Morecambe and Heysham Torrisholme Community Primary School

About Morecambe and Heysham Torrisholme Community Primary School

Morecambe and Heysham Torrisholme Community Primary School is a state primary for mixed pupils aged 3 to 11, located in the Lancaster borough of Lancashire. It currently has 410 pupils on roll, just shy of its official capacity of 420, meaning it is essentially full. The proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals stands at 12%, which is below the national average for primary schools and suggests a relatively less disadvantaged intake than many schools nationally. Demand for places is notably high: for the 2025/26 academic year, the school received 191 applications for just 56 places, an oversubscription ratio of 3.41 to one. Of those, 51 first-preference families were offered a place, indicating that while it is a popular choice locally, securing a spot is competitive. The school does not have a religious character, so admissions are handled by the local authority on a non-denominational basis.

Academically, the school performs solidly against local benchmarks. In the 2023/24 Key Stage 2 assessments, 64% of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, which is four percentage points above the Lancashire local authority average of 60%. This places the school 21st out of 46 primary schools in the Lancaster ranking, sitting comfortably in the top half. In individual subjects, reading and writing both saw 72% of pupils meeting the expected standard, while maths was slightly lower at 70%. At the higher standard, 8% of pupils achieved the combined higher score, with maths the strongest subject at 38% higher attainment. The school’s most recent Ofsted inspection, in July 2025, rated it Good overall, with an Outstanding mark for personal development. Its previous inspection in 2016 had awarded an Outstanding overall grade, so the current Good rating represents a slight decline, though behaviour and attitudes, leadership, and the early years provision were all judged Good.

The school offers a broad range of facilities including a sports hall, gymnasium, playing fields, a forest school area, a sensory room, and a chapel. Sports provision covers rounders, football, cricket, cross country, tennis, and dance, while clubs include science, art, coding, and drama. For children with special educational needs, the school lists support for specific learning difficulties like dyslexia, moderate learning difficulties, social and emotional mental health needs, speech and language challenges, physical disabilities, and autistic spectrum disorder. Parent View responses, based on 90 respondents, show 66% would recommend the school. However, there are notable areas of concern: only 50% of parents agreed or strongly agreed that concerns are dealt with properly, and 50% disagreed or strongly disagreed that SEND children receive the support they need. This school will suit families who value a non-denominational primary with strong personal development and a full range of facilities, but those with SEND children may want to investigate support arrangements more closely.

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