Canon Slade School
Bradshaw Brow, Bradshaw, Bolton, BL2 3BP
- Phase
- Secondary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 11 to 18
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Trust
- THE BISHOP FRASER TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mr James Gilhooly
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Diocese
- Diocese of Manchester
- Sponsor
- The Bishop Fraser Trust
- Constituency
- Bolton North East
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,800
- Pupils on roll
- 1,724
- URN
- 144044
- Local authority
- Bolton
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01204333343
About this school
Canon Slade School is a Church of England secondary academy in Bolton. It teaches children aged 11 to 18 and has 1,724 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Canon Slade School, and its latest judgement is set out below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Seeing a school for yourself shows what no page can, so arrange a visit before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Ofsted did not give an overall grade. Between September 2024 and September 2025 inspections graded each area of a school's work without a single overall judgement, ahead of the move to report cards. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Good
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Good
- Personal development
- Good
- Leadership and management
- Good
- Sixth form
- Good
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 4 (GCSEs)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 4 | 296 | 300 | 291 |
| Attainment 8 score | 54.8 | 54.6 | 53.9 |
| Progress 8 score | +0.14 -0.02 to +0.31 | +0.29 +0.13 to +0.45 | - |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 64% | 65.3% | 57% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 84% | 84.3% | 83.8% |
| Entered the English Baccalaureate | 27% | 24.7% | 28.9% |
| English Baccalaureate average point score | 4.6 | 4.5 | 4.6 |
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 Canon Slade 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 | Bolton average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 54.8 | 39.7 | 39.8 |
| 2023/24 | 54.6 | 41.1 | 39.5 |
| 2024/25 | 53.9 | 39.7 | 39 |
Department for Education KS4 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 5.9% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 5.3% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 6% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,759 |
| 2023/24 | 1,753 |
| 2024/25 | 1,747 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Canon Slade School compares
Canon Slade School ranked 3rd of 19 secondary schools in Bolton for Attainment 8 in 2024/25. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 85% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 38% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | Attainment 8 (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 53.9 | 6% | 16.8% | 1,724 | — |
| Sharples School | 55.6 | 5.5% | 29.3% | 1,214 | 0.7 miles |
| Turton School | 43.7 | 10.1% | 23.1% | 1,596 | 0.9 miles |
| Eden Boys' School, Bolton | 53 | 4.6% | 33.4% | 621 | 1.3 miles |
| Thornleigh Salesian College | 45.7 | 8.5% | 29.6% | 1,574 | 1.4 miles |
| Smithills School | 36.5 | 9.4% | 42.4% | 1,203 | 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)
- 16.75%
- English as an additional language
- 10.6%
- Overall absence
- 6%
- Persistent absence
- 14.8%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Sharples School0.7 miles
Secondary · Bolton
-
Turton School0.9 miles
Secondary · Bolton
-
Eden Boys' School, Bolton1.3 miles
Secondary · Bolton
-
Thornleigh Salesian College1.4 miles
Secondary · Bolton
-
Smithills School1.9 miles
Secondary · Bolton
Other schools in Bolton
Canon Slade School ranks 3rd of the 19 ranked secondary schools in Bolton.
- Bolton Muslim Girls School Secondary
- Eden Boys' School, Bolton Secondary
- Essa Academy Secondary
- Harper Green School Secondary
- Kearsley Academy Secondary
- King's Leadership Academy Bolton Secondary
- Ladybridge High School Secondary
- Little Lever School Secondary
- Mount St Joseph RC High School a Voluntary Academy Secondary
- Rivington and Blackrod High School Secondary
- Sharples School Secondary
- Smithills School Secondary
Common questions
- What ages does Canon Slade School teach?
- Canon Slade School teaches children aged 11 to 18. It is a secondary school in Bolton.
- Who is the headteacher of Canon Slade School?
- The headteacher of Canon Slade School is Mr James Gilhooly, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Canon Slade School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Canon Slade 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 Canon Slade School?
- Canon Slade School has 1,724 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 11 to 18.
- Is Canon Slade School full?
- Canon Slade School has capacity for 1,800 pupils and 1,724 on roll (96%), so it is close to full. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Canon Slade School a faith school?
- Yes. Canon Slade School is designated Church of England, in the Diocese of Manchester.
- Is Canon Slade School a selective school?
- No. Canon Slade School is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Is Canon Slade School part of an academy trust?
- Canon Slade School is part of THE BISHOP FRASER TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Canon Slade School's results changed over recent years?
- Its Attainment 8 score was 54.8 in 2022/23 and 53.9 in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Canon Slade School compare with other schools in Bolton?
- Canon Slade School ranked 3rd of 19 secondary schools in Bolton for Attainment 8. Its Attainment 8 score was higher than 85% of England secondary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 38% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Canon Slade School's absence rate?
- Canon Slade School's overall absence rate is 6% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Canon Slade School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Canon Slade 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 10 July 2026.