Manchester Communication Academy
Silchester Drive, Harpurhey, Manchester, M40 8NT
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 11 to 16
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- GREATER MANCHESTER ACADEMIES TRUST
- Principal
- Ms Susan Watmough
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Religious ethos
- None
- Constituency
- Blackley and Middleton South
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,200
- Pupils on roll
- 1,240
- URN
- 136105
- Local authority
- Manchester
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01612020161
About this school
Manchester Communication Academy is a secondary academy in Manchester. It teaches children aged 11 to 16 and has 1,240 pupils on roll.
You can read Ofsted's latest judgement for the school below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Numbers and a report only go so far, so visit in person before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Overall judgement at the last full inspection
This inspection took place under the previous framework, which gave a single overall grade. Ofsted now publishes report cards instead, so newer inspections of other schools will look different. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Good
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Good
- Personal development
- Outstanding
- Leadership and management
- Good
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 222 | 221 | 262 |
| Attainment 8 score | 51.3 | 44.0 | 44.5 |
| Progress 8 score | +0.69 +0.48 to +0.89 | +0.15 -0.05 to +0.35 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 53% | 42.5% | 35.9% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 70% | 64.3% | 59.9% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 45% | 31.2% | 57.3% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 4.5 | 3.9 | 4.0 |
Progress 8 is paused nationally for the 2024/25 and 2025/26 school years. Those pupils sat no key stage 2 tests during the Covid pandemic, so there is no starting point to measure progress from. A blank figure here is not missing school data.
Trends over time
How Manchester Communication Academy has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Manchester average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 51.3 | 42.8 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 44 | 44.5 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 44.5 | 43.5 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 10.4% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 10.9% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 8% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,224 |
| 2023/24 | 1,261 |
| 2024/25 | 1,299 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Manchester Communication Academy compares
Manchester Communication Academy ranked 22nd of 30 secondary schools in Manchester for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 55% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 17% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 44.5 | 8% | 64.1% | 1,240 | — |
| Eden Girls' Leadership Academy, Manchester | 58.2 | 4.3% | 47.2% | 659 | 0.6 miles |
| Eden Boys' Leadership Academy, Manchester | 53.1 | 5.8% | 49.4% | 664 | 0.7 miles |
| The King David High School | 55.4 | 8% | 19% | 708 | 1.6 miles |
| The East Manchester Academy | 41.9 | 7.8% | 61.4% | 1,035 | 1.9 miles |
| Co-op Academy Manchester | 44.9 | 13.2% | 52.9% | 1,554 | 1.9 miles |
Results reflect each school's cohort as much as its teaching, and free school meals share is context, not a judgement. Small gaps between neighbouring schools are rarely meaningful on their own.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 64.05%
- English as an additional language
- 42.8%
- Overall absence
- 7.95%
- Persistent absence
- 20.12%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Eden Girls' Leadership Academy, Manchester0.6 miles
Secondary · Manchester
-
Eden Boys' Leadership Academy, Manchester0.7 miles
Secondary · Manchester
-
The King David High School1.6 miles
Secondary · Manchester
-
The East Manchester Academy1.9 miles
Secondary · Manchester
-
Co-op Academy Manchester1.9 miles
Secondary · Manchester
Other schools in Manchester
Manchester Communication Academy ranks 37th of the 59 ranked secondary schools in Manchester.
- Audenshaw School Secondary
- Broadoak School Secondary
- Burnage Academy for Boys Secondary
- Cardinal Langley Roman Catholic High School Secondary
- Chorlton High School Secondary
- CHS South Secondary
- Co-op Academy Belle Vue Secondary
- Co-op Academy Failsworth Secondary
- Co-op Academy Manchester Secondary
- Co-op Academy North Manchester Secondary
- Co-op Academy Swinton Secondary
- Co-op Academy Walkden Secondary
Common questions
- What year groups does Manchester Communication Academy teach?
- Manchester Communication Academy teaches children aged 11 to 16. It is a secondary school in Manchester.
- Who is the principal of Manchester Communication Academy?
- The principal of Manchester Communication Academy is Ms Susan Watmough, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Manchester Communication Academy last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Manchester Communication Academy, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How big is Manchester Communication Academy?
- Manchester Communication Academy has 1,240 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 16.
- Is Manchester Communication Academy full?
- Manchester Communication Academy has capacity for 1,200 pupils and 1,240 on roll (103%), so it is at or above its published capacity. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Manchester Communication Academy a faith school?
- No. Manchester Communication Academy has no designated religious character.
- Is Manchester Communication Academy a selective school?
- No. Manchester Communication Academy is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Who runs Manchester Communication Academy?
- Manchester Communication Academy is part of GREATER MANCHESTER ACADEMIES TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Manchester Communication Academy's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 51.3 in 2022/23 and 44.5 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Manchester Communication Academy rank locally?
- Manchester Communication Academy ranked 22nd of 30 secondary schools in Manchester for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 55% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 17% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Manchester Communication Academy's absence rate?
- Manchester Communication Academy's overall absence rate is 8% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Manchester Communication Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Manchester Communication Academy's key stage results are shown in the results section on this page, with the last three years so you can see the trend rather than a single year.
School details come from the Department for Education's Get Information About Schools register. Inspection outcomes come from Ofsted, and exam results from the Department for Education's school performance service. This page was last updated on 1 July 2026.