St Catharine's CofE Primary School

About St Catharine's CofE Primary School

Parents considering St Catharine’s CofE Primary School in Wigan will find a school that is clearly popular locally, with twice as many applications as places available in the 2025/26 admissions round. The school received 56 total applications for just 28 places, and all 27 first-preference applicants were offered a spot, giving an oversubscription ratio of 2.0. That level of demand suggests families who live close enough to secure a place tend to be very satisfied. While the school doesn’t publish a parent-view survey score, the fact that it fills its intake entirely from first-preference families is a strong signal of local confidence. The school is a Church of England primary for mixed-gender pupils aged 4 to 11, with a current roll of 204 children against a capacity of 210. Headteacher Sue Pittendreigh leads a school where 53.9% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well above the national average, which gives important context to the school’s academic profile.

Academically, St Catharine’s latest Key Stage 2 results from 2023/24 show a mixed picture. Only 40% of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, compared with the Wigan local authority average of 65%, placing the school 95th out of 98 primaries in the borough. In individual subjects, 73% met the expected standard in maths and 70% in writing, but reading was lower at 50%. The proportion reaching the higher standard in all three subjects was just 7%. Average scaled scores were 106 in maths and 101 in reading. The school’s most recent Ofsted inspection in June 2023 rated overall effectiveness as Good, with behaviour and attitudes, and leadership and management both judged Outstanding. The early years provision and quality of education were also rated Good. This represents an improvement from the previous 2015 inspection, where early years provision was graded Requires Improvement.

The school offers a solid range of facilities including a sports hall, playing fields, music rooms, art studios, an ICT suite, a chapel and an outdoor playground. Sports on offer include tennis, football, cricket, netball and swimming, while clubs range from drama and choir to eco club, film club and chess. For families with children who have special educational needs, the school lists provisions for autistic spectrum disorder, speech and language communication needs, social and emotional mental health difficulties, and moderate to severe learning difficulties. With an oversubscription ratio of 2.0, families living within the catchment area will have a realistic chance of a place, but those further out should check admission criteria carefully. St Catharine’s suits families who value a strong Church of England ethos, a school that has improved its Ofsted grades, and a setting where behaviour and leadership are rated outstanding, even if academic outcomes are below the local average.

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