St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy

St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School is a small, strongly inclusive school where pupils achieve well and are happy, safe and well behaved. This was its first inspection since becoming an academy and joining Emmaus Catholic Academy Trust in January 2024, and it serves a community with high levels of disadvantage and special educational needs. Inspectors found that children get an excellent start in the early years, reading and phonics are taught expertly, and disadvantaged pupils often outperform non-disadvantaged pupils nationally. Pupils with SEND also make secure progress from their starting points, and leadership, governance and staff support are clear strengths. Leaders have maintained high expectations through significant staff turnover, and the curriculum is well sequenced and broad. Behaviour is calm and positive, pupils value learning, and personal development is well planned, including safety, relationships and enrichment. Safeguarding arrangements meet the required standard. Two areas need further work. Some pupils still miss too many school days, although persistent absence is falling rapidly. Teaching is generally effective, but questioning is not consistently used to check understanding and address errors. Overall, the school is performing well and is well placed to address these remaining priorities.

Strengths

• Children make an extremely positive start in the early years, with strong support for communication and language.
• Reading and phonics are taught expertly, with swift intervention for pupils who fall behind.
• Disadvantaged pupils often outperform non-disadvantaged pupils nationally.
• Pupils with SEND make secure progress from their starting points.
• Leaders have a clear, ambitious vision and have managed significant staff turnover well.
• Governors and trustees provide robust challenge and support to leaders.
• Staff feel well supported and valued, with workload and wellbeing carefully considered.
• Pupils behave well, are respectful and kind, and bullying is rare.
• Personal development is well structured, covering safety, relationships and enriching experiences.
• Pupils are very well prepared for the next stage of their education.
• Attendance is improving and persistent absence is reducing rapidly.

Areas for Improvement

• Some pupils still miss too many school days, and persistent absence remains a priority.
• Questioning is not consistently used to check pupils' understanding and address errors.

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 Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy attended 94.6% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 16.0% 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, 2.0% of pupils at St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy 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 Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy had 22.4 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 43.1% 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, 23.3% of pupils at St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 8.9% 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 St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy received £11,389 and spent £11,012 for each of its 98 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £22,000 (£222 per pupil).

Across all 27 schools of Emmaus Catholic Academy Trust, income was £5,800 and spending £5,816 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 Stockport · Stockport local authority: places and applications

St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy is part of Emmaus Catholic Academy Trust, which runs 38 schools. The nearest others:

• St Anne's RC Voluntary Academy Stockport
• St Winifred's RC Primary School, a Voluntary Academy Stockport
• St Joseph's Roman Catholic Primary School, Reddish, a Voluntary Academy Stockport
• St Mary's RC Primary School, Manchester, A Voluntary Academy Manchester
• St Cuthbert's RC Primary School and Nursery, A Voluntary Academy Manchester
• St John Fisher RC Primary School, a Voluntary Academy, Denton Manchester
• St Kentigern's RC Primary School, a Voluntary Academy Manchester
• St Francis RC Primary School, A Voluntary Academy Manchester
• St Anne's RC Primary School, a Voluntary Academy Manchester
• St Stephen's RC Primary School, a Voluntary Academy Manchester

What is St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy is Expected standard, from an inspection in September 2026.

When was St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy was last inspected in September 2026.

How many pupils does St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy have?

St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy has 90 pupils on roll.

What age range does St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy cover?

St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 68% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy?

St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy is at Roman Road, Heaton Norris, St Mary's Rc Primary School, Stockport, Cheshire, SK4 1RF.