St James' Church of England Primary School

About St James' Church of England Primary School

St James' Church of England Primary School in Blackburn with Darwen is a state primary for children aged 4 to 11, currently home to 191 pupils against a capacity of 210. That leaves a small amount of headroom, but the school is clearly in demand: for the 2025/26 intake, it received 74 applications for just 28 places, with 25 of those as first preferences and only 24 offers made at that preference level. That works out at roughly 2.6 applications for every place. The proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals stands at 25.1%, which is notably higher than the national average for primary schools and suggests the school serves a community with above-average levels of disadvantage. As a Church of England school, it has a religious character, though the data doesn't specify any particular admissions criteria tied to faith. The school is led by headteacher Melissa Tindall and was inspected by Ofsted in October 2024, receiving a Good rating across all graded areas.

Academically, the school's Key Stage 2 results for the 2023/24 year show a mixed picture. In reading, 93% of pupils met the expected standard and 37% reached the higher standard, with an average score of 108 — both strong figures. In maths, 67% met the expected standard and 13% reached the higher standard, with an average score of 102. Writing saw 67% meeting the expected standard and 10% reaching the higher standard. However, when looking at the combined measure of reading, writing and maths at the expected standard, only 50% of pupils achieved this, and just 7% reached the higher standard across all three. That combined figure places the school below the local authority average of 59% and ranks it 37th out of 52 primary schools in Blackburn with Darwen, putting it in the bottom half nationally. Progress scores are not available in the data, so it's hard to say how much value the school adds relative to pupils' starting points.

The school offers a decent range of facilities including music rooms, an ICT suite, a chapel and an outdoor playground, plus sports such as swimming, tennis and cricket. Clubs include coding, film club, art club and book club. For children with additional needs, the school lists support for specific learning difficulties like dyslexia, speech, language and communication needs, social, emotional and mental health needs, and visual impairment. Parent views, based on 24 responses collected between September 2024 and September 2025, are overwhelmingly positive: 96% would recommend the school, and 100% of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that their child is happy and feels safe. The strongest area of concern appears around communication — 13% of parents disagreed that the school makes them aware of what their child will learn, and 8% disagreed that they are kept informed of their child's progress. This is a school that suits families who value a strong sense of safety and happiness, and who are comfortable with a broadly average academic profile in a popular, oversubscribed setting.

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