St Gabriel's Church of England Primary School

About St Gabriel's Church of England Primary School

St Gabriel's Church of England Primary School in Rochdale is a state primary for children aged 3 to 11, currently home to 224 pupils against a capacity of 240. That leaves a little breathing room, but don't let that fool you into thinking it's an easy school to get into. For the 2025/26 intake, the school received 67 applications for just 27 places, with 26 of those offers going to first-preference families. That works out at roughly 2.5 applications for every spot, a clear signal that local parents are keen. The school serves a community with above-average disadvantage: 30.7% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, compared with a national primary average of around 24%. That context matters when you look at the school's results and the support it offers. It's a Church of England school, led by headteacher Kathryn Chubb, and it also has nursery provision for the youngest children.

Academically, St Gabriel's sits in the bottom half of Rochdale's primary schools, ranked 33rd out of 52 on the key stage 2 reading, writing and maths expected standard measure. In the 2023/24 results, 52% of pupils reached the expected standard in all three subjects, which is below the local authority average of 58%. The school's strongest individual subject at KS2 was reading, where 81% met the expected standard and 19% hit the higher standard. Maths followed with 65% at expected and 10% at higher, while writing saw 61% at expected and none at the higher level. Average scaled scores were 104 in reading and 102 in maths. In its most recent Ofsted inspection, an ungraded visit in June 2024, the school was confirmed to remain Good, a rating it has held consistently across its previous graded inspections, including back to 2010. The early years provision, leadership and management, and overall effectiveness were all judged Good.

The school offers a decent range of facilities for its size, including playing fields, a library, a gymnasium, a sensory room, music and art rooms, and a chapel. Sports provision includes swimming, cross country, athletics, cricket and netball, while clubs run the gamut from gardening and eco club to chess and science club. For families with children who have additional needs, St Gabriel's lists a broad set of SEND provisions, covering specific learning difficulties like dyslexia, moderate learning difficulty, speech and language needs, visual and multi-sensory impairment, physical disability, and social, emotional and mental health support. The school is oversubscribed, so if you're considering it, make sure you're aware of the admission criteria, likely prioritising church connection and catchment. It's a solid, well-regarded local option for families who want a faith-based primary with strong pastoral support and a realistic picture of academic outcomes.

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