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Best secondary schools in Blackburn with Darwen

11 of 18 secondary schools ranked by Progress 8 · all Blackburn with Darwen schools · primary schools

Ranked on Progress 8, 2023/24 — the most recent year each school has published. Official data, not our opinion — but the ranking is only as good as the measure, and a single number never describes a school.

# School Progress 8 Ofsted Places Catchment
1 Tauheedul Islam Girls' High School Blackburn 2.05 Outstanding oversubscribed 2.08 first prefs per place, 2026/27 approximate
2 Tauheedul Islam Boys' High School Blackburn 1.26 Outstanding oversubscribed 2.03 first prefs per place, 2026/27 approximate
3 St Wilfrid's Church of England Academy Blackburn 0.19 Good oversubscribed 1.16 first prefs per place, 2026/27 approximate
4 Pleckgate High School Blackburn -0.01 Outstanding about even 1.06 first prefs per place, 2026/27 approximate
5 Blackburn Central High School Blackburn hidden gem -0.2 Good undersubscribed 0.76 first prefs per place, 2026/27 approximate
6 Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School Blackburn hidden gem -0.22 Good improving undersubscribed 0.75 first prefs per place, 2026/27 approximate
7 St Bede's Roman Catholic High School, Blackburn Blackburn -0.25 Not judged declining oversubscribed 1.27 first prefs per place, 2026/27 approximate
8 Darwen Vale High School Darwen hidden gem -0.29 Good improving about even 0.9 first prefs per place, 2026/27 approximate
9 Witton Park Academy Blackburn hidden gem -0.7 Good undersubscribed 0.31 first prefs per place, 2026/27 approximate
10 Darwen Aldridge Community Academy Darwen -0.77 Not judged declining about even 0.88 first prefs per place, 2026/27 approximate
11 Darwen Aldridge Enterprise Studio Darwen -0.82 Good — approximate

Also in Blackburn with Darwen

7 further secondary schools with no published Progress 8 for the latest year — usually too small a cohort to report, newly opened, or a special school. Listed because leaving them out would make this a misleading picture of Blackburn with Darwen, not a fairer one.

Applying in Blackburn with Darwen

Knowing which school is best is only half of it — these are the deadlines that decide whether you can apply at all.

Rankings compare published results. They do not tell you which school your child will get into — that depends on where you live, sibling and faith priority, and how many people apply this year. Ask below, or check the Blackburn with Darwen admission criteria.

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