Simpson Primary School, BATHGATE
Simpson Primary School is a primary school for pupils in Bathgate.
- Attendance
- 95.1%
Data last updated 25 Oct 2026
Simpson Primary School in detail
School in Scotland
Simpson Primary School is a local authority school in Scotland. Scottish schools are inspected by Education Scotland rather than Ofsted, and Scotland does not publish school-by-school exam league tables.
Simpson Primary School has a pre-school (nursery) class.
In the 2025 pupil census it had 546 pupils, an average class size of 26 and 17 pupils per teacher.
24% of pupils have an additional support need recorded and 3% speak English as an additional language.
Attendance was 95.1% in 2024/25, and 11.4% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
The 2026 school estate survey rated its buildings' condition as satisfactory (B) and their suitability for teaching as satisfactory (B); the school was 85% full.
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to Simpson Primary School are Blackburn Primary School (0.7 miles), Murrayfield Primary School (0.9 miles), Our Lady Of Lourdes Primary School (0.9 miles) and St Mary's Primary School (1 mile).
Blackburn Primary SchoolMurrayfield Primary SchoolOur Lady Of Lourdes Primary SchoolSt Mary's Primary School
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Bathgate Rail Station, about 1100 metres away (roughly a 14-minute walk).
4 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Mosside Terrace (at), 170 metres away.
Secondary schools nearby
The secondary schools closest to Simpson Primary School are St Kentigern's Academy (1.1 miles) and Bathgate Academy (1.1 miles).
Sources: Scottish Government school statistics: pupil census, attendance and absence, school estate, leaver destinations (OGL); NaPTAN (Department for Transport)
Key Information
Scottish GovernmentInspection
HM Inspectorate of Education (Education Scotland) last published an inspection of Simpson Primary School in January 2025.
- 2.3 Learning, teaching and assessmentgood
- 3.2 Raising attainment and achievementgood
HMIE grades on a six-point scale: unsatisfactory, weak, satisfactory, good, very good, excellent.
Source: HM Inspectorate of Education (Education Scotland), Open Government Licence.
At a Glance
No
Boarding
Yes
Nursery
No
Special Measures
Keep up with Simpson Primary School
Getting There
Bus Stops
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 1
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 0
- Children hurt
- 1
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 1 road collision in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 0 serious and 1 slight.
1 child aged 0 to 15 was hurt: 1 on foot.
0 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 West Lothian is 4 (the median across 88 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
Secondary Schools Nearby
Secondary schools pupils are likely to move to
Simpson Primary School
Questions parents ask about Simpson Primary School
When was Simpson Primary School last inspected?
HM Inspectorate of Education (Education Scotland) last published an inspection of Simpson Primary School in January 2025. Inspectors evaluated learning, teaching and assessment as good and raising attainment and achievement as good, on a six-point scale from unsatisfactory to excellent.
What is the catchment area for Simpson Primary School?
Scottish schools have catchment (zoned) areas, and Simpson Primary School is no exception: children living in its zone are normally given a place there automatically. Families who want a different school make a placing request to West Lothian. West Lothian publishes the zone boundary.
How do I apply to Simpson Primary School?
If you live in Simpson Primary School's catchment zone your child is normally allocated a place automatically, and West Lothian will write to you. To ask for a place here from outside the zone, make a placing request to West Lothian - requests usually open in November and close in mid-March for the following August.
How many road collisions happen near Simpson Primary School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 1 road collision in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 0 serious and 1 slight. 1 child aged 0 to 15 was hurt: 1 on foot. 0 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 West Lothian is 4 (the median across 88 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Simpson Primary School?
Simpson Primary School is at Leyland Road, Wester Inch, BATHGATE, BATHGATE, EH48 2TH.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)