14 worst schools and colleges in Manchester as revealed in The Telegraph's 2025 league table

The Telegraph’s ratings of “Very good”, “Good”, “Fair”, “Below average” and “Poor” are derived by how a school compares to the average school across the country.

In some cases, averages are applied to gaps in data. Schools without the main academic performance scores are not given an overall rating.

Using data for the 2023/24 academic year, the Telegraph have awarded points as follows:

English Baccalaureate score (5 points): The proportion of pupils who score a grade 5 or above in the English Baccalaureate GCSE subjects: English, maths, science, a language and either history or geography. Schools are marked against the national average, with a school performing 60 per cent better than the average being awarded the maximum of 5 points.

Attainment 8 score (5 points): This measures pupils’ performance in up to eight qualifications, which include English, maths, three English Baccalaureate subjects (sciences, computer science, history, geography and language) and three other approved subjects. Attainment 8 itself is scored out of 90 and we award our points in comparison to the national average.

Progress 8 score (5 points): This is a key indicator of whether students improve across their education between KS2 and GCSEs. Schools are marked on a scaled ranking, from “Well below average” to “Well above average”.

Disadvantaged pupils score (4 points): This measures the proportion of disadvantaged pupils (by Ofsted’s definition) who achieve a 4 to 9 grade in their GCSE English Baccalaureate subjects. A school is awarded top marks if its disadvantaged pupils perform 50 per cent better than the national average.

Comparison with local authority (4 points): Schools which perform substantially above the localised average English Baccalaureate score receive our top score of four. This highlights well-performing schools in lower attainment areas.

Pupil destinations (5 points): The proportion of pupils who stay in education or employment for at least two terms after their GCSEs. The top 20 per cent of schools for this receive the maximum number of points.

Entries options (3 points): Using data from entries to GCSEs we can assess the range of options available to pupils. The highest number of subjects entered is 39, from art and design to Arabic to maths. The top 20 per cent of schools, with the widest offering of subjects, receive maximum points.

Oversubscribed schools (3 points): Whether or not your school, as classified by the Department for Education, is oversubscribed. Schools with extra room score the maximum three points, whilst the most oversubscribed schools score just one.

Class size (3 points): The average number of pupils in a one-teacher class. The top third of schools for smaller classes get the maximum of four points, the worst get just one.

Truancy (3 points): This scores the proportion of pupils in a school who miss over 10 per cent of their classes. The best schools score three points, the worst score one.