Dolphinholme Church of England Primary School

Dolphinholme Church of England Primary School has made significant strides since its previous outstanding inspection, now judged to be good overall. The school provides a positive environment where pupils are happy, engaged, and supported, which has led to strong progress, especially in the areas of reading and personal development. Notable strengths include the effective curriculum design, high expectations for all pupils, and strong community support from parents and governors. Despite its strengths, some recent refinements in specific subjects have led to gaps in pupils’ knowledge, and there is a need to embed these changes more effectively. The school is currently working on enhancing its assessment systems to better determine pupils' understanding and to address any misconceptions, thus ensuring continued academic growth.

Strengths

• Pupils show strong progress through the curriculum.
• The school has a broad and ambitious curriculum.
• Teachers deliver lessons with confidence and use assessment information effectively in most subjects.
• There is a strong emphasis on developing a love of reading among pupils.
• Pupils demonstrate positive behaviour and attitudes toward learning.
• The school prioritizes pupils' well-being and offers various extracurricular activities.
• Parents express high levels of satisfaction and feel part of the school community.

Areas for Improvement

• Some curriculums are at an earlier stage of development, leading to gaps in knowledge.
• Assessment systems in recently refined subjects are less well established.

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 Dolphinholme Church of England Primary School attended 94.9% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 9.9% 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, 1.3% of pupils at Dolphinholme Church of England Primary School were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). One pupil was 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 Dolphinholme Church of England Primary School had 19.5 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 19.2% 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, 4.9% of pupils at Dolphinholme Church of England Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 4.9% 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 Dolphinholme Church of England Primary School received £10,311 and spent £9,619 for each of its 82 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £5,000 (£63 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 Dolphinholme Church of England Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Dolphinholme Church of England Primary School is Good, from an inspection in April 2024.

When was Dolphinholme Church of England Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Dolphinholme Church of England Primary School was last inspected in April 2024.

How many pupils does Dolphinholme Church of England Primary School have?

Dolphinholme Church of England Primary School has 82 pupils on roll.

What age range does Dolphinholme Church of England Primary School cover?

Dolphinholme Church of England Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

What are Dolphinholme Church of England Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 85% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Dolphinholme Church of England Primary School?

Dolphinholme Church of England Primary School is at Dolphinholme, Dolphinholme Primary School, Lancaster, Lancashire, LA2 9AN.