Lower Darwen Primary School

About Lower Darwen Primary School

Lower Darwen Primary School sits within the Blackburn with Darwen local authority, where it ranks 47th out of 52 primary schools based on the proportion of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths. That places it in the bottom half of schools locally, with the nearest Outstanding-rated school, Blackburn the Redeemer CofE Primary, just 1.4 kilometres away. The top-performing peers in the area include The Olive School, Blackburn, Blackburn the Redeemer CofE Primary and St Gabriel's Church of England Primary School, all of which score significantly higher on the same metric. The school itself is a state-funded, mixed-gender primary for children aged 4 to 11, with no religious character and no nursery or sixth form provision. It is led by headteacher Simone Addy and currently has 389 pupils on roll, just under its capacity of 420.

In its most recent Ofsted inspection in March 2023, the school was rated Good across all five categories: overall effectiveness, quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, and leadership and management. The early years provision was also judged Good. This continues a pattern of Good ratings, as the previous inspection in 2012 also awarded the school a Grade 2 overall. When it comes to academic outcomes, the 2023/24 Key Stage 2 results show that 35% of pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths, compared to the local authority average of 59%. Only 2% reached the higher standard across all three subjects. In individual subjects, 44% met the expected standard in reading, 51% in writing and 54% in maths. Average scaled scores were 100 in reading and 102 in maths. The school ranks in the bottom 50% nationally and regionally for this key measure.

The school is clearly popular with local families: for the 2025/26 intake, it received 113 applications for 50 places, making it oversubscribed with a ratio of 2.26 applicants per place. Of those, 41 were first-preference applications, and all 41 received an offer. Facilities include a library, sports hall, ICT suite, playing fields and a chapel, and the school offers a broad range of sports from athletics and football to cricket, gymnastics, netball, tennis and rounders. Extra-curricular clubs include chess, film club, gardening, book club, choir and coding. For children with additional needs, the school provides support for specific learning difficulties such as dyslexia, moderate learning difficulties, social, emotional and mental health needs, speech, language and communication needs, and visual impairment, alongside a resourced provision. This is a school that suits families who value a Good-rated local option with strong community demand, though those prioritising top academic outcomes may want to consider higher-performing peers nearby.

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