Contested schools in Bolton
These are the Bolton schools that turned first-choice families away in at least one of the last three years — either because more families named them first than they had places, or because they refused families who named them first anyway. Figures shown are for 2026/27. Demand is not a forecast: an oversubscribed school turns more families away, which is not the same as their appeals succeeding more often.
Appeal success rates for Bolton
Secondary schools (14)
Each has its own page with a 12-year demand history.
| School | Places | First choices | Per place |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eden Boys' School, Bolton | 116 | 192 | 1.66 |
| St James's Church of England High School | 197 | 315 | 1.60 |
| Sharples School | 235 | 344 | 1.46 |
| Bolton Muslim Girls School | 177 | 228 | 1.29 |
| Essa Academy | 200 | 222 | 1.11 |
| St Joseph's RC High School | 205 | 218 | 1.06 |
| Rivington and Blackrod High School | 278 | 280 | 1.01 |
| Canon Slade School | 293 | 294 | 1 |
| Turton School | 259 | 252 | 0.97 |
| Little Lever School | 231 | 216 | 0.94 |
| Thornleigh Salesian College | 260 | 241 | 0.93 |
| Ladybridge High School | 230 | 211 | 0.92 |
| Mount St Joseph RC High School a Voluntary Academy | 174 | 143 | 0.82 |
| King's Leadership Academy Bolton | 176 | 129 | 0.73 |
Primary schools (44)
Primary schools are listed here as figures rather than pages. Most refusals at the Reception intake are infant class size cases, where a panel can only act on three narrow grounds and fewer than one in ten appeals succeeds — so the honest thing to publish is the data, not a page inviting an appeal.
| School | Places | First choices | Per place |
|---|---|---|---|
| Moorgate Primary School | 26 | 64 | 2.46 |
| Masefield Primary School | 29 | 60 | 2.07 |
| Beaumont Primary School | 30 | 56 | 1.87 |
| The Olive School, Bolton | 60 | 108 | 1.80 |
| Lostock Primary School | 30 | 41 | 1.37 |
| Bolton Parish Church, Church of England Primary School | 30 | 40 | 1.33 |
| Heathfield Primary School | 30 | 40 | 1.33 |
| St Bartholomew's CofE Primary School | 30 | 39 | 1.30 |
| Eatock Primary School | 30 | 38 | 1.27 |
| Markland Hill Primary School | 42 | 53 | 1.26 |
| Blackrod Anglican/Methodist Primary School | 29 | 35 | 1.21 |
| Oxford Grove Primary School | 59 | 71 | 1.20 |
| St Paul's CofE Primary School, Astley Bridge | 30 | 36 | 1.20 |
| St Saviour CofE Primary School, Ringley | 30 | 36 | 1.20 |
| All Saints CofE Primary School | 30 | 35 | 1.17 |
| The Olive Tree Primary School Bolton | 60 | 69 | 1.15 |
| Queensbridge Primary School | 28 | 32 | 1.14 |
| Sunning Hill Primary School | 60 | 68 | 1.13 |
| St George's CofE Primary School | 30 | 33 | 1.10 |
| The Valley Community Primary School | 60 | 65 | 1.08 |
| Chorley New Road Primary Academy | 45 | 48 | 1.07 |
| Egerton Primary School | 28 | 30 | 1.07 |
| Our Lady of Lourdes RC Primary School | 30 | 32 | 1.07 |
| St Peter's Smithills Dean Church of England Primary School | 30 | 32 | 1.07 |
| The Gates Primary School | 30 | 32 | 1.07 |
| Blackshaw Primary School | 28 | 29 | 1.04 |
| Spindle Point Primary School | 30 | 31 | 1.03 |
| St Mary's RC Primary School | 29 | 30 | 1.03 |
| Kearsley West Primary School | 27 | 27 | 1 |
| St Peter's CofE Primary School | 57 | 57 | 1 |
| Blackrod Primary School | 45 | 44 | 0.98 |
| Walmsley CofE Primary School | 20 | 19 | — |
| Claypool Primary School | 30 | 28 | 0.93 |
| St Columba's RC Primary School | 30 | 28 | 0.93 |
| St Michael's CofE Primary School, Great Lever | 59 | 55 | 0.93 |
| St Thomas CofE Primary School | 30 | 28 | 0.93 |
| Lever Edge Primary Academy | 57 | 52 | 0.91 |
| Pikes Lane Primary School | 54 | 49 | 0.91 |
| Mytham Primary School | 30 | 27 | 0.90 |
| The Oaks Primary School | 30 | 26 | 0.87 |
| Devonshire Road Primary School | 59 | 51 | 0.86 |
| St Thomas C of E Primary School, Halliwell | 41 | 35 | 0.85 |
| St Catherine's CofE Primary School | 28 | 23 | 0.82 |
| Castle Hill Primary School | 29 | 22 | 0.76 |
Department for Education, Primary and secondary school applications and offers, school-level file, 2026/27. Appeal outcomes are not published for individual schools — how we source and calculate the figures.