Dalton St Michael's Church of England Primary School

Dalton St Michael’s Church of England Primary School is performing well overall, maintaining a good standard of education across various areas. Pupils at the school are happy and feel valued, which contributes to a positive learning environment. The school community is small and nurturing, supporting individual pupil needs effectively, including those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). The curriculum is rich and broad, although there are a few subjects where clarification on specific content delivery could enhance teaching effectiveness further. The leadership team has created a supportive atmosphere for both students and staff, fostering well-being and engagement within the school community. While the quality of teaching is generally strong, some areas require attention regarding curriculum development and effective assessment practices to ensure all pupils develop secure understandings before progressing. Overall, the school shows promise and commitment to ongoing improvement.

Strengths

• Pupils are happy and feel safe in a nurturing environment.
• Teachers have high expectations for pupils' behaviour and achievement.
• The curriculum is rich, broad and mostly well thought out.
• Effective support for pupils with SEND ensures full access to the curriculum.
• Early reading instruction is prioritized, helping children to become confident readers.
• Pupils engage positively with their local community through various activities.
• Staff feel well-supported by leaders, reducing workload and enhancing well-being.

Areas for Improvement

• Some subjects have unclear curriculum development hindering teachers' instructional planning.
• A few teachers do not use assessment information effectively to ensure secure understanding of new concepts.

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 Dalton St Michael's Church of England Primary School attended 93.7% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 14.3% 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, 0.0% of pupils at Dalton St Michael's 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 Dalton St Michael's Church of England Primary School had 14.5 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 23.8% 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, 13.1% of pupils at Dalton St Michael's Church of England Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 3.3% 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 Dalton St Michael's Church of England Primary School received £11,327 and spent £11,450 for each of its 61 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £18,000 (£296 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

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What is Dalton St Michael's Church of England Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Dalton St Michael's Church of England Primary School is Good, from an inspection in May 2023.

When was Dalton St Michael's Church of England Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Dalton St Michael's Church of England Primary School was last inspected in May 2023.

How many pupils does Dalton St Michael's Church of England Primary School have?

Dalton St Michael's Church of England Primary School has 61 pupils on roll.

What age range does Dalton St Michael's Church of England Primary School cover?

Dalton St Michael's Church of England Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

Where is Dalton St Michael's Church of England Primary School?

Dalton St Michael's Church of England Primary School is at Higher Lane, Dalton, Wigan, Lancashire, WN8 7RP.