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St Anselm's College vs Wirral Grammar School for Boys

Both are grammar schools in Wirral, 3.3 miles apart. Side-by-side on official DfE, Ofsted and council admissions data.

Side by side

St Anselm's College Wirral Grammar School for Boys
Phase Secondary Secondary
Gender Boys Boys
Pupils on roll 1,002 1,123
Free school meals 11% 10.8%
Ofsted rating Good Good
Attainment 8 — 2025/26 63.1 68.2
11+ test board School's own entrance examination (Verbal Reasoning, Maths, English) Quest Assessments (switched from GL Assessment; from September 2026 test / 2027 entry onwards)
Admission system pass/fail then criteria order pass/fail then criteria order
Places offered — 202627 157 167
First preferences per place — higher means more competition for a first-preference place 0.99 1.14

Qualifying scores

St Anselm's College

No fixed pass mark. St Anselm's College offers its ~140 Year 7 places in rank order of total score on its own 3-paper entrance test (VR, maths, English incl. writing), with Catholic oversubscription categories applied.

Council source ↗

Wirral Grammar School for Boys

236 (2026 entry)

Wirral Admissions Test standard: a combined standardised score of 236 or above across the two papers has been the reported qualifying level in recent years (set by the schools; verify current year with the school). Meeting the standard does not guarantee a place — oversubscription criteria apply.

Council source ↗

These schools use different tests (School's own entrance examination (Verbal Reasoning, Maths, English) and Quest Assessments (switched from GL Assessment; from September 2026 test / 2027 entry onwards)), so their pass marks are set on different scales and cannot be compared as numbers.

Who gets priority

Where a school is oversubscribed, these are the first criteria applied, in order. This is usually what decides an application.

St Anselm's College

  1. Baptised Catholic Looked After and previously Looked After Boys
  2. Baptised Catholic boys living in the relevant area (Wirral, Cheshire West and Chester, and other areas within 10 miles of the College)
  3. All other Looked After and previously Looked After boys
  4. Baptised Christian, non-Catholic boys, living in the relevant area
  5. Non-baptised boys whose parents wish them to have a Catholic education

Source: school admissions policy.

Wirral Grammar School for Boys

  1. Up to 30 places: Looked After/Previously Looked After Children (incl. those in care outside England), or Pupil/Service Premium children, at or up to 5 marks below the eligible score
  2. Valid medical reason for a specific placement, evidenced by a health professional
  3. Siblings (incl. step/foster/adopted) attending the school at time of application
  4. Children of staff employed ≥2 years (or skills-shortage recruit)
  5. Remaining places by shortest distance from home to school

Source: school admissions policy.

Choosing between them

Both schools admit boys, so the decision usually comes down to the admission criteria above and how far each one reaches. The figures on this page are the published ones — they describe intakes and results, not what either school would be like for your child. The right choice depends on your family's own priorities and circumstances.

Full detail for each school: St Anselm's College · Wirral Grammar School for Boys
Or see all secondary schools in Wirral ranked.

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