Lancaster Christ Church Church of England Primary School

Lancaster Christ Church Church of England Primary School is a welcoming and inclusive school where pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who are disadvantaged, are well supported and achieve broadly in line with national averages. Reading outcomes are a notable strength and are consistently above national averages, while pupils also write well and achieve securely in mathematics. Safeguarding standards are met, behaviour is orderly and purposeful, attendance is good, and pupils feel safe, valued and well cared for. Leaders have created an ambitious curriculum that builds logically from the early years to Year 6, and teaching is typically effective. Inclusion is a particular strength: pupils with additional needs are identified quickly, supported well and helped to access the same curriculum as their peers. Leadership and governance are effective, with governors providing strong support and challenge, and staff feel well supported in their roles. Personal development is also well designed, giving pupils a broad range of opportunities and responsibilities. There are a small number of areas for further development. The mathematics curriculum is not yet fully embedded and does not consistently meet the needs of all pupils. In the early years, staff sometimes miss opportunities to promote new vocabulary in written form, which limits children’s independent reading and vocabulary development. In addition, published data shows that disadvantaged pupils’ combined and mathematics outcomes lag behind national non-disadvantaged averages, although the school’s wider support for these pupils is a clear strength.

Strengths

• Highly effective inclusion and SEND support help pupils with barriers to learning progress alongside their peers.
• Disadvantaged pupils are well supported academically and emotionally, with strong reading and writing outcomes.
• Pupils' reading outcomes are consistently above national averages.
• Pupils write well, with accurate letter formation, growing stamina and ambition.
• Pupils achieve well in mathematics and can link concepts as complexity builds.
• Attendance is good, with overall absence below national averages.
• Behaviour is orderly and purposeful; pupils are respectful, polite and kind.
• Bullying is rare and dealt with quickly and decisively when it occurs.
• The curriculum is ambitious and builds logically from the early years to Year 6.
• Phonics teaching is strong, helping most pupils become confident and competent readers.
• Early years provides a positive start, with reading prioritised and children well prepared for Year 1.
• Leaders and governors are ambitious, effective and committed to staff wellbeing.
• Governors provide effective support and challenge and maintain strong oversight.
• Personal development is well designed, with rich opportunities and leadership roles for pupils.
• Pupils are taught how to stay safe, including online safety.
• Parents speak highly of the positive relationships and care provided by the school.

Areas for Improvement

• The mathematics curriculum is not yet fully embedded and does not consistently meet the needs of all pupils.
• Early years staff sometimes miss opportunities to share new vocabulary in written form, limiting children's independent reading and vocabulary development.
• Disadvantaged pupils' combined reading, writing and mathematics outcomes and mathematics outcomes lag behind national non-disadvantaged averages.

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 Lancaster Christ Church Church of England Primary School attended 95.7% 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, 1.0% of pupils at Lancaster Christ Church Church of England Primary School were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). 2 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 Lancaster Christ Church Church of England Primary School had 25.4 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 12.3% 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, 18.4% of pupils at Lancaster Christ Church Church of England Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 6.5% 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 Lancaster Christ Church Church of England Primary School received £6,969 and spent £7,048 for each of its 201 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £122,000 (£609 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 Lancaster · Lancashire local authority: places and applications

What is Lancaster Christ Church Church of England Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Lancaster Christ Church Church of England Primary School is Expected standard, from an inspection in July 2026.

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

Lancaster Christ Church Church of England Primary School was last inspected in July 2026.

How many pupils does Lancaster Christ Church Church of England Primary School have?

Lancaster Christ Church Church of England Primary School has 201 pupils on roll.

What age range does Lancaster Christ Church Church of England Primary School cover?

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

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

In 2025, 64% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Lancaster Christ Church Church of England Primary School?

Lancaster Christ Church Church of England Primary School is at Highfield, Derwent Road, Lancaster, Lancashire, LA1 3ES.