West Street Community Primary School

West Street Community Primary School is a calm, welcoming school where staff know pupils well and most pupils behave well. Pupils value friendships and respond positively to leadership opportunities, and personal development is supported through a wide range of activities. Safeguarding arrangements are effective. However, pupils' achievement is variable, including in reading and mathematics, and some pupils are not as well prepared as they should be for the next stage of education. The curriculum is ambitious and well organised, and reading sits at its heart, but learning does not consistently build on what pupils already know. Teachers do not always check prior knowledge securely or address gaps and misconceptions before moving on. Early years children do not always embed learning consistently, particularly letter and number formation, and support for older pupils who struggle with reading is inconsistent. Identification of SEND needs is sometimes inaccurate or slow, and attendance remains a significant barrier for some pupils. Leadership has introduced initiatives to improve attendance and achievement, but analysis of information is not sharp enough to identify priorities and root causes precisely, which slows improvement and increases staff workload. Governors sometimes lack clarity about the agreed improvement focus. This was the school's first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic, and there has been a new headteacher and a recently appointed chair of governors.

Strengths

• Calm and welcoming school environment where staff know pupils well
• Pupils are confident staff will help with their worries
• Effective support for pupils to become independent and resilient
• Most pupils behave well and are considerate of others
• Pupils value firm friendships and social times together
• Pupils respond well to leadership opportunities and help others willingly
• Ambitious and well-organised curriculum delivered as intended
• Reading sits at the heart of the curriculum with high-quality literature
• Phonics teaching has been recently retrained and is improving for younger pupils
• Wide range of high-quality activities broadens pupils' knowledge and well-being
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective

Areas for Improvement

• Pupils' achievement is variable across the school, including in reading and mathematics
• Some pupils have gaps in knowledge or insecure learning and are not fully prepared for next stages
• Learning does not consistently build on pupils' prior knowledge
• Teachers do not consistently check prior knowledge before introducing new content
• Misconceptions and gaps are not always identified and addressed
• Early years children do not consistently embed learning, especially letter and number formation
• Support for older pupils who find reading difficult is inconsistent
• Identification of SEND needs is not consistently accurate or timely
• Attendance rates have been high for some time and remain a barrier for some pupils
• Leaders do not analyse information well enough to identify trends and root causes
• School improvement priorities lack clarity, hindering governors' support and challenge
• Initiatives to improve attendance and achievement have variable success

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 West Street Community Primary School attended 91.9% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 29.3% 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, 1.0% of pupils at West Street Community 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 West Street Community Primary School had 22.6 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 12.5% 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, 15.5% of pupils at West Street Community Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 8.8% 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 West Street Community Primary School received £9,724 and spent £9,619 for each of its 181 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £57,000 (£314 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).

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Colne · Lancashire local authority: places and applications

What is West Street Community Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for West Street Community Primary School is Requires Improvement, from an inspection in May 2025.

When was West Street Community Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

West Street Community Primary School was last inspected in May 2025.

How many pupils does West Street Community Primary School have?

West Street Community Primary School has 181 pupils on roll.

What age range does West Street Community Primary School cover?

West Street Community Primary School for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are West Street Community Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 52% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is West Street Community Primary School?

West Street Community Primary School is at West Street, Colne, Lancashire, BB8 0HW.