stage 2 tests in 2020.

Why does a school in Bolton show no GCSE results?

A school has no published figure when it had no Year 11 cohort in the year (a new school, or one that opened with younger year groups), when it converted to an academy and the DfE published results under its previous identity, or when it is independent and its pupils sat IGCSE, Pre-U or IB qualifications that the DfE tables do not count. Independent schools with a published figure are listed separately and unranked for that reason.

Bolton GCSE results 2025: secondary school league table

Q: Which school has the best GCSE results in Bolton?

On 2025 Attainment 8, Sharples School tops the table in Bolton with 55.6, against an England average of 46.0. Attainment 8 rewards intake as well as teaching, so compare a school's grade 5+ pass rate and, where published, its Progress 8 before reading the rank as a verdict.

19 state secondary schools in Bolton ranked on their 2025 GCSE results (Attainment 8, the 2024/25 academic year, the latest DfE has published for every school), with grade 5+ and grade 4+ in English and maths, EBacc average point score and cohort size for each school against the England average. 1 school with no published results is listed at the end. 6 independent schools with published results are listed separately, unranked.

Local Authority 20 state secondary schools 2024/25 results

Secondary schools in Bolton ranked on Attainment 8

19 of 20 schools have published 2025 results. Source: DfE school performance tables, 2024/25.

Secondary schools in Bolton ranked on Attainment 8, 2025 results
Rank	School	Attainment 8	Grade 5+ English & maths	Grade 4+ English & maths	EBacc APS	Pupils
–	England average	46.0	45%	65%	4.09	–
1	Sharples School Bolton · Academy converter	55.6	62%	82%	4.73	247
2	Bolton Muslim Girls School Bolton · Academy converter	54.7	60%	74%	5.13	150
3	Canon Slade School Bolton · Academy converter	53.9	57%	84%	4.57	291
4	St James's Church of England High School Bolton · Academy converter	53.5	58%	82%	4.69	207
5=	Eden Boys' School, Bolton Bolton · Free schools	53.0	59%	81%	5.02	123
5=	Essa Academy Bolton · Academy sponsor led	53.0	54%	75%	4.43	200
7	Kearsley Academy Bolton · Academy sponsor led	51.8	59%	73%	4.47	143
8	Rivington and Blackrod High School Bolton · Academy converter	49.2	53%	72%	4.16	276
9	Little Lever School Bolton · Academy converter	46.2	57%	67%	3.91	203
10	Thornleigh Salesian College Bolton · Voluntary aided school	45.7	41%	68%	3.86	263
11	King's Leadership Academy Bolton Bolton · Free schools	45.4	43%	61%	4.28	175
12	St Joseph's RC High School Bolton · Voluntary aided school	44.8	50%	70%	3.99	207
13	Westhoughton High School Bolton · Community school	44.4	41%	60%	3.62	257
14	Turton School Bolton · Community school	43.7	31%	57%	3.85	253
15	Harper Green School Bolton · Academy converter	42.8	36%	58%	3.70	214
16	Ladybridge High School Bolton · Community school	41.7	33%	52%	3.56	211
17	University Collegiate School Bolton · University technical college	36.7	31%	41%	3.14	91
18	Smithills School Bolton · Academy converter	36.5	20%	47%	3.25	234
19	Bolton St Catherine's Academy Bolton · Academy converter	34.3	19%	46%	2.89	138
–	Mount St Joseph RC High School a Voluntary Academy Bolton · Academy converter · No published GCSE results	–	–	–	–	–

Schools with the same Attainment 8 score share a rank (shown as "=").

Independent schools in Bolton with published GCSE results

Listed as published, not ranked. The DfE tables count only reformed GCSEs, so a school whose pupils sit IGCSE, Pre-U or the IB reports a lower figure than its results merit, or none at all. Compare independent schools on their own published examination results and inspection reports.

School	Attainment 8 (as published)	Grade 5+ English & maths	Pupils
Al Jamiah Al Islamiyyah Bolton · Other independent school · 2023 results	29.7	13%	15
Bolton Islamic Girls School Bolton · Other independent school	53.1	53%	19
Bolton School Boys' Division Bolton · Other independent school	34.3	0%	131
Bolton School Girls' Division Bolton · Other independent school	55.2	0%	131
Lord's School Bolton · Other independent school	5.3	0%	14
Madrasatul Imam Muhammad Zakariya Bolton · Other independent school	51.2	0%	20

How to read this table

Attainment 8 is the average points a school's pupils achieved across eight GCSE subjects: English and maths (double-weighted), three EBacc subjects (sciences, computing, history, geography, languages) and three further approved qualifications. The DfE publishes it for every state school; the England average for 2025 was 46.0.

Grade 5+ in English and maths is the share of pupils reaching a "strong pass" in both; grade 4+ is the "standard pass". EBacc APS is the average point score across the English Baccalaureate subjects, including pupils who did not enter them.

Progress 8 is not shown: the DfE published no Progress 8 for 2025 because these pupils sat no Key Stage 2 tests in 2020, the baseline it is measured from, and the same applies to 2026. Attainment 8 rewards intake as well as teaching, so a selective school will usually top an attainment-only table.

Ranks are shared where scores tie. Schools are ranked here on published results alone; our composite score, which also weighs Ofsted inspection, progress and attendance, orders the same schools on the best secondary schools page.

See the best secondary schools in Bolton on our composite score

Bolton GCSE results 2025: secondary school league table

Secondary schools in Bolton ranked on Attainment 8

Independent schools in Bolton with published GCSE results

More about schools in Bolton

Bolton GCSE results: common questions