Pensby High School, Wirral
Pensby High School is a secondary school for pupils aged 11 to 18 in Wirral. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in January 2018. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in March 2023 did not change this grade. Its 2026 GCSE results were the 6th-highest of the 11 schools in Wirral with published results, and 1,656th of 3,298 across England. It was 84% full in 2025.
- GCSE results
- In line with England
- Ofsted
- Good (2018)
- Demand
- Oversubscribed
- Attendance
- In line with England
- Progress (2024)
- Above average
Year 7 applications for September 2027 close in 5 days
Deadline Saturday 31 October 2026. Apply to Wirral (the council where you live). Offers on 1 March.
Data last updated 26 Oct 2026
Pensby High School in detail
Pensby High School in its own words
From the headteacher's welcome: "It is with pleasure and real pride that I welcome you to Pensby High School. Pensby High School as we know it now, came about with the decision to merge Pensby high School for Boys and Pensby High School for Girls in September 2015, following a period when the two schools were federated."
Headteacher's welcome (school website)
Source: The school's own website
Results
In 2026, pupils at Pensby High School averaged an Attainment 8 score of 45.9, the average grade across their best eight GCSEs. The average state school scored 47.2 in Wirral and 47 across England.
47% passed English and maths at grade 5 or above, against 47% in Wirral and 47% in England.
That is up from 44.8 in 2025.
Its most recent Progress 8 score, for 2024, was 0.28: pupils made above average progress compared with pupils nationally who started secondary school at the same level. Progress 8 was not published for 2026.
Disadvantaged pupils averaged an Attainment 8 of 44.2, against 46.5 for other pupils at the school - a gap of 2.3 points.
Pupils sat GCSEs in 24 subjects; after English and maths, the most popular were Combined Science, History and Media / Film / TV Studies.
Getting a place at Pensby High School
For September 2026 entry, 165 families put Pensby High School as their first choice and 601 named it as one of their preferences, for 173 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. 6 families who put it first were not offered a place there.
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state secondary schools to Pensby High School are Calday Grange Grammar School (2.6 miles, Good, selective, Attainment 8 63.7); Woodchurch High School (2.7 miles, Good, Attainment 8 38.5); Upton Hall School FCJ (3 miles, Outstanding, selective, Attainment 8 65.6); and Hilbre High School (3 miles, Good, Attainment 8 37.8).
Pensby High School's 2026 results were higher than 2 of these 4 schools.
Calday Grange Grammar SchoolWoodchurch High SchoolUpton Hall School FCJHilbre High School
Where pupils go next
Of the 163 pupils who finished Year 11 in 2023/24, 83% stayed in education or training for at least two terms, including 32% to a further education college, 4% to an apprenticeship and 1% into work.
Who goes there
3% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Heswall Rail Station, about 1.9 miles away in a straight line.
5 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Bridgenorth Road (opposite), 140 metres away.
The area around the school
In August 2026, police recorded 35 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, other crime and anti-social behaviour. That is well below the typical figure around schools in Wirral (155).
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, Pensby High School issued 90 suspensions, 9.8 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and 3 permanent exclusions.
Primary schools nearby
The primary schools closest to Pensby High School are Ladymount Catholic Primary School (0.4 miles), Pensby Primary School (0.6 miles), Irby Primary School (1 mile) and Thurstaston Dawpool CofE Primary School (1.1 miles). Admission does not depend on which primary a child attends unless the school's policy names feeder schools.
Ladymount Catholic Primary SchoolPensby Primary SchoolIrby Primary SchoolThurstaston Dawpool CofE Primary School
Sources: DfE school performance data (averages: state mainstream schools); DfE school-level applications and offers; council admissions booklets; DfE appeals statistics; DfE destination measures; DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); data.police.uk street-level crime; DfE exclusions statistics
Location
Our estimate from how close the nearest similar schools are and how oversubscribed the council's schools are. It is not a published boundary.
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 4 years agoThis judgement is from January 2018, 8 years ago, longer than Ofsted's usual 4-year cycle: the school may have changed since.
Overall
Latest (ungraded) inspection: The school remains Good.
Ofsted Insights
From Ofsted's March 2023 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
Pensby High School provides a calm, respectful environment where pupils thrive academically and personally. Teachers are passionate about their subjects and use their expertise to help pupils understand difficult concepts. The school prioritizes reading, emotional well-being, and preparing pupils for their future, whether through further study or apprenticeships.
Key Strengths
- Well-designed curriculum that helps pupils build knowledge cumulatively and addresses gaps from primary school
- Teachers use strong subject knowledge to expertly teach new concepts and carefully select activities to deepen learning
- Effective systems to identify and support pupils with reading difficulties and SEND, enabling them to access the curriculum
- Positive school culture where pupils feel safe, respected, and accepted for who they are
- Strong focus on subject-specific vocabulary to help all pupils, including disadvantaged pupils, communicate effectively
Areas for Improvement
- In some subjects, assessment systems do not fully check pupils' understanding of key knowledge within topics, sometimes leading teachers to move on before pupils are ready
- A small number of pupils do not attend school regularly enough, missing important learning
Safeguarding
Safeguarding arrangements are effective, with staff fully understanding their responsibilities, knowing pupils well, being alert to signs of harm, and leaders working closely with external agencies to support vulnerable pupils.
