Penketh Primary School

Penketh Primary School is performing well overall, achieving a 'Good' rating across all inspected areas including the quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, and leadership. This marked the school's first formal inspection since it transitioned to an academy. Despite this positive outcome, inspectors noted that while pupils enjoy a supportive environment and are achieving well, there are certain curriculum areas that require further development, particularly concerning the early years education and specific teaching strategies across subjects. Overall, the school has successfully created a positive and inclusive atmosphere conducive to learning.

Strengths

• Pupils demonstrate school values of kindness, respect, responsibility, and resilience.
• Staff provide effective support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).
• Positive reading culture established with a focus on early language development.
• High expectations of behaviour and learning are maintained throughout the school.
• Leaders promote personal development through a variety of extracurricular activities.

Areas for Improvement

• Curriculum planning in the early years is not fully developed.
• Some teachers are not using the most effective strategies for teaching in certain subjects.

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 Penketh Primary School attended 96.4% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 5.4% 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, 0.0% of pupils at Penketh 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 Penketh Primary School had 23.5 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 4.7% 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, 11.6% of pupils at Penketh Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 1.9% 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 2024–25 Penketh Primary School received £6,352 and spent £6,070 for each of its 208 pupils. It ended the year with a deficit of £20,000 (-£94 per pupil).

Across all 9 schools of Warrington Primary Academy Trust, income was £7,245 and spending £7,000 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 Warrington · Warrington local authority: places and applications

Penketh Primary School is part of Warrington Primary Academy Trust, which runs 9 schools. The nearest others:

• Evelyn Street Primary Academy and Nursery Warrington
• Callands Primary Academy Warrington
• Kingsway Primary Academy School Widnes
• Beamont Primary School Warrington
• Ditton Primary School Widnes
• Alderman Bolton Primary School Warrington
• Bruche Academy Warrington
• Frodsham Primary Academy Frodsham

What is Penketh Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Penketh Primary School is Good, from an inspection in May 2023.

When was Penketh Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Penketh Primary School was last inspected in May 2023.

How many pupils does Penketh Primary School have?

Penketh Primary School has 207 pupils on roll.

What age range does Penketh Primary School cover?

Penketh Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

What are Penketh Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 81% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Penketh Primary School?

Penketh Primary School is at Coniston Avenue, Penketh, Warrington, Cheshire, WA5 2QY.