Gilnow Primary School

Gilnow Primary School is a calm, nurturing school where pupils behave well, attend regularly and feel safe. Inspectors found provision at the expected standard across achievement, attendance and behaviour, curriculum and teaching, early years, inclusion, leadership and governance, and personal development and wellbeing, with safeguarding requirements met. Pupils typically progress well through an ambitious, vocabulary-rich curriculum, early reading is a priority, and children in Reception get off to a strong start. Disadvantaged pupils, pupils with SEND and pupils who speak English as an additional language are well supported and achieve well, and attendance for disadvantaged pupils and pupils with SEND is above average. Personal development is a notable strength, with trips, pupil leadership roles and wellbeing support. However, some weaknesses remain. Writing is the main area of concern: by the end of key stage 2 some pupils have gaps in writing knowledge, and teachers do not consistently choose the best activities to build fluency in writing across the curriculum. Some pupils with SEND also do not always get activities adapted well enough to access learning. National assessment outcomes in the combined reading, writing and mathematics measure have been below average over the last three years, although recent reading and mathematics results are closer to average. Leaders know the school well and governance has been strengthened, but their checks on teaching do not always identify where learning activities could be better chosen, and they should refine how they evaluate the impact of actions to improve teaching. The school serves a community with well above average location deprivation and a higher-than-average proportion of pupils with SEN support. This was a full section 5 inspection, and leaders have already taken positive action to improve reading and mathematics outcomes.

Strengths

• Calm, nurturing environment with polite, respectful pupils who behave well.
• Strong early years provision with a language-rich curriculum and phonics from Reception.
• Pupils learn to read confidently, including SEND and EAL pupils who receive extra support.
• Effective attendance systems, with SEND and disadvantaged pupil attendance above average.
• Strong inclusion and pastoral support for families and pupils facing challenges.
• Ambitious, vocabulary-rich curriculum with detailed guidance and professional development for teachers.
• Pupils attain consistently above the national average in the Year 4 multiplication check.
• Positive attitudes to learning, with bullying rare and dealt with swiftly.
• Rich personal development, including trips, faith understanding, British values and pupil leadership.
• Wellbeing support through worry boxes, trained staff and external agencies.
• Governors have been strengthened since the last inspection and provide support and challenge.
• Leaders use additional funding well to help disadvantaged pupils access learning.
• Pupils are well prepared for the next stage of their education.

Areas for Improvement

• Writing is a weakness in key stage 2, where some pupils have gaps that limit fluent writing across the curriculum.
• Teachers in key stage 2 do not consistently choose the most appropriate learning activities to improve pupils' writing.
• Some activities for pupils with SEND are not adapted well enough to help them access learning.
• Leaders' checks on curriculum delivery sometimes do not identify whether staff choose the best learning activities.
• Leaders need to refine how they evaluate the impact of actions to improve teaching.
• Combined reading, writing and mathematics attainment has been below the national average over the latest three years.

Admissions: local authority offers data from the Department for Education. A school is oversubscribed when at least 5% of the families who put it first were not offered a place, and undersubscribed when everyone who put it first got in but 10% or more of its places were unfilled in the Department's school capacity survey (the latest survey is used for entry years it does not cover). Places: Department for Education, School capacity, from local authorities' annual survey as at 1 May. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024–25); the survey was not run in 2020. Places include sixth form places. Forecasts are the local authority's own for the school's planning area, an area it uses to plan places that is not the school's catchment area. The forecast starts from a head count in 2025; the dashed line is the Department's estimate of places in that area, including those the authority has firm plans for. Planned places are cumulative, and only those with firm plans are counted.

In 2024–25 pupils at Gilnow Primary School attended 95.0% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 16.1% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 13.0%).

Sessions missed

Pupils persistently absent

Source: Department for Education, Pupil absence in schools in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Persistent absence means missing 10% or more of sessions; severe absence means 50% or more. No figures were published for 2019/20.

In 2024–25, 0.4% of pupils at Gilnow Primary School were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). No pupils were permanently excluded.

Pupils suspended at least once

Source: Department for Education, Suspensions and permanent exclusions in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). A pupil can be suspended more than once, so suspensions per 100 pupils can be higher than the share of pupils suspended. Very small numbers are hidden by the DfE. Exclusion figures dropped in 2020 and 2021 because of school closures.

In 2025–26 Gilnow Primary School had 18.6 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 0.0% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 15.7%).

Pupils per teacher

Teachers who left the school within a year

Source: Department for Education, School workforce in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Pupils per teacher counts full-time-equivalent pupils and teachers. Turnover is the share of a year's teachers (full-time equivalent) who were not at the school the following year, whether they moved to another school or left state-funded teaching. Turnover and sickness figures run one year behind the ratios. Sick leave is the share of teachers who took at least one day in the year, so it swings widely at small schools, where a few teachers can make it 0% or 100%. The national figures are for all state schools of the same type.

In 2025–26, 19.9% of pupils at Gilnow Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 2.7% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

Pupils by main type of need

Source: Department for Education, Special educational needs in England (the 2025–26 school census). SEN support is extra help in school without an EHC plan. National figures are for all state-funded primary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2025–26 Gilnow Primary School received £7,868 and spent £7,529 for each of its 212 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £392,000 (£1,851 per pupil).

Income per pupil

Spending per pupil

Source: Department for Education, Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool. Each year is the one the financial year ends in (2024 is 2023–24).

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What is Gilnow Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Gilnow Primary School is Expected standard, from an inspection in September 2026.

When was Gilnow Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Gilnow Primary School was last inspected in September 2026.

How many pupils does Gilnow Primary School have?

Gilnow Primary School has 221 pupils on roll.

What age range does Gilnow Primary School cover?

Gilnow Primary School for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are Gilnow Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 53% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Gilnow Primary School?

Gilnow Primary School is at Gilnow Gardens, Bolton, Greater Manchester, BL1 4LG.