Anderton Primary School, Adlington
Anderton Primary School is a primary school for pupils aged 4 to 11 in Adlington. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in September 2019. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in November 2024 did not change this grade. Its 2025 Key Stage 2 results were the 344th-highest of the 447 schools in Lancashire with published results, and 11,866th of 14,452 across England. It was 93% full in 2025.
- SATs results
- Below England average
- Ofsted
- Good (2019)
- Demand
- Oversubscribed
- Attendance
- Better than England average
Reception applications for September 2027 close in 81 days
Deadline Friday 15 January 2027. Apply to Lancashire (the council where you live). Offers on 16 April.
Data last updated 26 Oct 2026
Anderton Primary School in detail
Anderton Primary School in its own words
Clubs and activities named on the school's website include yoga and forest school.
The school runs after-school care.
Clubs (school website)Wraparound care (school website)
Source: The school's own website
Results
In 2025, 65% of Year 6 pupils at Anderton Primary School reached the expected standard in reading and 65% in maths. At the average state primary the figures were 75% and 74% in Lancashire and 77% and 75% across England.
Results fell from 76% in reading and 66% in maths in 2024.
With small year groups, a few pupils can move these figures by several points.
Getting a place at Anderton Primary School
For September 2026 entry, 35 families put Anderton Primary School as their first choice and 92 named it as one of their preferences, for 30 places offered. That is 1.2 first choices for every place. 5 families who put it first were not offered a place there.
Admissions history and your chances at Anderton Primary School
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to Anderton Primary School are St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Anderton (0.2 miles, Good, 71% reading, 74% maths); Adlington St Paul's Church of England Primary School (0.2 miles, Good, 89% reading, 74% maths); Adlington Primary School (0.6 miles, Good, 81% reading, 71% maths); and Rivington Foundation Primary School (1.3 miles, Good, 86% reading, 93% maths).
Each of them had higher 2025 results than Anderton Primary School.
St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, AndertonAdlington St Paul's Church of England Primary SchoolAdlington Primary SchoolRivington Foundation Primary School
What parents say
51 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about Anderton Primary School (as of September 2025): 96% would recommend the school, 96% say their child is happy there and 75% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.
The strongest agreement was that their child feels safe (98%); the weakest, that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (75%).
Who goes there
11.4% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well below the average state school (25%), and 1.1% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
In 2026, 20 pupils (10.8%) received SEN support and 5 (2.7%) had an education, health and care plan, against 16.2% and 4.6% at the average state school. The most common need among them is a specific learning difficulty such as dyslexia.
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Adlington (Lancs) Rail Station, about 620 metres away (roughly a 8-minute walk).
9 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Ridgeway Arms (outside), 60 metres away.
The area around the school
In August 2026, police recorded 70 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, anti-social behaviour and vehicle crime. That is well below the typical figure around schools in Lancashire (109).
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, Anderton Primary School issued 7 suspensions, 3.7 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.
Sources: DfE school performance data (averages: state mainstream schools); DfE school-level applications and offers; council admissions booklets; DfE appeals statistics; Ofsted Parent View; DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); data.police.uk street-level crime; DfE exclusions statistics
Location
Our estimate from how close the nearest similar schools are and how oversubscribed the council's schools are. It is not a published boundary.
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 2 years agoThis judgement is from September 2019, 7 years ago, longer than Ofsted's usual 4-year cycle: the school may have changed since.
Overall
Quality of Education
Behaviour & Attitudes
Personal Development
Leadership & Management
Early Years
Latest (ungraded) inspection: Standards have been maintained.
Ofsted Insights
From Ofsted's November 2024 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
Anderton Primary School creates a warm and welcoming environment where children develop real confidence and resilience. The school excels in reading and has built a strong, well-thought-out curriculum where teachers check children have understood before moving on to new learning. Children take part in lots of physical, creative and cultural activities that help them discover new talents, and behaviour and attendance are impressively high.
Key Strengths
- Strong focus on reading with a rich diet of literature and effective phonics teaching from Reception Year onwards
- Well-developed curriculum in all subjects with teachers ensuring pupils fully understand previous learning before moving forward
- High standards of behaviour and attendance through effective strategies and celebration of conduct
- Broad range of physical, creative and cultural activities that help pupils discover new talents and interests
- Supportive school environment where pupils develop confidence, resilience and positive attitudes to learning
Areas for Improvement
- The process of identifying some pupils with SEND takes too long, delaying the support they need
- Guidance to teachers on how to meet the needs of pupils with SEND is not always clear enough
- Some pupils with SEND do not achieve as well as they could as a result of these delays
Safeguarding
Safeguarding arrangements are effective, with the school creating an open and positive culture that puts pupils' interests first.
Extracurricular Activities
School parliament, curriculum ambassador roles, buddy scheme with Reception children, happiness heroes, PAL (playground leader) roles, before- and after-school clubs, physical pursuits and outdoor activities
Anderton Primary School has successfully maintained its good standards since the previous inspection. Pupils speak with great pride about their school and benefit from high-quality teaching and a well-established curriculum across all subjects.
At a Glance
11.4%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
51 responsesSource: Ofsted Parent View, responses as at September 2025 - % who strongly agree or agree
Primary Performance (KS2)
Academic year 2024/25KS2 Results (% meeting expected standard)
Reading has declined from 76% to 65% (2024 to 2025). Maths has remained stable at around 65% (2024 to 2025). Writing has remained stable at around 69% (2024 to 2025).
Class Sizes
26.4
Avg class size
25.0
Infant (KS1)
27.5
KS2
7
Total classes
1 class with more than 30 pupils
2025/26 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby primary schools
Keep up with Anderton Primary School
Before and after school care
Clubs on Ofsted's childcare register at or near Anderton Primary School.
