Standing view · skills · Salford
improving, held with strong confidence, formed on 5 October 2026 from movements in 2024/2025.
Skills and attainment in Salford have been improving, and the view is held strongly. GCSE grade 4+ in English and maths was 61.2 in 2024/2025, GCSE grade 5+ in English and maths 40.2, and pupils entering English and maths GCSEs 95.5, every one of those recorded as favourable against the usual pattern for its year. Both pass thresholds and the entry rate moving the same way in one year is the strongest shape this series offers: more pupils sitting the exams and more of them passing.
A view is formed only where the evidence names a figure you can check. Each movement listed as a reason had to be large enough to matter and distinctive in at least one way — unusual against this area's own history, unusual against comparable areas, or sustained over several periods. A movement shared with peers counts for less, because it says something about the country rather than about Salford. Where no figure supports a direction we hold no view rather than a hedged one.
| Measure | Period | Direction |
|---|---|---|
| GCSE grade 4+ in English and maths | 2024/2025 | improving |
| GCSE grade 5+ in English and maths | 2024/2025 | improving |
| Pupils entering English and maths GCSEs | 2024/2025 | improving |