Most sought-after schools in Rochdale
Ordered by how many families put the school first, for each place it gave out.
This list is sorted by one number: first preferences per place. For each school it is the number of families who named it first, divided by the number of offers it made, in the newest year we hold. A higher number means more families wanted a place than there were places.
This is not a list of the best schools. It does not measure how good a school is, how happy the children are, or how well they do. It also does not tell you whether a child would get a place: that depends on where you live, the year, and the council's rules. It only shows how many people applied.
| # | School | First preferences per place | Newest intake | Latest Ofsted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Hollin Primary School Manchester, primary |
1.63 | 2025 | Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 2 |
Cardinal Langley Roman Catholic High School Manchester, secondary |
1.34 | 2025 | School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection) |
| 3 |
Healey Foundation Primary School Rochdale, primary |
1.30 | 2025 | Standards maintained (Ofsted ungraded inspection) |
| 4 |
St Michael's Church of England Primary School, Bamford Heywood, primary |
1.30 | 2025 | Outstanding (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 5 |
Holy Family Roman Catholic and Church of England College Heywood, secondary |
1.27 | 2025 | Expected standard (Ofsted report card (current framework)) |
| 6 |
Kentmere Primary Academy Rochdale, primary |
1.25 | 2025 | School remains Outstanding (Ofsted ungraded inspection) |
| 7 |
Ashfield Valley Primary School Rochdale, primary |
1.20 | 2025 | Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 8 |
Matthew Moss High School Rochdale, secondary |
1.20 | 2025 | School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection) |
| 9 |
St Peter's Church of England Primary School Rochdale, primary |
1.20 | 2025 | School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection) |
| 10 |
All Souls Church of England Primary School Heywood, primary |
1.17 | 2025 | Outstanding (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 11 |
Holy Trinity Church of England Primary School Littleborough, primary |
1.17 | 2025 | School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection) |
| 12 |
Hopwood Community Primary School Heywood, primary |
1.17 | 2025 | Outstanding (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 13 |
St Luke's Church of England Primary School Heywood, primary |
1.17 | 2025 | Not judged (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 14 |
Wardle Academy Rochdale, secondary |
1.13 | 2025 | School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection) |
| 15 |
Alkrington Primary School Manchester, primary |
1.12 | 2025 | School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection) |
| 16 |
Whittaker Moss Primary School Rochdale, primary |
1.11 | 2025 | Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 17 |
Bowlee Park Community Primary School Manchester, primary |
1.08 | 2025 | Outstanding (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 18 |
Hollingworth Academy Rochdale, secondary |
1.07 | 2025 | Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 19 |
Lowerplace Primary School Rochdale, primary |
1.03 | 2025 | School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection) |
| 20 |
All Saints Church of England Primary School Rochdale, primary |
1.00 | 2025 | Not judged (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 21 |
Castleton Primary School Rochdale, primary |
1.00 | 2025 | Expected standard (Ofsted report card (current framework)) |
| 22 |
Greenbank Primary School Rochdale, primary |
1.00 | 2025 | Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 23 |
Heybrook Primary School Rochdale, primary |
0.99 | 2025 | School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection) |
| 24 |
Belfield Community School Rochdale, primary |
0.97 | 2025 | Not judged (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 25 |
Crossgates Primary School Rochdale, primary |
0.97 | 2025 | Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 26 |
Littleborough Community Primary School Littleborough, primary |
0.97 | 2025 | Not judged (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 27 |
St James' Church of England Primary School Rochdale, primary |
0.97 | 2025 | Expected standard (Ofsted report card (current framework)) |
| 28 |
Our Lady & St Paul's RC Primary School, A Voluntary Academy Heywood, primary |
0.96 | 2025 | Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 29 |
Parkfield Primary School Manchester, primary |
