Bacup Holy Trinity Stacksteads Church of England Primary School

Bacup Holy Trinity Stacksteads Church of England Primary School has been inspected for the first time in over a decade, transitioning from an Outstanding rating to a Good overall effectiveness grade. The school provides a positive environment where pupils are happy to attend and exhibit a love for learning, fostered by engaging teaching methods. Despite some strengths in curriculum delivery and pupil support, there are areas that require attention, particularly in consistency across subjects and addressing specific gaps in phonics knowledge among some students. While the school supports most pupils well, including those with special educational needs, there are notable concerns regarding the clarity of the curriculum in a few subjects. These issues have resulted in some pupils struggling with fundamental concepts which are essential for their academic progression. Nonetheless, the school has a strong framework in place for personal development, effective behaviour management, and a commitment to fostering a safe and inclusive environment, reflecting its strong community ties and values as a Church of England school.

Strengths

• Pupils are enthusiastic about their learning.
• Strong relationships among pupils foster a respectful and supportive environment.
• The school provides a range of diverse extracurricular activities.
• The curriculum is clear in most subjects, supporting incremental learning.
• Effective phonics program preparation for early readers.
• Strong systems to identify and support pupils with SEND.

Areas for Improvement

• Curriculum gaps in a small number of subjects.
• Some pupils, including those with SEND, do not have sufficient phonics knowledge.
• Lack of clarity in proposed actions for curriculum development hindering governors' oversight.

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 Bacup Holy Trinity Stacksteads Church of England Primary School attended 94.6% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 10.6% 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 Bacup Holy Trinity Stacksteads Church of England 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 Bacup Holy Trinity Stacksteads Church of England Primary School had 21.2 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 8.8% 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, 17.2% of pupils at Bacup Holy Trinity Stacksteads Church of England Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 3.2% 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 Bacup Holy Trinity Stacksteads Church of England Primary School received £7,895 and spent £7,874 for each of its 221 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £140,000 (£635 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 Bacup Holy Trinity Stacksteads Church of England Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Bacup Holy Trinity Stacksteads Church of England Primary School is Good, from an inspection in September 2024.

When was Bacup Holy Trinity Stacksteads Church of England Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Bacup Holy Trinity Stacksteads Church of England Primary School was last inspected in September 2024.

How many pupils does Bacup Holy Trinity Stacksteads Church of England Primary School have?

Bacup Holy Trinity Stacksteads Church of England Primary School has 221 pupils on roll.

What age range does Bacup Holy Trinity Stacksteads Church of England Primary School cover?

Bacup Holy Trinity Stacksteads Church of England Primary School for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are Bacup Holy Trinity Stacksteads Church of England Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

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

Where is Bacup Holy Trinity Stacksteads Church of England Primary School?

Bacup Holy Trinity Stacksteads Church of England Primary School is at Booth Road, Stacksteads, Bacup, Lancashire, OL13 0QW.