St Peter's Smithills Dean Church of England Primary School

About St Peter's Smithills Dean Church of England Primary School

St Peter's Smithills Dean Church of England Primary School sits in Bolton, and its Key Stage 2 results for 2023/24 put it comfortably ahead of the local authority average. The proportion of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined was 72%, compared with the Bolton average of 66% for primary schools. That six-point gap is a meaningful one, and it places the school in the top third of all primaries in the borough, ranked 29th out of 87. The school also outperforms the LA average on individual subjects: 94% of pupils met the expected standard in reading, and 91% did so in maths. At the higher standard, 19% of pupils achieved the top marks across all three subjects. The school's overall Ofsted rating is Good, confirmed in an ungraded inspection in 2022, and it has held a Good rating across both its most recent graded and ungraded inspections, with leadership and management, early years provision and behaviour all judged Good.

Looking more closely at the numbers, the school's average scaled scores in reading (108) and maths (107) are both above the national benchmark of 100, and the proportion of pupils reaching the higher standard in reading (34%) and maths (38%) is strong. Writing is a relative weaker spot: 72% of pupils reached the expected standard, and only 22% achieved the higher standard. That said, the combined expected standard figure of 72% is a solid result, and the school ranks in the top 26% nationally on this metric. There is no Progress 8 data available for primary schools, so it is not possible to say how much value the school adds relative to pupils' starting points, but the raw attainment figures are clearly above the local norm. The school's ranking in the North West region is 518th out of 2,065 primary schools, placing it in the top 25% regionally.

The school is oversubscribed: for 2025/26, there were 67 applications for 30 places, with 35 first-preference applications and 30 offers made to first-preference families. That oversubscription ratio of 2.23 suggests strong local demand. Facilities include a sports hall, gymnasium, playing fields, music rooms, an ICT suite and a chapel, and the school offers a range of sports and clubs including football, netball, chess and coding. SEND provision covers specific learning difficulties, speech and language needs, autistic spectrum disorder and visual impairment, among others. With 8.8% of pupils eligible for free school meals, the school has a slightly lower-than-average level of disadvantage for a state primary. This is a Church of England school with a clear religious character, and it will suit families who value above-average academic outcomes in a popular, well-regarded local primary with a Good Ofsted rating and a strong set of facilities.

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