Coates Lane Primary School

Coates Lane Primary School is a happy, welcoming and caring school where pupils, including children in early years, thrive. Pupils behave well, enjoy learning and benefit from an ambitious curriculum, strong reading and phonics provision, and effective support for pupils with SEND. Personal development is a notable strength, with pupils developing empathy, understanding of mental health and preparation for life in modern Britain. Inspectors found good provision across the inspected areas. Leaders have an accurate view of the school's strengths and priorities, staff receive extensive professional development, and governors challenge appropriately. Safeguarding is effective, attendance is mostly regular, and the school works successfully to improve attendance for pupils who need it. The early years curriculum prepares children well for Year 1. The main areas for improvement are the writing curriculum, which does not set out grammar, punctuation and handwriting knowledge clearly enough, and a small number of subjects where pupils have gaps and misconceptions are not always addressed quickly. Published Year 6 outcomes in 2024 did not fully reflect the school's high expectations. This was the school's first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic, and under the current graded inspection arrangements no overall effectiveness grade was given.

Strengths

• Happy, welcoming and caring school with warm relationships
• Pupils behave well and have positive attitudes to learning
• Ambitious and well-sequenced curriculum across subjects and early years
• Strong phonics and reading provision helps pupils become fluent readers
• Effective support for pupils with SEND, who are fully included
• Well-designed personal development, including mental health and modern Britain
• Wide range of clubs, visits and residential trips
• Effective safeguarding arrangements
• Leaders and governors understand strengths and priorities
• Staff benefit from extensive professional development
• Successful work to improve attendance for less regular pupils

Areas for Improvement

• Writing curriculum lacks clear progression in grammar, punctuation and handwriting
• In a small number of subjects, pupils have gaps in knowledge and struggle to connect prior learning
• Staff sometimes do not address misconceptions quickly enough before moving pupils on
• Published Year 6 outcomes in 2024 did not fully reflect the school's high expectations

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 Coates Lane Primary School attended 93.7% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 12.3% 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, 1.1% of pupils at Coates Lane 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 Coates Lane Primary School had 20.1 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 10.5% 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, 9.6% of pupils at Coates Lane Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 5.1% 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 Coates Lane Primary School received £8,231 and spent £8,638 for each of its 157 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £88,000 (£559 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 Barnoldswick · Lancashire local authority: places and applications

What is Coates Lane Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Coates Lane Primary School is Good, from an inspection in March 2025.

When was Coates Lane Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Coates Lane Primary School was last inspected in March 2025.

How many pupils does Coates Lane Primary School have?

Coates Lane Primary School has 157 pupils on roll.

What age range does Coates Lane Primary School cover?

Coates Lane Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

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

In 2025, 37% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Coates Lane Primary School?

Coates Lane Primary School is at Kirkstall Drive, Coates Lane Primary School, Barnoldswick, Lancashire, BB18 6EZ.