Our Lady and St Anselm's Roman Catholic Primary School, Whitworth

About Our Lady and St Anselm's Roman Catholic Primary School, Whitworth

Our Lady and St Anselm's Roman Catholic Primary School in Whitworth holds a Good rating from its most recent Ofsted inspection in March 2024, a shift from the Outstanding grade it achieved in 2011. The inspection report rated every category — quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and early years provision — as Good. Academically, the school's Key Stage 2 results for 2023/24 tell a strong story. 80% of pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, well above the Lancashire local authority average of 60%. This places the school third out of 31 primary schools in Rossendale and in the top 25% nationally. In individual subjects, 88% reached the expected level in both reading and maths, with average scores of 106 and 105 respectively. Higher standard attainment was also notable: 32% in reading, 20% in writing and 12% in maths.

The school's Progress 8 scores are not available, but the attainment data paints a clear picture of solid academic performance. Writing is a particular strength, with 84% reaching the expected standard and 20% achieving the higher standard. Maths and reading both saw 88% of pupils meeting expectations. The school's ranking score of 80 places it comfortably ahead of many local peers, though it sits behind top performers like Crawford Village Primary School and New Longton All Saints CofE Primary School. With 204 pupils on roll against a capacity of 210, the school is near full. 14.2% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, slightly below the national average, suggesting a relatively mixed intake. The school does not have a sixth form or nursery provision, focusing solely on primary-age children from 4 to 11.

Facilities include a sports hall, library, outdoor playground, playing fields, a sensory room, a forest school area and a chapel. Sports on offer include cross country, cricket, swimming, football and gymnastics, while clubs range from coding and gardening to chess and choir. The school has a broad range of SEND provisions, covering specific learning difficulties like dyslexia, moderate learning difficulty, social, emotional and mental health needs, speech, language and communication needs, physical disability, autistic spectrum disorder and other difficulties. For the 2025/26 academic year, the school was oversubscribed: 61 applications for 24 places, with 23 first-preference offers made. This level of demand reflects its strong local reputation. It will particularly suit Catholic families or those who value a faith-based primary with strong academic outcomes and a wide range of enrichment opportunities.

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