In the narrow Tame valley where Greater Manchester meets the lower Pennine foothills, Stalybridge grew from scattered farms and homesteads into a self-confident mill town after a water-powered cotton mill arrived in 1776. The 2021 census counted around 27,000 residents. Historically straddling the old Cheshire-Lancashire boundary, the town spans compact stone terraces close to the centre and more open residential streets on the hillsides above.
Millbrook is among the most sought-after pockets for school catchments, while West Hill has long been a school-competitive corner of the town; Hough Hill, Copley, and Stalyhill extend the residential spread further east. Northern Rail services connect Stalybridge station to Manchester Piccadilly in around half an hour.
11
Primary
schools
2
Secondary
schools
1
All-through
schools
Area Performance
Across 13 primary and secondary schools, state and independent. The average Find My School Inspection Score is 7.05/10, -0.31 vs England.
Find My School Inspection Band
Distribution across all Stalybridge schools
Stalybridge vs England distribution
National Rank
Across all ranked Stalybridge schools
top 51% of 14,978
top 51% of 14,978
top 65% of 3,862
top 65% of 3,862
2026
Stalybridge
2026
Stalybridge
Local directory
Browse 14 local profile links across primary schools and secondary schools. Each profile brings together admissions context, performance data, inspection history and school details in one place.
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