St Thomas the Martyr Voluntary Aided Church of England Primary School

St Thomas the Martyr Voluntary Aided Church of England Primary School continues to perform well and maintains its status as a good school. The inspection highlighted the strong relationships among staff, pupils, and parents, contributing to a supportive and happy environment for students. High expectations set by leaders ensure that most pupils, including those with special educational needs and disabilities, achieve well across the curriculum. However, some areas of the curriculum require clearer guidance to enhance sequential learning, particularly in a few subjects where essential knowledge is not sufficiently defined.

Strengths

• Strong relationships among staff, pupils, and parents
• High expectations of pupils' achievement and behaviour
• Effective support for pupils with SEND
• Well-ordered early years curriculum
• Strong subject knowledge among teachers
• Effective reading support helping most pupils to become confident readers
• Wide range of extracurricular activities enhancing pupil experiences
• Positive behaviour in most lessons

Areas for Improvement

• Some staff are still adapting to the new phonics programme
• In a few subjects, essential knowledge is not clearly defined

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 Thomas the Martyr Voluntary Aided Church of England Primary School attended 94.9% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 13.6% 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, 0.5% of pupils at St Thomas the Martyr Voluntary Aided 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 St Thomas the Martyr Voluntary Aided Church of England Primary School had 19.3 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 16.4% 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, 16.1% of pupils at St Thomas the Martyr Voluntary Aided Church of England Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 4.7% 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 Thomas the Martyr Voluntary Aided Church of England Primary School received £7,526 and spent £7,522 for each of its 203 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £122,000 (£603 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 Skelmersdale · Lancashire local authority: places and applications

What is St Thomas the Martyr Voluntary Aided Church of England Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for St Thomas the Martyr Voluntary Aided Church of England Primary School is Good, from an inspection in April 2023.

When was St Thomas the Martyr Voluntary Aided Church of England Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

St Thomas the Martyr Voluntary Aided Church of England Primary School was last inspected in April 2023.

How many pupils does St Thomas the Martyr Voluntary Aided Church of England Primary School have?

St Thomas the Martyr Voluntary Aided Church of England Primary School has 211 pupils on roll.

What age range does St Thomas the Martyr Voluntary Aided Church of England Primary School cover?

St Thomas the Martyr Voluntary Aided Church of England Primary School for pupils aged 2 to 11.

What are St Thomas the Martyr Voluntary Aided Church of England Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 76% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is St Thomas the Martyr Voluntary Aided Church of England Primary School?

St Thomas the Martyr Voluntary Aided Church of England Primary School is at Highgate Road, Up Holland, Skelmersdale, Lancashire, WN8 0HX.