Sir William Stanier School
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Sir William Stanier School is a sponsored academy in Crewe for boys and girls aged 11 to 16. It has 633 pupils and room for 1,050. About 48 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far more than at most schools in England. We give it 2 out of 100. That puts it well below schools like it, ahead of 4% of the 50 schools most like it. Ofsted visited in April 2026 and gave it a report card, which is below.
Coronation Street, Crewe, CW1 4EB01270 660880sirwilliamstanier.co.ukMrs Liz Robinson principalAll details
What Ofsted found
Ofsted visited on 28 April 2026. Instead of one overall word, it now gives a grade for each part of school life. Read the full report on Ofsted's website.
Ofsted says these new grades can't be lined up against the old one-word grades.
Earlier inspections (1)
| Date | Type | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| 26 November 2024 | Requires Improvement S5 Reinspection Visit 3 | Not judged |
Results
GCSE results, summer 2025
127 pupils sat their GCSEs. Here is how they did against every state secondary in England.
All GCSE measures, year by year
| Measure | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2019 | 2018 | Cheshire East | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of Year 11 | 127 | 113 | 147 | 124 | 131 | 126 | – | – |
| Average GCSE scoreAttainment 8 | 28.4 | 29.6 | 26.6 | 34.0 | 29.3 | 32.5 | 45.2 | 46.8 |
| Progress from age 11Progress 8 | – | -0.90 | -1.36 | -0.86 | -1.12 | -0.88 | – | – |
| Strong pass in English and mathsGrade 5+ in English and maths | 11% | 15% | 6% | 20% | 15% | 17% | 41% | 46% |
| Standard pass in English and mathsGrade 4+ in English and maths | 27% | 32% | 24% | 35% | 33% | 38% | 65% | 66% |
| Core subjects scoreEBacc average point score | 2.16 | 2.30 | 2.06 | 2.53 | 2.33 | 2.16 | 3.91 | 4.15 |
| Taking the core subjectsEBacc entry | 4% | 4% | 7% | 6% | 12% | 6% | 36% | 41% |
| Average GCSE score: low-income pupilsAttainment 8, disadvantaged | 23.3 | 25.3 | 20.5 | 29.1 | 21.4 | 23.5 | – | – |
| Average GCSE score: other pupilsAttainment 8, non-disadvantaged | 32.8 | 32.8 | 32.2 | 39.0 | 35.8 | 37.6 | – | – |
| Average GCSE score: pupils who started behindAttainment 8, low prior attainers | – | 17.0 | 18.4 | 22.8 | 14.1 | 18.8 | – | – |
| Average GCSE score: pupils who started aheadAttainment 8, high prior attainers | – | 54.1 | 41.4 | 63.3 | 45.4 | 46.6 | – | – |
Subjects
Results came out for 17 GCSE subjects in 2025. Each figure is the share of pupils who got a grade 5 or better, next to the average for state secondaries in England.
Subjects that did worse than the England average: Chemistry (17% here, 81% across England), Biology (20% here, 82% across England), Physics (28% here, 82% across England), Business (0% here, 51% across England).
The small number is how many pupils sat each subject. Subjects with fewer than six pupils aren't published.
Every subject against England, 2025
| Subject | Entries | Grades 9 to 7 | Grades 9 to 5 | Grades 9 to 4 | England 9 to 5 | Rank in England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mathematics | 124 | 4% | 15% | 34% | 53% | 3,195 of 3,211 |
| English Language | 122 | 5% | 23% | 34% | 54% | 3,158 of 3,210 |
| English Literature | 121 | 6% | 28% | 43% | 58% | 3,109 of 3,202 |
| Combined Science | 86 | 1% | 8% | 17% | 36% | 3,016 of 3,084 |
| Art and Design | 43 | 14% | 44% | 58% | 58% | 2,081 of 2,818 |
| History | 38 | 0% | 3% | 5% | 52% | 3,126 of 3,126 |
| Biology | 35 | 3% | 20% | 43% | 82% | 2,559 of 2,570 |
| Chemistry | 29 | 7% | 17% | 48% | 81% | 2,527 of 2,537 |
| Physics | 29 | 7% | 28% | 38% | 82% | 2,526 of 2,546 |
| French | 23 | 17% | 57% | 61% | 60% | 1,192 of 1,974 |
| Business | 22 | 0% | 0% | 9% | 51% | 1,802 of 1,806 |
| Computer Science | 15 | 7% | 13% | 20% | 56% | – |
| Geography | 15 | 7% | 13% | 13% | 51% | – |
| Music | 15 | 20% | 27% | 33% | 61% | – |
| Media / Film / TV | 13 | 15% | 46% | 46% | 55% | – |
| Other Modern Languages | 7 | 71% | 100% | 100% | 49% | – |
| Drama | 7 | 0% | 0% | 14% | 60% | – |
In combined science each pupil gets two grades and we count the lower one. Rankings only include state secondaries where 20 or more pupils sat the subject.
