St Silas's CofE Primary School

St Silas’s CofE Primary School has performed positively in its first inspection, achieving a good rating across all areas including the quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership, management, and early years provision. The school fosters a strong sense of belonging among pupils, who feel safe and supported. They enjoy learning and benefit from a broad curriculum, particularly in reading, where leaders have prioritized engagement and skill development. The school is noted for its caring community atmosphere and commitment to understanding and respecting diversity through various activities and charities.

Strengths

• Pupils feel a strong sense of belonging and safety.
• The school community demonstrates care for all pupils.
• Leaders have ambitious plans for an engaging, knowledge-rich curriculum.
• High priority given to reading, enhancing pupils' love for literature.
• Effective support provided for pupils with SEND.
• Wide range of extracurricular activities available.

Areas for Improvement

• Some subjects in the curriculum are not fully refined, impacting learning.
• Occasionally, teachers do not provide enough practice time for pupils.
• Attendance issues affecting some pupils' learning experiences.

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 Silas's CofE Primary School attended 93.9% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 17.3% 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, 1.8% of pupils at St Silas's CofE 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 St Silas's CofE Primary School had 19.8 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 7.3% 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, 18.3% of pupils at St Silas's CofE Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 6.4% 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 St Silas's CofE Primary School received £6,794 and spent £6,500 for each of its 340 pupils. It ended the year with a deficit of £150,000 (-£442 per pupil).

Across all 15 schools of Cidari Education Limited, income was £8,446 and spending £8,235 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 Blackburn · Blackburn with Darwen local authority: places and applications

St Silas's CofE Primary School is part of Cidari Education Limited, which runs 15 schools. The nearest others:

• St Luke and St Philips Church of England Primary School Blackburn
• St Aidan's Primary School - A Church of England Academy Blackburn
• Knuzden St Oswald's Church of England Primary Academy Blackburn
• Darwen St James CofE Primary Academy Darwen
• Darwen, St Barnabas CofE Primary Academy Darwen
• St Matthew's Church of England Primary Academy Preston
• Newchurch-In-Pendle St Mary's Church of England Primary School Burnley
• Great Marsden St John's Primary School A Church of England Academy Nelson
• Appley Bridge All Saints Church of England Primary Academy Wigan
• Warton St Paul's Church of England Primary Academy Preston

What is St Silas's CofE Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for St Silas's CofE Primary School is Good, from an inspection in June 2023.

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

St Silas's CofE Primary School was last inspected in June 2023.

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

St Silas's CofE Primary School has 311 pupils on roll.

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

St Silas's CofE Primary School for pupils aged 5 to 11.

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

In 2025, 59% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is St Silas's CofE Primary School?

St Silas's CofE Primary School is at St Silas Road, Blackburn, Lancashire, BB2 6JP.