Ladybridge Community Primary School

About Ladybridge Community Primary School

Ladybridge Community Primary School is clearly a popular choice among local families, with 89 applications for just 44 places in the 2025/26 admissions round, giving an oversubscription ratio of 2.02. That means more than two families applied for every available spot. Of those, 32 were first-preference applications, and all 32 were offered places, which suggests that for families who put it top of their list, the school is a realistic option. The school's most recent Ofsted inspection in 2022 rated it Good across the board, including for behaviour and attitudes, personal development, and early years provision. This is a notable improvement from its previous inspection in 2018, when it was rated Requires Improvement. The headteacher, Colin Watson, leads a school of 369 pupils, with capacity for 390, so it is running close to full.

Academically, Ladybridge performs solidly against local benchmarks. In the 2023/24 Key Stage 2 results, 68% of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, which is just above the Bolton local authority average of 66%. The school ranks 41st out of 87 primary schools in Bolton on this measure, placing it in the top half. In individual subjects, 85% of pupils met the expected standard in both reading and maths, with average scores of 106 in each. The proportion reaching the higher standard was 31% in reading and 32% in maths, though only 5% achieved that across all three subjects. Writing was a relative weak spot, with 71% at expected and just 7% at the higher level. Nationally, the school sits around the 35th percentile among all primaries, so it is a solidly mid-ranking school with no major red flags.

The school offers a good range of facilities for a primary, including a Forest School, a sensory room, music rooms, and an ICT suite. Sports provision covers tennis, football, netball, cricket, rounders and cross country, and there are clubs for gardening, science and drama. For families with children who have additional needs, Ladybridge has a SEN unit and provisions for moderate learning difficulties, speech and language needs, autistic spectrum disorder, and social, emotional and mental health support. The school is non-religious and does not have a nursery or sixth form. Given its oversubscription and improving Ofsted record, this is a school that suits families looking for a well-regarded, inclusive local primary in Bolton with strong behaviour and a clear upward trajectory.

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