Does every child do well here?
A good school does well by every child, not just on average. Each row compares two groups of pupils here. The grey marks show the same two groups across England. Every gap at this school is smaller than the gap across England. When a group has fewer than about ten pupils, its figures jump around a lot from year to year.
At GCSE, 2025
Low-income means the child has had free school meals at some point in the last six years. A group's figure isn't published when it has fewer than six pupils.
Getting a place
Open to all. There is no entrance test.
Cheshire East council has drawn an official catchment area for this school. You can see it on the map below; it covers about 31 square kilometres. Living inside it moves your child up the queue when there are more applicants than places. It doesn't guarantee a place: the council's admissions rules decide the order.
Set your home postcode at the top of the page to see whether you live inside it.
370 places were empty (35% of the total), so almost everyone who applies gets in. Pupil numbers have stayed about the same since 2021/22.
In 2026 every child who applied got a place, so how far away you live didn't matter. That could change if the school gets more popular.
We measure in a straight line from the middle of your postcode to the school. The council measures its own way, and the cut-off changes every year. Use this as a rough guide, and read the council's admissions booklet before you apply.
How places were given out for September 2026. Every child who applied got a place (129 offers for 150 places). The furthest away lived 1.0 miles from the school.
| Entry | Places | Got a place | How far the last child lived | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 Secondary | 150 | 129 | 1.0 miles | LA |
| 2025 Secondary | 150 | 107 | 1.5 miles | LA |
The distances are the council's own, usually measured in a straight line from home to the school gate. If the distance is getting shorter each year, the school is getting harder to get into. See which councils we have this data for.
What a home inside the catchment costs
Every home sold inside the council's catchment area, of any type, from HM Land Registry records. If homes here cost more than the district average, that is the price people pay to live close enough to get in.
Who goes here
Who a school teaches matters. That is why our score compares it with schools that take in a similar mix of children, not with every school in the country.
The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: Specific learning difficulty (162), emotional and mental health (33), Moderate learning difficulty (20), language and communications needs (17), Autistic spectrum disorder (12), Other difficulty or disability (2).
How the mix of pupils has changed
| Census | 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils on roll | 633 | 688 | 693 | 736 | 689 | 653 |
| Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals | 48% | 45% | 45% | 43% | 42% | 36% |
| Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language | 20% | 21% | 22% | 22% | 20% | 19% |
| Pupils getting extra supportSEN support | – | 13% | 33% | 13% | 9% | 15% |
| Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans | – | 8% | 6% | 5% | 4% | 2% |
Attendance and behaviour
In 2024/25 pupils were in school 86.4% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 91.4%.
Attendance year by year
| Measure | 2024/25 | 2023/24 | 2022/23 | 2021/22 | 2020/21 | 2018/19 | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sessions missedOverall absence | 13.6% | 12.3% | 14.2% | 16.6% | 9.0% | 11.3% | 8.6% |
| Missed with permissionAuthorised absence | 9.7% | 5.5% | 7.2% | 9.8% | 5.7% | 7.2% | – |
| Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence | 3.9% | 6.9% | 7.0% | 6.8% | 3.3% | 4.1% | – |
| Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence | 42.4% | 45.3% | 44.9% | 52.0% | 29.8% | 35.2% | 23.9% |
| SuspensionsSuspension rate | 186.3 | 122.2 | 114.0 | 164.7 | 126.0 | – | – |
| Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions | 13 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 0 | – | – |
What pupils do next
After GCSEs
Where the 147 pupils who left in 2022/23 were a year later.
