Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery

Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery has been rated as a good school. Students enjoy their time at the school and benefit from strong relationships with staff, which contribute to their feeling of safety and well-being. The school has made significant improvements to its curriculum and provides a broad range of educational opportunities that cater to the needs of all students, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). Overall, current pupils are performing well, although there remain some areas for improvement, particularly for a few students who continue to experience gaps in their learning.

Strengths

• Strong support provided by staff, including the 'Thrive Hive' for discussing worries.
• Successful redesign of the curriculum for a broad and balanced education.
• High expectations lead to diligent rule-following by pupils.
• Effective training for teachers ensures secure subject knowledge and quality teaching.
• Strong focus on reading, with effective phonics instruction.
• Positive behaviour in school, with pupils concentrating hard on their learning.
• Wide range of personal development opportunities for pupils.

Areas for Improvement

• Some pupils have unresolved gaps in their learning.
• A few pupils do not attend school regularly.

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 Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery attended 94.0% 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, 1.2% of pupils at Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery 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 Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery had 16.6 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 10.3% 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, 18.1% of pupils at Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 2.8% 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 2024–25 Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery received £7,076 and spent £7,302 for each of its 331 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £334,000 (£1,012 per pupil).

Across all 6 schools of The Learning Together Trust, income was £7,098 and spending £6,878 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). Academy figures include a share of the trust's central services, shared out by pupil numbers, and are rounded to the nearest £1,000. Premises costs were defined differently from 2024, so compare them across that gap with care.

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Wigan · Wigan local authority: places and applications

Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery is part of The Learning Together Trust, which runs 6 schools. The nearest others:

• St David Haigh and Aspull CofE Primary School Wigan
• Standish St Wilfrid's Church of England Primary Academy Wigan
• Adlington St Paul's Church of England Primary School Chorley
• Hesketh-With-Becconsall All Saints CofE School Preston
• Accrington Benjamin Hargreaves Church of England Primary School Accrington

What is Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery is Good, from an inspection in September 2023.

When was Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery last inspected by Ofsted?

Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery was last inspected in September 2023.

How many pupils does Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery have?

Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery has 326 pupils on roll.

What age range does Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery cover?

Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 58% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery?

Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery is at Whelley, Wigan, Lancashire, WN2 1BP.