- Mad Science at Anderton Primary SchoolAt the school · Not yet graded
Term dates
Anderton Primary School is a community school, so its term dates are set by Lancashire. Training (INSET) days, when pupils are not in school, vary by school: check the school's own calendar.
2026 to 2027
- Autumn term: Tuesday 1 September to Friday 18 December 2026 (half term Monday 26 October to Friday 30 October 2026)
- Spring term: Monday 4 January to Thursday 25 March 2027 (half term Monday 15 February to Friday 19 February 2027)
- Summer term: Monday 12 April to Wednesday 21 July 2027 (half term Monday 31 May to Friday 4 June 2027)
2027 to 2028
- Autumn term: Wednesday 1 September to Friday 17 December 2027 (half term Monday 25 October to Friday 29 October 2027)
- Spring term: Tuesday 4 January to Friday 31 March 2028 (half term Monday 14 February to Friday 18 February 2028)
- Summer term: Tuesday 18 April to Friday 21 July 2028 (half term Monday 29 May to Friday 2 June 2028)
Getting There
Train Stations
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Anderton Primary School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Anderton Primary School is in Lancashire; for families living there:
- Lancashire's school travel policy: school transport policies
- How to apply: Apply for free home to school transport assistance
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 10
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 2
- Children hurt
- 1
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 10 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 2 serious and 8 slight.
1 child aged 0 to 15 was hurt: 1 on a bicycle.
3 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included.
The typical figure for schools in Lancashire is 12 (the median across 707 schools, same distance and years).
Serious and slight counts use the Department for Transport's severity adjustment, which allows for changes in how police forces record injuries; they are estimates, rounded to whole numbers. Distances are in a straight line. Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19), Open Government Licence v3.0.
Commute and house prices
Your chances of a place at Anderton Primary School
Will you get a place at Anderton Primary School? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against Anderton Primary School's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for Anderton Primary School:
- The straight-line distance from your home to Anderton Primary School.
- We hold no last distance offered figures from Lancashire, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at Anderton Primary School for 2014 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in Lancashire got their first choice, and how often appeals there succeed.
- The nearest state schools to your home, with Ofsted rating, demand and last distance offered where published.
- Key dates for September 2027 entry and how to apply.
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Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
93%
Near capacity
191 pupils
205 places
14 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Adlington
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Adlington
Across Lancashire council
Places available
15,442
Applications
12,122
Got 1st preference
91.3%
Got preferred school
98.3%
All primary applications across Lancashire council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Oversubscribed
Inspection History(7)
Ungraded inspection: Standards have been maintained.
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
20
SEN Support
5
EHC Plans
13.5%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
185
Total Pupils
86
Boys
99
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
11
Teachers
16.8:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£50,139
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£5,396
Per pupil
£1107k
Total funding
£30k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
3.2%
Overall absence
3.7%
Persistent absence
161
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
Questions parents ask about Anderton Primary School
What are SATs results like at Anderton Primary School?
Of the pupils at Anderton Primary School who took the 2025 Key Stage 2 assessments, 65% reached the expected standard in reading and 65% did so in maths.
What is Anderton Primary School's Ofsted rating?
Anderton Primary School's most recent Ofsted inspection, in November 2024, was ungraded, so it gave no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in September 2019, it was rated Good.
What is the catchment area for Anderton Primary School?
No fixed boundary. When Anderton Primary School is oversubscribed, Lancashire allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at Anderton Primary School?
Anderton Primary School was not full in 2025: it ran at 93% of its 205 places.
How big are the classes at Anderton Primary School?
Classes at Anderton Primary School average 26.4 pupils (2025/26). 1 class has more than 30 pupils - infant classes are capped at 30 by law, with limited exceptions.
How many pupils go to Anderton Primary School?
Anderton Primary School has around 185 pupils on roll. 11% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at Anderton Primary School?
3.2% of sessions were missed at Anderton Primary School in 2024/25. 3.7% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Anderton Primary School?
Apply through Lancashire's coordinated admissions process, naming Anderton Primary School on your application. Applications for Reception places starting in September 2027 close on Friday 15 January 2027, and offers are made on Friday 16 April 2027.
Does Anderton Primary School have a breakfast club or after-school club?
Ofsted's childcare register lists an out-of-school club at the school: Mad Science at Anderton Primary School (registered, not yet graded). The school may also run its own clubs, which don't have to register with Ofsted.
What are Anderton Primary School's term dates?
Anderton Primary School is a community school, so its term dates are set by Lancashire. In 2026 to 2027: Autumn term: Tuesday 1 September to Friday 18 December 2026 (half term Monday 26 October to Friday 30 October 2026); Spring term: Monday 4 January to Thursday 25 March 2027 (half term Monday 15 February to Friday 19 February 2027); Summer term: Monday 12 April to Wednesday 21 July 2027 (half term Monday 31 May to Friday 4 June 2027). In 2027 to 2028: Autumn term: Wednesday 1 September to Friday 17 December 2027 (half term Monday 25 October to Friday 29 October 2027); Spring term: Tuesday 4 January to Friday 31 March 2028 (half term Monday 14 February to Friday 18 February 2028); Summer term: Tuesday 18 April to Friday 21 July 2028 (half term Monday 29 May to Friday 2 June 2028).
How many road collisions happen near Anderton Primary School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 10 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 2 serious and 8 slight. 1 child aged 0 to 15 was hurt: 1 on a bicycle. 3 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included. The typical figure for schools in Lancashire is 12 (the median across 707 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Anderton Primary School?
Anderton Primary School is at Babylon Lane, Adlington, Lancashire, PR6 9NN.
Sources: Lancashire term dates; Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)