0.96 | 2025 | Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 30 |
St Anne's Church of England Academy Manchester, secondary |
0.96 | 2025 | Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 31 |
St Gabriel's Church of England Primary School Manchester, primary |
0.96 | 2025 | School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection) |
| 32 |
St Peter's Roman Catholic Primary School, Rochdale Manchester, primary |
0.96 | 2025 | Not judged (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 33 |
Brimrod Community Primary School Rochdale, primary |
0.95 | 2025 | School remains Good (Concerns) - S5 Next (Ofsted ungraded inspection) |
| 34 |
Smithy Bridge Foundation Primary School Littleborough, primary |
0.95 | 2025 | Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 35 |
St Edward's Church of England Primary School Rochdale, primary |
0.95 | 2025 | Not judged (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 36 |
St Patrick's Roman Catholic Primary School Rochdale, primary |
0.95 | 2025 | Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 37 |
Elm Wood Primary School Manchester, primary |
0.94 | 2025 | Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 38 |
Newhey Community Primary School Rochdale, primary |
0.94 | 2025 | Expected standard (Ofsted report card (current framework)) |
| 39 |
Woodland Community Primary School Heywood, primary |
0.93 | 2025 | Standards maintained (Ofsted ungraded inspection) |
| 40 |
St Andrew's Church of England Primary School and Nursery Rochdale, primary |
0.92 | 2025 | Expected standard (Ofsted report card (current framework)) |
| 41 |
St Thomas More Roman Catholic Primary School, Middleton, Rochdale Manchester, primary |
0.92 | 2025 | Not judged (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 42 |
Broadfield Community Primary School Rochdale, primary |
0.91 | 2025 | Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 43 |
Shawclough Community Primary School Rochdale, primary |
0.91 | 2025 | School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection) |
| 44 |
Marland Hill Community Primary School Rochdale, primary |
0.90 | 2025 | School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection) |
| 45 |
St Gabriel's Roman Catholic Primary School, Rochdale Rochdale, primary |
0.90 | 2025 | Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 46 |
St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, Middleton Manchester, primary |
0.89 | 2025 | Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 47 |
St Michael's Church of England Primary School, Alkrington Manchester, primary |
0.89 | 2025 | Not judged (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 48 |
Dixons Middleton Academy Manchester, secondary |
0.88 | 2025 | School remains Good (Concerns) - S5 Next (Ofsted ungraded inspection) |
| 49 |
Harwood Park Primary School Heywood, primary |
0.88 | 2025 | Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 50 |
Meanwood Community Nursery and Primary School Rochdale, primary |
0.88 | 2025 | Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 51 |
Kingsway Park High School Rochdale, secondary |
0.87 | 2025 | Some aspects not as strong (Ofsted ungraded inspection) |
| 52 |
Milnrow Parish Church of England Primary School Rochdale, primary |
0.87 | 2025 | Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 53 |
Hamer Community Primary School Rochdale, primary |
0.86 | 2025 | School remains Good (Improving) - S5 Next (Ofsted ungraded inspection) |
| 54 |
Moorhouse Academy Rochdale, primary |
0.85 | 2025 | Good (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 55 |
Boarshaw Community Primary School MANCHESTER, primary |
0.82 | 2025 | School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection) |
| 56 |
Newhouse Academy Heywood, secondary |
0.82 | 2025 | Requires improvement (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
| 57 |
Deeplish Primary Academy Rochdale, primary |
0.81 | 2025 | Standards maintained (Ofsted ungraded inspection) |
| 58 |
Sandbrook Community Primary School Rochdale, primary |
0.76 | 2025 | Needs attention (Ofsted report card (current framework)) |
| 59 |
Edgar Wood Academy Heywood, secondary |
0.70 | 2025 | Expected standard (Ofsted report card (current framework)) |
| 60 |
Bamford Academy Manchester, primary |
0.64 | 2025 | School remains Good (Ofsted ungraded inspection) |
| 61 |
Oulder Hill Leadership Academy Rochdale, secondary |
0.55 | 2025 | Not judged (Ofsted graded inspection (previous framework)) |
Figures from the Department for Education, applications and offers. 61 schools in Rochdale have a published per-place figure. Schools with too few places for the figure to mean anything are left off. All schools in Rochdale · How we compare schools.