Among pupils from low-income families it was 66%, compared with 88% for everyone else.
Earlier years
| Destination | 2022/23 leavers | 2021/22 leavers | 2020/21 leavers | 2019/20 leavers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Still in education, work or training | 78% | 81% | 90% | 92% |
| Education | 70% | 66% | 81% | 84% |
| Apprenticeship | 3% | 6% | 6% | 2% |
| Work | 5% | 9% | 3% | 6% |
| Not in education, work or training | 15% | 14% | 8% | 7% |
Staff and money
From the government's count of school staff in November 2025 and the school's published accounts.
Money
From the academy accounts return, year to August 2025. The per-pupil figures are compared with other secondary schools in England that report their accounts the same way.
Reserves are the money left over at the end of the year, kept back for emergencies and big projects. Being in the red year after year is a warning sign. Very large reserves can mean money sitting in the bank instead of being spent on today's pupils. Academy figures are rounded to the nearest £1,000 and include a share of any money the trust holds centrally.
The area around the school
Crime figures come from police.uk. The police record each crime at the nearest of a fixed set of map points rather than the exact spot, so “within 500 m” is only rough. House prices are from HM Land Registry sales nearby over the last two years.
Nearby schools
The closest secondary schools, nearest first. Hover over a row to see it on the map.
| School | Type | Distance | Pupils | Ofsted | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cheshire Studio School | Studio schools | 860 m | 0 | Good 2023 | 12 | Compare |
| Crewe Engineering and Design UTC | University technical college | 900 m | 299 | No overall grade 2024 | 8 | Compare |
| Ruskin Community High School | Council | 1.2 miles | 713 | Good 2024 | 34 | Compare |
| The Oaks Academy | Academy | 1.4 miles | 681 | Good 2024 | 25 | Compare |
| St Thomas More Catholic High School | Academy | 1.7 miles | 642 | No overall grade 2024 | 71 | Compare |
| Shavington Academy | Academy | 2.8 miles | 934 | Good 2023 | 59 | Compare |
| Sandbach School | Free school | 3.6 miles | 1,534 | No overall grade 2025 | 70 | Compare |
| Sandbach High School and Sixth Form College | Academy | 3.7 miles | 1,340 | Good 2022 | 83 | Compare |
Compared with schools like it
Our score compares Sir William Stanier School with the 50 schools in England whose pupils are most like its own. We match on family income, how many children are learning English, special needs, the neighbourhood, the size of the school and how it admits pupils. Those 50 schools are dotted all over the country, so we don't list them. What matters is where this school sits among them.
Nearby schools with a similar mix of pupils that score higher
Of those 50 schools, these are within 25 km and score at least five points more than Sir William Stanier School, nearest first. A school with the same kind of pupils and a higher score is the fairest sign that it gets more out of them.
| School | Type | Distance | Pupils | Ofsted | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Rudheath Senior Academy | Academy | 10.7 miles | 576 | Good 2023 | 20 | Compare |
How the score was worked out
The score is out of 100. A 2 means that once everything below is added up, this school comes out ahead of 2% of secondary schools in England. Results bounce around from year to year, especially in small schools, so we also show a likely range: 1 to 3. Every part is judged against schools with a similar mix of pupils. For small schools we pull each part towards the group average, so one unusual year can't swing the score too far.
| What we looked at | How much it counts | Against schools like it | Effect on the score | Based on |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Results over three years | 20% | well below | -0.37 | 2025, 2024 and 2023 results; 127 pupils |
| Ofsted inspection | 20% | well below | -0.35 | Ofsted report card, 0.4 years old |
| Progress pupils make | 20% | well below | -0.32 | DfE progress measure; 127 pupils |
| Direction of travel over five years | 10% | in line | -0.02 | results and attendance falling year on year |
| Attendance and behaviour | 10% | well below | -0.24 | 2024/25; 752 pupils |
| Results, allowing for the mix of pupils | 10% | well below | -0.16 | Attainment relative to schools with a similar intake; 127 pupils |
| What pupils do next | 5% | well below | -0.12 | 147 pupils |
| What parents say | 0% | no data | – |
Worked out on 13 September 2026 (method v1). Read how the score works, including every weight and the checks we run. Think a number is wrong? Tell us.
