St Anselm's College: admissions history
How many families applied, how many places there were, and how far the last place went - every year we hold.
St Anselm's College is a grammar school: places go to children who reach the required standard in its entrance test, and only then are the oversubscription criteria applied.
For September 2026 entry, 155 families put St Anselm's College as their first choice and 320 named it as one of their preferences, for 157 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places, so in 2026 a family who put it first could expect an offer unless the school's other criteria ruled them out.
Demand has been fairly steady: 151 first choices in 2021, against 155 in 2026.
Across Wirral, 95% of families were offered their first-choice secondary school for 2026 entry, and 99% were offered one of the schools they named.
In 2025, families in Wirral lodged 587 appeals against secondary school offers; 477 reached a hearing and 107 succeeded (22.4% of those heard).
Applications and offers by year
| Entry year | Places offered | First choices | Named at all | First choices per place | First choices not offered |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 157 | 155 | 320 | 1.0 | 0 |
| 2025 | 156 | 162 | 332 | 1.0 | 6 |
| 2024 | 155 | 164 | 333 | 1.1 | 10 |
| 2023 | 136 | 134 | 305 | 1.0 | 0 |
| 2022 | 140 | 141 | 315 | 1.0 | 4 |
| 2021 | 153 | 151 | 317 | 1.0 | 1 |
| 2020 | 134 | 132 | 279 | 1.0 | 0 |
| 2019 | 139 | 138 | 278 | 1.0 | 0 |
| 2018 | 138 | 138 | 279 | 1.0 | 5 |
| 2017 | 125 | 121 | 278 | 1.0 | 0 |
| 2016 | 135 | 159 | 291 | 1.2 | 24 |
| 2015 | 134 | 140 | 298 | 1.0 | 9 |
| 2014 | 97 | 93 | 203 | 1.0 | 0 |
Source: DfE, Primary and secondary school applications and offers (school-level file). "Places offered" is the number of offers made on national offer day, which can differ from the school's published admission number.