The Ferns Primary Academy

About The Ferns Primary Academy

The Ferns Primary Academy in Bolton is clearly a school that local families want, with 105 applications for 55 places in the 2025/26 admissions round, giving an oversubscription ratio of 1.91. That means nearly two families applied for every available spot, and 53 of those 105 applicants put it as their first preference, all of whom were offered a place. This level of demand is a strong signal that parents who know the school rate it highly. The school is led by headteacher Sarah Hambley and educates 450 pupils aged 3 to 11, which is slightly above its official capacity of 420. It has a nursery provision, so families with younger children can get a foot in the door early. The school is non-religious and mixed, and its most recent Ofsted inspection in 2021 graded it Good overall, with Good marks for leadership and management, early years provision, and behaviour and attitudes. That was an ungraded inspection, meaning the school remains Good, and it represents a clear improvement from its previous graded inspection in 2016, which rated it Requires Improvement.

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