2026 Best Secondary Schools in Manchester Area

Schools in the Manchester built-up area. Manchester secondary schools achieve an average Attainment 8 score of 48, above England's 39, with 62% of students achieving grades 9-7 at GCSE compared to 56% nationally. Didsbury High School leads among state secondary schools with outstanding results, while Withington Girls' School and The Manchester Grammar School are top-ranked independent options. With 41 secondary schools serving Manchester, families across Didsbury, Chorlton, Fallowfield, and Levenshulme have extensive choice. Secondary schools have an average FMS Inspection Score of 8/10, Excellent band, compared with England's 7.4/10 (Good). Use the search filters to compare schools by Attainment 8 or FMS Inspection Score.