Ashton-on-Mersey School
Cecil Avenue, Sale, M33 5BP
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 11 to 19
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- None
- Trust
- THE DEAN TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mr Lee McConaghie
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Sponsor
- The Dean Trust
- Constituency
- Altrincham and Sale West
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,570
- Pupils on roll
- 1,609
- URN
- 138123
- Local authority
- Trafford
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01619731179
About this school
Ashton-on-Mersey School is a secondary academy in Sale. It teaches children aged 11 to 19 and has 1,609 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Ashton-on-Mersey School, and its latest judgement is set out 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
Confirmed by a short inspection, not a full one
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 11 April 2024, where inspectors confirmed the school remains Good. The school's last full inspection took place before September 2019, so its area grades are not part of Ofsted's current published data. Older reports are on the school's Ofsted page.
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 255 | 255 | 254 |
| Attainment 8 score | 49.4 | 50.5 | 52.1 |
| Progress 8 score | +0.06 -0.11 to +0.24 | +0.04 -0.13 to +0.22 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 52% | 59.2% | 58.3% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 76% | 75.3% | 81.9% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 65% | 62.7% | 64.2% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 4.5 | 4.7 | 4.8 |
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 Ashton-on-Mersey School has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Trafford average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 49.4 | 50.2 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 50.5 | 51.4 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 52.1 | 51.2 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 7.3% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 6.6% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5.7% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,421 |
| 2023/24 | 1,512 |
| 2024/25 | 1,600 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Ashton-on-Mersey School compares
Ashton-on-Mersey School ranked 10th of 18 secondary schools in Trafford for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 81% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 45% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 52.1 | 5.7% | 16.3% | 1,609 | — |
| Sale Grammar School | 76.1 | 3.5% | 3% | 1,352 | 1.0 miles |
| Sale High School | — | — | — | 1,103 | 1.5 miles |
| Wellington School | 57.3 | 6.6% | 11.3% | 1,536 | 1.8 miles |
| St Antony's Roman Catholic School, a Voluntary Academy | 42.4 | 8.7% | 34.9% | 688 | 2.1 miles |
| Dixons Brooklands Academy | 36.1 | 16.6% | 56.4% | 913 | 2.1 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)
- 16.3%
- English as an additional language
- 14.1%
- Overall absence
- 5.67%
- Persistent absence
- 11.96%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Sale Grammar School1.0 miles
Secondary · Sale
-
Sale High School1.5 miles
Secondary · Sale
-
Wellington School1.8 miles
Secondary · Altrincham
-
St Antony's Roman Catholic School, a Voluntary Academy2.1 miles
Secondary · Manchester
-
Dixons Brooklands Academy2.1 miles
Secondary · Manchester
Other schools in Sale
- Sale Grammar School Secondary
- Sale High School Secondary
- All Saints' Catholic Primary School Primary
- Brooklands Primary School Primary
- Firs Primary School Primary
- Holy Family Catholic Primary School Primary
- Lime Tree Primary Academy Primary
- Moorlands Junior School Primary
- Park Road Sale Primary School Primary
- Springfield Primary School Primary
- St Anne's CofE Primary School Primary
- St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Ashton-on-Mersey School teach?
- Ashton-on-Mersey School teaches children aged 11 to 19. It is a secondary school in Sale.
- Who is the headteacher of Ashton-on-Mersey School?
- The headteacher of Ashton-on-Mersey School is Mr Lee McConaghie, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Ashton-on-Mersey School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Ashton-on-Mersey School, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How many pupils are at Ashton-on-Mersey School?
- Ashton-on-Mersey School has 1,609 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 19.
- Is Ashton-on-Mersey School full?
- Ashton-on-Mersey School has capacity for 1,570 pupils and 1,609 on roll (102%), 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 Ashton-on-Mersey School a faith school?
- No. Ashton-on-Mersey School has no designated religious character.
- Is Ashton-on-Mersey School a selective school?
- No. Ashton-on-Mersey School is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Is Ashton-on-Mersey School part of an academy trust?
- Ashton-on-Mersey School is part of THE DEAN TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Ashton-on-Mersey School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 49.4 in 2022/23 and 52.1 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Ashton-on-Mersey School compare with other schools in Trafford?
- Ashton-on-Mersey School ranked 10th of 18 secondary schools in Trafford for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 81% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 45% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Ashton-on-Mersey School's absence rate?
- Ashton-on-Mersey School's overall absence rate is 5.7% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Ashton-on-Mersey School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Ashton-on-Mersey School'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.