OFSTED
28 April 2026
Latest inspection
Latest published outcome
Met
Renewed framework
Safeguarding
Met
Inclusion
Expected standard
Curriculum & teaching
Expected standard
Achievement
Expected standard
Attendance & behaviour
Expected standard
Personal development
Expected standard
Leadership & governance
Expected standard
INSPECTION HISTORY
Previous Ofsted activity
10 May 2023
Graded inspection
Requires improvement
Published
18 October 2023
SCHOOL DETAILS
About this school
School type
Free schools
Phase
Primary
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
—
Local authority
Manchester
Trust
BIG LIFE SCHOOLS
Census date
15 January 2026
PUPIL PROFILE
2025/26
School community
Latest published pupil characteristics for 2025/26.
Total pupils
363
363 full-time ·
0 part-time
Female pupils
178
49.0% of pupils
Male pupils
185
51.0% of pupils
Free school meals
Pupils eligible for free school meals.
27.5 pts
above England
School
52.3%
Manchester
46.4%
North West
28.5%
England
24.8%
English as an additional language
Pupils whose first language is not English.
57.9 pts
above England
School
78.2%
Manchester
42.0%
North West
18.1%
England
20.3%
Young carers
Pupils recorded as young carers.
7.8 pts
above England
School
8.8%
Manchester
1.9%
North West
0.8%
England
1.0%
Ethnicity
Largest recorded pupil groups.
Any other ethnic group
33.9%
123
Pakistani
24.2%
88
African
6.9%
25
White British
6.3%
23
Any other Mixed background
5.8%
21
Any other White background
5.0%
18
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
20.4%
74 of
363 pupils
0.4 pts
below England
England:
20.8%
England
14.8%
1.2 pts
above
England
6.0%
1.6 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
47.0%
13.4 pts
below England
EXPECTED STANDARD
69.0%
Reading
4.8 pts below England
School
69.0%
Manchester
71.2%
North West
73.2%
England
73.8%
EXPECTED STANDARD
68.0%
Writing
2.3 pts below England
School
68.0%
Manchester
66.0%
North West
69.2%
England
70.3%
EXPECTED STANDARD
68.0%
Maths
4.0 pts below England
School
68.0%
Manchester
70.8%
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
5.59%
Overall absence
Percentage of possible sessions missed.
0.62 pts
lower than
England
School
5.59%
Manchester
6.82%
North West
6.25%
England
6.22%
ABSENCE RATE
20.16%
Persistent absence
Pupils missing 10% or more of sessions.
4.35 pts
higher than
England
School
20.16%
Manchester
18.60%
North West
15.89%
England
15.82%
ABSENCE RATE
2.96%
Severe absence
Pupils missing 50% or more of sessions.
1.15 pts
higher than
England
School
2.96%
Manchester
2.21%
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
86.4%
1.8 pts
below England
Unity Community Primary
86.4%
Manchester
91.3%
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.