St Silas's CofE Primary School

About St Silas's CofE Primary School

St Silas's CofE Primary School sits in the bottom half of Blackburn with Darwen primaries, ranked 46th out of 52 schools in the local authority. Its headline Key Stage 2 measure — the percentage of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths — sits at 35%, well below the LA average of 59%. That gap is significant, and it places the school in the bottom 50 nationally by this metric. But the picture is more nuanced than a single number suggests. In maths, 61% of pupils met the expected standard, and the average maths score of 102 is respectable. Reading and writing expected rates are lower, at 50% and 52% respectively, and the proportion reaching the higher standard in any subject is small — just 8% in maths and reading, and 2% in writing and the combined measure. So while the school clearly has ground to make up on the LA average, the maths outcomes offer a brighter spot.

The school's most recent Ofsted inspection in April 2023 rated it Good across all five categories — quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and early years provision. That's a notable turnaround from its previous inspection in 2018, when it was rated Inadequate overall, with leadership and management judged as Requires Improvement and early years provision also Requires Improvement. Under headteacher Kathryn Haczycki, the school has clearly stabilised. The Progress 8 scores for reading, writing and maths are not available in the data, so it's hard to say how much value the school adds relative to pupils' starting points. But the Ofsted report notes that behaviour and attitudes are Good, and the school has a Church of England character that may appeal to families wanting a faith-based setting. With 340 pupils on roll against a capacity of 420, there is some room for growth.

The school is oversubscribed for 2025/26, with 53 applications for 24 places and 14 first-preference offers, giving an oversubscription ratio of 2.21. That suggests local demand is strong despite the middling results. Facilities include a library, sports hall, playing fields, music rooms, an ICT suite and a chapel. Sports on offer range from tennis and swimming to gymnastics and cricket, and there are clubs including film, chess, gardening and choir. SEND provision covers specific learning difficulties like dyslexia, moderate learning difficulty, social and emotional mental health needs, speech and language communication needs, and visual impairment. For families who prioritise a stable, Good-rated Church of England primary with a broad extracurricular offer and a headteacher who has overseen a clear improvement journey, St Silas's is worth a closer look — especially if your child's strengths lie in maths.

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