Little Bollington CofE Primary School

Little Bollington CofE Primary School is currently assessed as requiring improvement. While the school has implemented a revamped curriculum with support from its trust, the impact on student learning remains inconsistent across different subjects. Strengths include a positive school culture, where pupils enjoy a supportive and friendly environment, and their behaviour is commendable. Nonetheless, challenges persist in ensuring that all students, especially those with additional needs, are achieving to their full potential due to gaps in curriculum delivery and understanding of foundational knowledge in some areas. This is the school’s first inspection since it opened, and it is operating under the Chester Diocesan Academy Trust.

Strengths

• Pupils enjoy a supportive and friendly school environment.
• Behaviour and attitudes of pupils are good.
• Strong emphasis on personal development and well-being.
• Effective early reading curriculum with consistent phonics teaching.
• Strong cooperation between staff and pupils.

Areas for Improvement

• Inconsistent curriculum delivery affects pupil knowledge retention.
• Some subjects have not established a solid impact on learning.
• Pupils with SEND do not achieve as well as they should due to delivery inconsistencies.

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 Little Bollington CofE Primary School attended 92.7% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 20.3% 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, 0.0% of pupils at Little Bollington 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 Little Bollington CofE Primary School had 13.4 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 0.0% 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, 9.3% of pupils at Little Bollington CofE Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 10.7% 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 Little Bollington CofE Primary School received £9,370 and spent £9,953 for each of its 82 pupils. It ended the year with a deficit of £28,000 (-£339 per pupil).

Across all 27 schools of Chester Diocesan Academies Trust, income was £6,299 and spending £6,313 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 Altrincham · Cheshire East local authority: places and applications

Little Bollington CofE Primary School is part of Chester Diocesan Academies Trust, which runs 32 schools. The nearest others:

• St Thomas' CofE Primary School Warrington
• Stretton St Matthew's CofE Primary School Warrington
• St Matthew's Church of England Primary School Stockport
• St Berteline's CofE Primary School Runcorn
• St Mary's Church of England Primary School Runcorn
• Kingsley St John's CofE Primary School Frodsham
• Norley Church of England Primary School Frodsham
• Bredbury St. Marks CofE Primary School Stockport
• Brereton CofE Primary School Sandbach
• St George's CofE Primary School Hyde

What is Little Bollington CofE Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Little Bollington CofE Primary School is Requires Improvement, from an inspection in September 2024.

When was Little Bollington CofE Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Little Bollington CofE Primary School was last inspected in September 2024.

How many pupils does Little Bollington CofE Primary School have?

Little Bollington CofE Primary School has 75 pupils on roll.

What age range does Little Bollington CofE Primary School cover?

Little Bollington CofE Primary School for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are Little Bollington CofE Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 9% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Little Bollington CofE Primary School?

Little Bollington CofE Primary School is at Lymm Road, Little Bollington, Altrincham, Cheshire, WA14 4SZ.