Questions parents ask
Is Sir William Stanier School a good school?
The figures are weak. Sir William Stanier School scores 2 out of 100. That is well below schools that take in a similar mix of pupils, and ahead of 4% of the 50 schools most like it in England. The score could fairly be anywhere from 1 to 3, so a few points either way between schools doesn't mean much.
What is Sir William Stanier School's Ofsted rating?
Ofsted no longer gives schools one overall grade. When it visited on 28 April 2026 it rated teaching as needs attention, achievement as needs attention, behaviour and attendance as needs attention, leadership as as expected.
How good are Sir William Stanier School's GCSE results?
In summer 2025, 11% of pupils got a grade 5 or better in both English and maths. Across England it was 46%. Its Attainment 8 score, which is the average grade across a pupil's best eight subjects times ten, was 28.4, against 46.8 for England. In each subject, pupils here finished most of a grade behind children across England who started secondary school at the same level.
How many pupils does Sir William Stanier School have?
633 pupils aged 11 to 16 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 1,050 places, so it is 60% full.
Is Sir William Stanier School oversubscribed, and how far away can you live?
Yes. For September 2026 the last place went to a child living 1.0 miles away. Children in care, brothers and sisters of current pupils and other priority groups come before distance, so the cut-off moves every year.
What is attendance like at Sir William Stanier School?
Pupils were in school 86.4% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 91.4%. 42% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.
How big are the classes at Sir William Stanier School?
The average class had 24.0 pupils in January 2026. Across England it was 22.8. 9% of classes had more than 30 pupils.
Does Sir William Stanier School have a sixth form?
No. Pupils leave after Year 11 for a sixth form elsewhere, a college or an apprenticeship; 78% of 2022/23 leavers were still in education, work or training six months on.
These answers come straight from the figures on this page and update when new data comes out.
Contact and details
- Address
- Coronation Street, Crewe, CW1 4EB
- Telephone
- 01270 660880
- Website
- www.sirwilliamstanier.co.uk
- Principal
- Mrs Liz Robinson
- Type of school
- Sponsored academy (Academy sponsor led, academies)
- Phase
- Secondary school, ages 11-16
- Gender
- Mixed
- Multi-academy trust
- The Learning Partnership Academies Trust (15 schools)
- Local authority
- Cheshire East
- Ward
- Crewe East
- Constituency
- Crewe and Nantwich
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Opened
- 1 September 2013 (new provision)
- URN
- 139953 · LAESTAB 8954000 · UKPRN 10042699
- Formerly
- Sir William Stanier Community School
Recent changes
- New KS4 results for 2024/25
Where these figures come from
- School details: Department for Education, Get Information About Schools, refreshed daily (this page rebuilt 13 September 2026).
- Inspections: Ofsted management information, monthly; latest publication in our data 27 August 2026.
- GCSE results: DfE key stage 4 performance tables, 2024/25 final.
- Attendance: DfE pupil absence in schools in England, 2024/25 full year.
- Pupil characteristics: DfE school census, January 2026.
- Staff: DfE school workforce census, November 2025.
- Class sizes: DfE schools, pupils and their characteristics, January 2026.
- Pupil premium: DfE allocations and conditions of grant, 2026 to 2027.
- Money: DfE financial benchmarking and insights tool, academy accounts return 2024/25.
- Admissions outcomes: Cheshire East council's published allocation statistics (source), entry years 2025, 2026.
- Catchment area: Cheshire East council open data (Open Government Licence), reprojected to WGS84.
- House prices: HM Land Registry price paid data, December 2023 to December 2025, placed by postcode.
- Neighbourhood: police.uk street-level crime, HM Land Registry price paid data, NaPTAN bus stops, English Indices of Deprivation 2025.
- All under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Full list and update calendar.