OFSTED
13 June 2023
Latest graded inspection
Latest published outcome
Outstanding
OEIF
Quality of education
Outstanding
Behaviour & attitudes
Outstanding
Personal development
Outstanding
Leadership & management
Outstanding
INSPECTION HISTORY
Previous Ofsted activity
15 January 2020
Ungraded inspection
School remains Good (Improving) - S5 Next
Published
5 February 2020
SCHOOL DETAILS
About this school
School type
Voluntary aided school
Phase
Primary
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
Church of England
Local authority
Lancashire
Trust
Not applicable
Census date
15 January 2026
PUPIL PROFILE
2025/26
School community
Latest published pupil characteristics for 2025/26.
Total pupils
229
213 full-time ·
16 part-time
Female pupils
115
50.2% of pupils
Male pupils
114
49.8% of pupils
Free school meals
Pupils eligible for free school meals.
11.7 pts
below England
School
13.1%
Chorley
17.6%
North West
28.5%
England
24.8%
English as an additional language
Pupils whose first language is not English.
8.5 pts
below England
School
11.8%
Chorley
5.8%
North West
18.1%
England
20.3%
Young carers
Pupils recorded as young carers.
1.0 pts
below England
School
0.0%
Chorley
0.4%
North West
0.8%
England
1.0%
Ethnicity
Largest recorded pupil groups.
White British
74.7%
171
Any other Mixed background
4.4%
10
White and Black Caribbean
4.4%
10
Pakistani
3.5%
8
Indian
3.1%
7
African
2.6%
6
Council, regional and national comparisons
are pupil-weighted using published school
census counts.
ADDITIONAL NEEDS
2025/26
Special educational needs
Pupils receiving SEN support or with an education, health and care plan.
Pupils with SEN
21.4%
49 of
229 pupils
0.6 pts
above England
England:
20.8%
England
14.8%
2.2 pts
above
England
6.0%
1.7 pts
below
PRIMARY NEEDS
Pupils
Most common identified needs
SEN comparisons are pupil-weighted using published 2025/26 Department for Education school-level data. Primary needs combine pupils receiving SEN support and pupils with EHC plans.
ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE
2024/25
Key stage 2 outcomes
Published Department for Education results for 2024/25.
EXPECTED STANDARD
Reading, writing & maths
58.0%
2.4 pts
below England
EXPECTED STANDARD
68.0%
Reading
5.8 pts below England
School
68.0%
Chorley
75.1%
North West
73.2%
England
73.8%
EXPECTED STANDARD
65.0%
Writing
5.3 pts below England
School
65.0%
Chorley
70.3%
North West
69.2%
England
70.3%
EXPECTED STANDARD
74.0%
Maths
2.0 pts above England
School
74.0%
Chorley
74.8%
North West
71.7%
England
72.0%
School results show the percentage of
pupils meeting the expected standard.
Council, regional and national
comparisons are averages of published
school-level percentages and are not
pupil-weighted official attainment rates.
ATTENDANCE & ABSENCE
2024/25
Attendance profile
Published Department for Education absence data for 2024/25. Lower absence rates are generally better.
ABSENCE RATE
3.59%
Overall absence
Percentage of possible sessions missed.
2.62 pts
lower than
England
School
3.59%
Chorley
4.64%
North West
6.25%
England
6.22%
ABSENCE RATE
8.38%
Persistent absence
Pupils missing 10% or more of sessions.
7.44 pts
lower than
England
School
8.38%
Chorley
10.33%
North West
15.89%
England
15.82%
ABSENCE RATE
0.00%
Severe absence
Pupils missing 50% or more of sessions.
1.80 pts
lower than
England
School
0.00%
Chorley
0.80%
North West
1.75%
England
1.80%
Council, regional and national
comparisons are averages of published
school-level percentages rather than
pupil-weighted official absence rates.
HOW DOES IT COMPARE?
School context
Comparison with open primary schools.
CAPACITY
Capacity utilisation
127.2%
39.0 pts
above England
Chorley St James' Church of England Primary School
127.2%
Chorley
88.5%
North West
90.6%
England
88.2%
Benchmarks use open schools in the
same phase. Capacity utilisation is
calculated from published pupil and
capacity figures.