St Barnabas and St Paul's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Blackburn

From the headteacher's welcome: "On behalf of all the staff and Governors, I would like to wish you a very warm welcome to St. Barnabas and St. Paul's Church of England Primary School."

In 2025, 82% of Year 6 pupils at St Barnabas and St Paul's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School reached the expected standard in reading and 85% in maths. At the average state primary the figures were 74% and 76% in Blackburn with Darwen and 77% and 75% across England.

Results were similar in 2024 (80% in reading, 83% in maths).

For September 2026 entry, 54 families put St Barnabas and St Paul's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School as their first choice and 125 named it as one of their preferences, for 60 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. 4 families who put it first were not offered a place there.

The nearest other state primary schools to St Barnabas and St Paul's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School are St Anne's Roman Catholic Primary School Blackburn (0.3 miles, Good, 83% reading, 83% maths); Queen Elizabeth's Primary School (0.4 miles, 63% reading, 54% maths); St Luke and St Philips Church of England Primary School (0.5 miles, Good, 57% reading, 57% maths); and St Silas's CofE Primary School (0.6 miles, Good, 69% reading, 67% maths).

St Barnabas and St Paul's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School's 2025 results were higher than all 4 of them.

34.8% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well above the average state school (25%), and 93.8% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.

In 2026, 88 pupils (21%) received SEN support and 27 (6.4%) 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 speech, language and communication needs.

The nearest railway station is Blackburn Rail Station, about 950 metres away (roughly a 12-minute walk).

11 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Lower Ashworth Close (by), 160 metres away.

Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood St Barnabas and St Paul's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School stands in is among the 10% most deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.

In August 2026, police recorded 581 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, anti-social behaviour and public order offences. That is well above the typical figure around schools in Blackburn with Darwen (289), as is usual near a town centre.

In 2024/25, St Barnabas and St Paul's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School issued 2 suspensions, 0.5 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.

The secondary schools closest to St Barnabas and St Paul's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School are St Wilfrid's Church of England Academy (0.3 miles), Tauheedul Islam Boys' High School (0.4 miles), Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School (0.4 miles) and Witton Park Academy (0.8 miles).