Hoylake, #1 on this list · Photo: habiloid · CC BY-SA 2.0

Merseyside rankings · Schools

Towns with the best schools in Merseyside

Hoylake ranks first on schools among Merseyside’s 25 towns of 2,500+; 5 of the 25 grade A− or better against UK towns.

The School Grade (England only): Key Stage 2 and GCSE results of the state schools in the town (or within 3 km), weighted by pupils and measured against England’s schools. The rank across England sits beside each letter. How grades work

Hoylake

5,311 people

A⁺

Better than 96% of UK towns·#65 of 1,973 in England

West Kirby

13,383 people

A⁺

Better than 95% of UK towns·#74 of 1,973 in England

Greasby

9,175 people

A⁻

Better than 83% of UK towns·#312 of 1,973 in England

All 25 towns, ranked

Schools grade, best first; ranks are the county ranks on each town’s page (T = tied). Military garrison towns and university campuses keep their grades but aren’t ranked. Each rank across England links to the national list.

Every town in Merseyside →

Find a town

25 towns.

#TownGrade · UK rankCompared with UK towns

1Hoylake5,311 peopleA⁺#65 of 1,973 nationallybetter than 96% of UK towns

2West Kirby13,383 peopleA⁺#74 of 1,973 nationallybetter than 95% of UK towns

3Greasby9,175 peopleA⁻#312 of 1,973 nationallybetter than 83% of UK towns

4Billinge4,963 peopleA⁻#345 of 1,973 nationallybetter than 81% of UK towns

5Formby22,892 peopleA⁻#444 of 1,973 nationallybetter than 75% of UK towns

6Heswall29,082 peopleB⁺#470 of 1,973 nationallybetter than 74% of UK towns

7Meols5,023 peopleB⁺#525 of 1,973 nationallybetter than 71% of UK towns

8Bebington57,607 peopleB#830 of 1,973 nationallybetter than 57% of UK towns

9Prescot39,227 peopleB#849 of 1,973 nationallybetter than 56% of UK towns

10Rainford5,573 peopleB⁻#951 of 1,973 nationallybetter than 51% of UK towns

11Lydiate6,516 peopleB⁻#964 of 1,973 nationallybetter than 50% of UK towns

12Huyton with Roby59,844 peopleB⁻#1,012 of 1,973 nationallybetter than 48% of UK towns

13Southport94,438 peopleC⁺#1,100 of 1,973 nationallybetter than 44% of UK towns

14Crosby50,218 peopleC⁺#1,195 of 1,973 nationallybetter than 39% of UK towns

15Maghull20,367 peopleC⁺#1,204 of 1,973 nationallybetter than 38% of UK towns

16St Helens107,684 peopleC⁺#1,215 of 1,973 nationallybetter than 38% of UK towns

17Aintree6,212 peopleC⁺#1,250 of 1,973 nationallybetter than 37% of UK towns

18Newton-le-Willows24,651 peopleC#1,410 of 1,973 nationallybetter than 29% of UK towns

19Birkenhead109,854 peopleC#1,473 of 1,973 nationallybetter than 26% of UK towns

20Liverpool506,564 peopleC#1,495 of 1,973 nationallybetter than 25% of UK towns

21Haydock16,143 peopleC⁻#1,619 of 1,973 nationallybetter than 19% of UK towns

22Litherland18,752 peopleD#1,785 of 1,973 nationallybetter than 11% of UK towns

23Wallasey85,619 peopleD#1,872 of 1,973 nationallybetter than 7% of UK towns

24Kirkby45,559 peopleD#1,875 of 1,973 nationallybetter than 7% of UK towns

25Bootle53,722 peopleD⁻#1,940 of 1,973 nationallybetter than 3% of UK towns

Quick answers

Questions people ask

Which town in Merseyside has the best schools?

Hoylake ranks first on schools among 25 towns, with an A+: better than 96% of UK towns. West Kirby and Greasby follow.

How are these towns ranked?

The School Grade (England only): Key Stage 2 and GCSE results of the state schools in the town (or within 3 km), weighted by pupils and measured against England’s schools. The letter and rank are the same as on each town’s page. How grades work.

Why isn’t my town on this list?

Welsh towns have no School Grade: Wales doesn’t publish school-level results. Garrison towns and university campuses aren’t ranked, and towns without the figures this grade needs are counted above. The list covers Merseyside’s towns of 2,500+ with the figure. Smaller places show it on their own pages; every town in Merseyside is on the county page.

Go deeper

More Merseyside lists

Every list ranks the same 2,500+ towns, so a town’s rank means the same thing on each.

All Merseyside rankings →

Best places to live25 towns · #1 Greasby Most affordable towns25 towns · #1 Birkenhead Safest towns25 towns · #1 Greasby Healthiest towns25 towns · #1 West Kirby Best towns for jobs & income25 towns · #1 Meols Most walkable towns25 towns · #1 Liverpool Towns with the lowest flood risk25 towns · #1 Aintree and 4 more Best towns for the outdoors25 towns · #1 Litherland Most historic towns25 towns · #1 Southport Towns with the most civic life25 towns · #1 Rainford Towns with the highest household incomes25 towns · #1 FormbyDescribed, no letters Towns with the lowest council tax25 towns · #1 Haydock and Newton-le-WillowsDescribed, no letters Towns with the mildest winters25 towns · #1 HoylakeDescribed, no letters Towns with the warmest summers25 towns · #1 St HelensDescribed, no letters Towns with the coolest summers25 towns · #1 FormbyDescribed, no letters Towns with the fewest frosts25 towns · #1 MeolsDescribed, no letters Driest towns25 towns · #1 Hoylake and MeolsDescribed, no letters Wettest towns25 towns · #1 BillingeDescribed, no letters

Sources: DfE Get Information about Schools (16 October 2026), Key Stage 2 performance tables (2023–2025, three-year average) and Key Stage 4 (2025/26, provisional); Ofsted state-funded school inspections as at 30 September 2026 · TownRatings grades: our own summary of the data, ranked against UK towns only. All under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.