Bolton Muslim Girls School
Academy converter · 774 pupils
90% stayed in education · Attainment 8 54.7
Academy converter
Smithills School
- Pupils on roll
- 1,203of 1,250 places
- Free school meals
- 41.8%
- Year 11 cohort 2025
- 234
- Ofsted
- Report card, 31 March 2026Read the Ofsted report
Curriculum and teaching Needs attentionAchievement Needs attentionAttendance and behaviour Expected standardPersonal development and wellbeing Needs attentionInclusion Expected standardLeadership and governance Needs attentionPost-16 provision Not applicableSafeguarding Met
Results below include those reported under the school’s previous registration: Smithills School (URN 105260, until 1 January 2014).
What the data says
Smithills School has no sixth form. Of the 171 pupils who finished Year 11 there in 2023, 37% moved to a sixth form college, 39% to a further education college and 4% started an apprenticeship.
Sixth form colleges are the main next step: 37% of leavers went to one, roughly three times the England rate of 13%.
GCSE results in 2025 were well below the national picture: Attainment 8 of 36.5 against 46.1 across England and 45.7 in Bolton, with 20% of pupils getting grade 5 or above in both English and maths (England 45%).
Languages are a small part of the curriculum here: entries in Spanish and French add up to 17% of the year group, and 32% of pupils entered the full EBacc set of subjects (England 41%).
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 Bolton and England.
School sixth formSixth form collegeFurther education collegeOther educationApprenticeshipEmploymentNo sustained destination
| Measure | Smithills School | Bolton | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils in the cohort | 171 | 3,886 | 607,348 |
| Any sustained destination | 87% | 90% | 92% |
| Stayed in education | 78% | 84% | 86% |
| — school sixth form | 1% | 12% | 34% |
| — sixth form college | 37% | 25% | 13% |
| — further education college | 39% | 45% | 37% |
| — other education | 1% | 2% | 2% |
| Apprenticeship | 4% | 3% | 3% |
| Employment | 5% | 3% | 3% |
| No sustained destination | 9% | 7% | 6% |
| Destination unknown | 4% | 3% | 3% |
GCSE results 2025
| Measure | Smithills School | Bolton | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Attainment 8 (average points per pupil) | 36.5 | 45.7 | 46.1 |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 20% | 44% | 45% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 47% | 65% | 65% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate subjects | 32% | 33% | 41% |
| EBacc average point score | 3.25 | 3.95 | 4.09 |
| Disadvantaged pupils in the cohort | 39% | 32% | 28% |
| Attainment 8 — disadvantaged pupils | 31.0 | 36.6 | 34.9 |
| Attainment 8 — other pupils | 40.1 | 49.8 | 50.4 |
| Pupils with high prior attainment (Key Stage 2) | — | — | — |
| English as an additional language | 56% | 29% | 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 | 234 | 100% | 88% | 5% | 22% | 51% |
| English Language | 234 | 100% | 89% | 6% | 20% | 50% |
| English Literature | 233 | 100% | 86% | 7% | 21% | 60% |
| Combined Science | 231 | 99% | 65% | 5% | 9% | 42% |
| Geography | 117 | 50% | 41% | 4% | 25% | 49% |
| History | 108 | 46% | 41% | 5% | 26% | 45% |
| Computer Science | 48 | 21% | 13% | 6% | 30% | 23% |
| Urdu | 33 | 14% | 1% | 67% | 42% | 100% |
| Spanish | 31 | 13% | 19% | 39% | 27% | 87% |
| Religious Studies | 27 | 12% | 31% | 4% | 32% | 67% |
| Art and Design | 15 | 6% | 7% | 13% | 24% | 73% |
| Music | 11 | 5% | 5% | 0% | 33% | 45% |
| French | 8 | 3% | 18% | 13% | 29% | 50% |
| Portuguese | 6 | 3% | 0% | 50% | 50% | 100% |
| Arabic | 3 | 1% | 1% | — | 47% | — |
| Italian | 3 | 1% | 0% | — | 53% | — |
| Persian | 2 | 1% | 0% | — | 77% | — |
| Biology | 2 | 1% | 23% | — | 45% | — |
| Polish | 1 | 0% | 1% | — | 84% | — |
Technical awards and other Key Stage 4 qualifications
| Subject | Entries | Share of cohort | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small Business Management | 74 | — | — |
| Sports Studies | 51 | — | — |
| Health Studies | 46 | — | — |
| Beauty Care / Services | 26 | — | — |
| Hospitality / Catering Studies | 21 | — | — |
| Computer Appreciation / Introduction | 20 | — | — |
| Dance: General | 17 | — | — |
| Animal Care (Non-Agricultural) | 14 | — | — |
| Speech and Drama | 6 | — | — |
| Music performance: Group | 1 | — | — |
Other secondary schools in Bolton
Bolton St Catherine's Academy
Academy converter · 1,003 pupils
73% stayed in education · Attainment 8 34.3
Canon Slade School
Academy converter · sixth form · 1,724 pupils
91% stayed in education · Attainment 8 53.9
Eden Boys' School, Bolton
Free schools · 621 pupils
94% stayed in education · Attainment 8 53.0
Essa Academy
Academy sponsor led · 1,055 pupils
91% stayed in education · Attainment 8 53.0
Harper Green School
Academy converter · 1,070 pupils
77% stayed in education · Attainment 8 42.8
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.