Birkenhead High School Academy
Academy sponsor led · sixth form · 1,226 pupils
92% stayed in education · Attainment 8 50.5
Foundation school
Pensby High School
- Pupils on roll
- 915of 900 places
- Free school meals
- 25.0%
- Year 11 cohort 2025
- 171
- Ofsted
- School remains Good, 23 March 2023Read the Ofsted report
Results below include those reported under the school’s previous registration: Pensby High School for Boys: A Specialist Sports College (URN 105100, until 20 August 2015).
What the data says
Of the 157 pupils who finished Year 11 at Pensby High School in 2023, 5% stayed on in Pensby High School’s own sixth form (Wirral average 38%), 25% went to a further education college and 5% started an apprenticeship.
Sixth form colleges are the main next step: 48% of leavers went to one, roughly three times the England rate of 13%.
Media Studies is unusually popular at GCSE: 37% of the year group took it, against 4% of pupils across England.
GCSE results in 2025 were in line with the national picture: Attainment 8 of 44.8 against 46.1 across England and 45.3 in Wirral, with 43% of pupils getting grade 5 or above in both English and maths (England 45%).
Where pupils went after Year 11
Destinations of the 2023 Year 11 leavers, measured the following year: the share in a sustained place for at least two terms. Compared with all state-funded schools in Wirral and England.
School sixth formSixth form collegeFurther education collegeOther educationApprenticeshipEmploymentNo sustained destination
| Measure | Pensby High School | Wirral | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils in the cohort | 157 | 3,848 | 607,348 |
| Any sustained destination | 89% | 91% | 92% |
| Stayed in education | 80% | 85% | 86% |
| — school sixth form | 5% | 38% | 34% |
| — sixth form college | 48% | 19% | 13% |
| — further education college | 25% | 25% | 37% |
| — other education | 1% | 3% | 2% |
| Apprenticeship | 5% | 3% | 3% |
| Employment | 4% | 3% | 3% |
| No sustained destination | 6% | 7% | 6% |
| Destination unknown | 4% | 3% | 3% |
Where students went after sixth form
Destinations of students who finished 16–18 study in 2023, measured the following year.
No published destinations for sixth-form leavers yet.
GCSE results 2025
| Measure | Pensby High School | Wirral | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Attainment 8 (average points per pupil) | 44.8 | 45.3 | 46.1 |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 43% | 44% | 45% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 73% | 62% | 65% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate subjects | 14% | 39% | 41% |
| EBacc average point score | 3.67 | 3.96 | 4.09 |
| Disadvantaged pupils in the cohort | 14% | 33% | 28% |
| Attainment 8 — disadvantaged pupils | 33.8 | 32.3 | 34.9 |
| Attainment 8 — other pupils | 46.5 | 51.6 | 50.4 |
| Pupils with high prior attainment (Key Stage 2) | — | — | — |
| English as an additional language | 1% | 6% | 19% |
Progress 8 is not available for 2025 and 2026: these cohorts had no Key Stage 2 tests in 2020 and 2021, so there is no baseline. Attainment 8 shows results without taking pupils’ starting points into account.
Subjects taken at GCSE
Entries in 2025 as a share of the Year 11 cohort, and the share of entries graded 7–9 and 4–9, compared with all entries in England.
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England | Grades 7–9 | England | Grades 4–9 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mathematics | 171 | 100% | 88% | 11% | 22% | 78% |
| English Language | 170 | 99% | 89% | 9% | 20% | 76% |
| English Literature | 166 | 97% | 86% | 7% | 21% | 75% |
| Combined Science | 130 | 76% | 65% | 3% | 9% | 53% |
| Geography | 105 | 61% | 41% | 11% | 25% | 61% |
| History | 64 | 37% | 41% | 14% | 26% | 70% |
| Media Studies | 64 | 37% | 4% | 2% | 20% | 70% |
| Design and Technology | 50 | 29% | 11% | 6% | 23% | 56% |
| Art and Design | 40 | 23% | 7% | 23% | 24% | 85% |
| Spanish | 36 | 21% | 19% | 14% | 27% | 67% |
| Chemistry | 35 | 20% | 23% | 20% | 47% | 94% |
| Physics | 35 | 20% | 23% | 26% | 46% | 97% |
| Biology | 35 | 20% | 23% | 14% | 45% | 100% |
| Drama | 25 | 15% | 7% | 8% | 27% | 68% |
| Citizenship Studies | 17 | 10% | 3% | 18% | 19% | 88% |
| Photography | 17 | 10% | 6% | 6% | 19% | 82% |
| Graphic Communication | 17 | 10% | 1% | 0% | 23% | 94% |
| Religious Studies | 16 | 9% | 31% | 50% | 32% | 100% |
| Music | 7 | 4% | 5% | 0% | 33% | 43% |
| Business Studies | 1 | 1% | 18% | — | 20% | — |
| Food Preparation and Nutrition | 1 | 1% | 8% | — | 21% | — |
Technical awards and other Key Stage 4 qualifications
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sports / Movement Science | 75 | — | — |
| Small Business Management | 35 | — | — |
| Computer Appreciation / Introduction | 21 | — | — |
| Childcare Skills | 20 | — | — |
| Hospitality / Catering Studies | 18 | — | — |
Other secondary schools in Wirral
Birkenhead Park School
Academy sponsor led · 731 pupils
71% stayed in education · Attainment 8 39.9
Calday Grange Grammar School
Academy converter · sixth form · 1,493 pupils
95% stayed in education · Attainment 8 68.1
Co-op Academy Bebington
Academy sponsor led · sixth form · 1,044 pupils
89% stayed in education · Attainment 8 37.3
Hilbre High School
Academy converter · sixth form · 1,154 pupils
83% stayed in education · Attainment 8 39.0
Prenton High School for Girls
Academy converter · 770 pupils
78% stayed in education · Attainment 8 38.9
Sources: Department for Education school and college performance tables 2024/2025 (Key Stage 4 and 16–18 results, subject entries, destination measures for 2023 leavers); Get Information About Schools register as at 19 September 2026; Ofsted management information as at 31 August 2026. Small numbers are suppressed by DfE and shown as “—”. How to read these figures.