Balderstone St Leonard's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School

About Balderstone St Leonard's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School

Balderstone St Leonard's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School is a small state primary in the Ribble Valley, part of the Lancashire local authority. Among the 25 primary schools in the Ribble Valley, it ranks 7th, placing it comfortably in the top quarter locally. Its closest peers at the top of the local leaderboard are Crawford Village Primary School, New Longton All Saints CofE Primary School, and St George's Church of England Primary School in Chorley. With just 103 pupils against a capacity of 105, the school is near full, and it was oversubscribed for the 2025/26 intake, receiving 32 applications for 16 places, with 15 of those going to first-preference families. The school has a Church of England religious character and offers nursery provision for children from age three. Headteacher Victoria Gow leads a setting where 7.1% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, a figure well below the national average.

Academically, Balderstone St Leonard's performs strongly against local benchmarks. In the 2023/24 Key Stage 2 assessments, 77% of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, well above the Lancashire local authority average of 60%. The school's ranking score of 77 places it in the top 25% nationally among primary schools. Reading scores are particularly impressive, with 92% of pupils reaching the expected standard and 62% achieving a higher standard. In maths, 85% met the expected level and 38% reached the higher standard, with an average scaled score of 107. Writing also saw 92% at the expected standard and 23% at the higher level. The school's most recent Ofsted inspection, an ungraded visit in September 2023, confirmed it remains Good, a rating it has held since its last graded inspection in 2014, when leadership, management and early years provision were all judged Good.

The school offers a practical, well-equipped environment for its pupils. Facilities include an art studio, forest school area, gymnasium, outdoor playground, dining hall, sensory room, ICT suite, music rooms and a chapel. Sports provision covers gymnastics, athletics, tennis, rounders, netball, swimming and cricket. A range of clubs runs alongside the curriculum, including film club, coding, book club, gardening and eco club. The school has identified SEND provisions for specific learning difficulties including dyslexia, moderate learning difficulty, social, emotional and mental health needs, and speech, language and communication needs. For families seeking a Church of England primary with strong academic outcomes in a rural Ribble Valley setting, Balderstone St Leonard's is a popular choice, as its oversubscription figures suggest. The small cohort size and strong local reputation make it worth registering interest early for prospective parents.

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