Runcorn and Widnes' top performing school revealed in new data
Runcorn and Widnes secondary schools ranked: Wade Deacon leads Halton in 2025-26 GCSE results, with attainment scores and pass rates compared across eight schools.
By Runcorn & Widnes World
Wade Deacon High School has been named the top-performing secondary school in Halton in the latest GCSE performance data.
The Widnes school recorded an average Attainment 8 score of 49.2, putting it above the England average of 46.2 and giving it the highest score among secondary schools in Runcorn and Widnes.
Attainment 8 measures pupils’ performance across up to eight GCSE-level qualifications, with English and maths receiving additional weighting.
Of the 318 pupils included in the figures, 73.3 per cent achieved grade four or higher in both English and maths. The proportion achieving grade five or higher in both subjects was 53.8 per cent.
The data also showed that 67.3 per cent achieved five GCSEs, including English and maths, at grade four or higher.
Sandymoor Ormiston Academy in Runcorn was the second-highest-performing school across the measures reported. It recorded an average Attainment 8 score of 43.2.
The Runcorn academy had 122 pupils included in the figures, with 56.6 per cent achieving five GCSEs, including English and maths, at grade four or higher.
At the other end of the table, Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy in Runcorn recorded the lowest result among Halton’s secondary schools on that measure.
Of the 70 pupils who sat their final examinations there, 35.7 per cent achieved five GCSEs, including English and maths, at grade four or higher.
The figures relate to pupils’ performance in the 2025-26 academic year and are based on provisional secondary school performance data for England.