St Peter's CofE Primary School Chorley

St Peter's CofE Primary School is a calm, caring and inclusive Church of England primary school that is performing securely overall. Pupils enjoy school, behave well and attend broadly in line with national averages, and safeguarding arrangements are met. Leaders and governors know the school and community well, staff feel well supported, and parents speak positively about the care and opportunities provided. Early years provision is a notable strength, with children settling quickly and achieving well. Inclusion is effective for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities and for disadvantaged pupils, and the curriculum is ambitious with a strong focus on oracy and consistent phonics teaching. Personal development is broad, covering safety, mental health, relationships, British values and a wide range of enrichment and leadership opportunities. Recent improvements in writing and mathematics are effective but not yet fully embedded. The main area for development is ensuring all teachers promptly identify and address gaps in pupils' knowledge and skills so that a small number of pupils do not fall behind. Published outcomes also show writing has lagged national averages over three years, particularly for disadvantaged pupils, although recent Year 6 attainment has improved. Overall, the school is meeting expected standards.

Strengths

• Calm, safe and caring school culture where pupils behave well and treat each other with kindness.
• Pupils enjoy school, attend broadly in line with national averages, and are well supported with attendance barriers.
• Ambitious, well-sequenced curriculum taught confidently by knowledgeable staff.
• Consistent, effective phonics teaching with reading books closely matched to pupils' phonics knowledge.
• Strong early years provision with purposeful environments, effective routines and smooth transition arrangements.
• Effective inclusion and SEND support, with careful monitoring and involvement of external professionals.
• Disadvantaged pupils are well supported and participate fully in school life.
• Broad personal development programme covering safety, mental health, healthy relationships and British values.
• Wide range of extra-curricular, leadership and enrichment opportunities, including sports, music, trips and careers events.
• Well-informed governors provide appropriate support and challenge, and leaders prioritise staff development.
• Strong community partnerships and positive relationships with parents and carers.
• Oracy focus builds pupils' confidence in discussing their learning.

Areas for Improvement

• A small number of pupils have gaps in knowledge and skills that slow their progress through the curriculum.
• In a small number of classes, staff do not identify and address pupils' gaps quickly enough, such as correcting pencil grip.
• Some recent improvements in writing and mathematics are still at an early stage and not fully embedded.
• Writing attainment has been below the national average over the latest three years, including for disadvantaged pupils.

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 Peter's CofE Primary School Chorley attended 94.5% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 13.9% 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, 0.3% of pupils at St Peter's CofE Primary School Chorley 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 Peter's CofE Primary School Chorley had 18.5 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 9.1% 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, 12.1% of pupils at St Peter's CofE Primary School Chorley were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 3.1% 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 Peter's CofE Primary School Chorley received £7,309 and spent £7,538 for each of its 289 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £168,000 (£581 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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All schools in Chorley · Lancashire local authority: places and applications

What is St Peter's CofE Primary School Chorley's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for St Peter's CofE Primary School Chorley is Expected standard, from an inspection in October 2026.

When was St Peter's CofE Primary School Chorley last inspected by Ofsted?

St Peter's CofE Primary School Chorley was last inspected in October 2026.

How many pupils does St Peter's CofE Primary School Chorley have?

St Peter's CofE Primary School Chorley has 289 pupils on roll.

What age range does St Peter's CofE Primary School Chorley cover?

St Peter's CofE Primary School Chorley for pupils aged 4 to 11.

What are St Peter's CofE Primary School Chorley's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 62% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is St Peter's CofE Primary School Chorley?

St Peter's CofE Primary School Chorley is at Eaves Lane, Chorley, Lancashire, PR6 0DX.