Extracurricular Activities
School council, extra-curricular activities enhancing curriculum learning, British values and democracy programs, emotional and mental health support initiatives
Pensby High School continues to be a good school where pupils learn well and develop into confident young people. The school is characterized by strong leadership, high expectations, and a supportive culture based on care, respect, and inspiration.
About
Pensby High School is a co-educational secondary school in Pensby, on the Wirral Peninsula, Merseyside, England.
From Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
At a Glance
25.0%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
Yes
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
Secondary Performance (GCSE)
Academic year 2025/26GCSE Results
2025/26 academic year
Progress 8 has remained stable at around 0.28 (2023 to 2024). Attainment 8 has improved from 44.8 to 45.9 (2023 to 2026). GCSE English & Maths 5+ has remained stable at around 47% (2023 to 2026).
Performance by Group
| Group | Progress 8 | Attainment 8 | Eng+Maths 5+ |
|---|---|---|---|
| All pupils | - | 45.9 | 46.6% |
| Disadvantaged(46) | - | 44.2 | 45.7% |
| Not known to be disadvantaged(132) | - | 46.5 | 47% |
| Boys(97) | - | 45.4 | 50.5% |
| Girls(81) | - | 46.6 | 42% |
Show more breakdowns (2)
| Known or believed to be other than English(8) | - | 49.5 | 37.5% |
| Non mobile(176) | - | 46.1 | 47.2% |
2025/26 academic year - DfE performance tables data
GCSE Subjects Offered
+ 4 more subjects
2025/26 academic year - entries by number of pupils
After GCSEs - Leaver Destinations
After GCSEs (Year 11) - 163 students
2023/24 data
Exclusions & Suspensions
3
Permanent exclusions
0.33%
Exclusion rate
90
Suspensions
9.78%
Suspension rate
52 pupils received one or more suspensions out of 920 pupils
2024/25 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby secondary schools
Latest from Pensby High School
From Pensby High School's website. School Signal is not affiliated with the school.
Social & online
Keep up with Pensby High School
Term dates
Pensby High School is a foundation school, so it sets its own term dates: check the school's website. As a guide, see Wirral's term dates for its community schools.
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Pensby High School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Pensby High School is in Wirral; for families living there:
Apply to Wirral for free school transport. Its policy is on the council's website.
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 7
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 3
- Children hurt
- 2
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 7 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 3 serious and 4 slight.
2 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 2 on foot.
4 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included.
The typical figure for schools in Wirral is 15 (the median across 136 schools, same distance and years).
Serious and slight counts use the Department for Transport's severity adjustment, which allows for changes in how police forces record injuries; they are estimates, rounded to whole numbers. Distances are in a straight line. Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19), Open Government Licence v3.0.
Commute and house prices
Your chances of a place at Pensby High School
Will you get a place at Pensby High School? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against Pensby High School's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for Pensby High School:
- The straight-line distance from your home to Pensby High School.
- We hold no last distance offered figures from Wirral, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at Pensby High School for 2014 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in Wirral got their first choice, and how often appeals there succeed.
- The nearest state schools to your home, with Ofsted rating, demand and last distance offered where published.
- Key dates for September 2027 entry and how to apply.
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Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
84%
Available places
909 pupils
1,083 places
174 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Wirral
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Wirral
Across Wirral council
Places available
3,889
Applications
3,305
Got 1st preference
95.3%
Got preferred school
99.1%
All secondary applications across Wirral council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Oversubscribed
Inspection History(7)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
152
SEN Support
31
EHC Plans
20.0%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
915
Total Pupils
535
Boys
380
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
54
Teachers
16.9:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£53,570
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£7,094
Per pupil
£6922k
Total funding
£223k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
7.7%
Overall absence
20.8%
Persistent absence
943
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
Feeder Primary Schools
Primary schools that likely feed into this school, based on proximity
Questions parents ask about Pensby High School
What are GCSE results like at Pensby High School?
In the 2026 results, pupils at Pensby High School achieved an Attainment 8 score of 45.9. 47% passed GCSE English and maths at grade 5 or above.
What is Pensby High School's Ofsted rating?
Pensby High School's most recent Ofsted inspection, in March 2023, was ungraded, so it gave no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in January 2018, it was rated Good.
What is the catchment area for Pensby High School?
No fixed boundary. When Pensby High School is oversubscribed, Wirral allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at Pensby High School?
Pensby High School was not full in 2025: it ran at 84% of its 1083 places.
How big are the classes at Pensby High School?
Classes at Pensby High School average 25.1 pupils (2025/26).
How many pupils go to Pensby High School?
Pensby High School has around 915 pupils on roll. 25% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at Pensby High School?
7.7% of sessions were missed at Pensby High School in 2024/25. 20.8% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Pensby High School?
Apply through Wirral's coordinated admissions process, naming Pensby High School on your application. Applications for Year 7 places starting in September 2027 close on Saturday 31 October 2026, and offers are made on Monday 1 March 2027.
How many road collisions happen near Pensby High School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 7 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 3 serious and 4 slight. 2 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 2 on foot. 4 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included. The typical figure for schools in Wirral is 15 (the median across 136 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Pensby High School?
Pensby High School is at Irby Road, Heswall, Wirral, Merseyside, CH61 6XN.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)