St John the Evangelist RC Primary School, Bromley Cross, Bolton

St John the Evangelist RC Primary School has been confirmed as a good school following its inspection in January 2024. Pupils are welcomed into a friendly and supportive environment where they feel valued and happy. The school maintains high expectations for learning and behavior, and most pupils are thriving academically and socially, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). The school's ambitious curriculum is well-structured, providing a solid foundation for learning, although there are areas for improvement concerning clarity in knowledge retention in some subjects and phonics instruction.

Strengths

• Pupils are welcomed into a warm and caring school community.
• The school promotes kindness and respect among pupils.
• An ambitious, well-organized curriculum enhances learning.
• Pupils with SEND are well supported and typically learn effectively.
• High expectations for pupil behavior lead to a calm and purposeful atmosphere.

Areas for Improvement

• Some subjects lack clarity in the essential knowledge that pupils should remember.
• Inconsistency in phonics instruction hinders some pupils' progress.

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 St John the Evangelist RC Primary School, Bromley Cross, Bolton attended 95.7% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 13.5% 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, 0.6% of pupils at St John the Evangelist RC Primary School, Bromley Cross, Bolton 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 St John the Evangelist RC Primary School, Bromley Cross, Bolton had 20.3 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, 11.7% of pupils at St John the Evangelist RC Primary School, Bromley Cross, Bolton were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 3.7% 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 St John the Evangelist RC Primary School, Bromley Cross, Bolton received £7,165 and spent £7,212 for each of its 162 pupils. It ended the year with a deficit of £7,000 (-£42 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 St John the Evangelist RC Primary School, Bromley Cross, Bolton's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for St John the Evangelist RC Primary School, Bromley Cross, Bolton is Good, from an inspection in March 2024.

When was St John the Evangelist RC Primary School, Bromley Cross, Bolton last inspected by Ofsted?

St John the Evangelist RC Primary School, Bromley Cross, Bolton was last inspected in March 2024.

How many pupils does St John the Evangelist RC Primary School, Bromley Cross, Bolton have?

St John the Evangelist RC Primary School, Bromley Cross, Bolton has 162 pupils on roll.

What age range does St John the Evangelist RC Primary School, Bromley Cross, Bolton cover?

St John the Evangelist RC Primary School, Bromley Cross, Bolton for pupils aged 5 to 11.

What are St John the Evangelist RC Primary School, Bromley Cross, Bolton's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 58% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is St John the Evangelist RC Primary School, Bromley Cross, Bolton?

St John the Evangelist RC Primary School, Bromley Cross, Bolton is at Darwen Road, Bromley Cross, Bolton, Lancashire, BL7 9HT.