St Gabriel's Roman Catholic Primary School, Rochdale, Rochdale

Good
Primary
Voluntary aided school
Mixed
Roman Catholic
Ages 411

Data last updated 11 Sept 2026

Location

Very likely (~566m)Possible (~808m)Unlikely (~1.1km)Confidence: high

Estimated admission likelihood based on school density and oversubscription data

Key Information

DfE GIAS
Head:Mrs Laura Bolton
Pupils:197 / 210 capacity
LA:Rochdale
Phone:01706650280
Address:Vicarage Road South, Castleton, Rochdale, OL11 2TN
Admissions:Not applicable
Status:open

Ofsted Rating

Good

Overall

URN:105825
UKPRN:10070726
Diocese:Diocese of Salford
Constituency:Heywood and Middleton North
Urban/Rural:Urban: Nearer to a major town or city

Ofsted Insights

What This School Does Well

St Gabriel's creates a welcoming, respectful environment where pupils genuinely enjoy learning and feel safe. The school has an exciting, engaging curriculum and particularly strong teaching of early reading skills in Reception. Staff have built excellent relationships with pupils, making them confident learners willing to take risks and learn from mistakes.

Key Strengths

  • Good behaviour and above-average attendance with pupils feeling safe and enjoying school
  • Exciting curriculum that captures pupils' imaginations and supports spiritual, moral and social development
  • Early Years Foundation Stage phonics teaching is strong, with good progress in Reception
  • Leaders and governors are uncompromising in tackling the dip in standards and bringing about improvements
  • Strong relationships between staff and pupils create a confident learning environment

Areas for Improvement

  • Too few pupils in Key Stage 2 make better than expected progress, particularly in mathematics
  • Teachers do not consistently challenge pupils enough or adjust activities quickly enough during lessons to maintain good progress
  • Quality of marking does not consistently tell pupils how to improve or provide time for them to act on feedback
  • Key Stage 2 pupils' skills in mathematics beyond basic computation are weak, especially problem-solving
  • Teaching quality remains variable across the school and has not yet reached Good overall

Safeguarding

Safeguarding arrangements are in place and records relating to safeguarding and child protection were reviewed during the inspection.

St Gabriel's Roman Catholic Primary School is a smaller than average primary school in Rochdale that requires improvement following a previous Good rating. The school has experienced staffing challenges but is taking strong action to raise achievement, particularly in Key Stage 2 mathematics.

At a Glance

13.7%

Free School Meals

No

Boarding

No

Nursery

No

Sixth Form

No

Special Measures

Primary Performance (KS2)

Academic year 2025/26

KS2 Results (% meeting expected standard)

2024
2025
Reading+11ppMaths-21ppWriting+8pp

Reading has improved from 66% to 77%. Maths has declined from 76% to 55%. Writing has improved from 66% to 74%.

Class Sizes

25.8

Avg class size

5

Total classes

2024/25 academic year

Latest from St Gabriel's Roman Catholic Primary School, Rochdale

From St Gabriel's Roman Catholic Primary School, Rochdale's website. School Signal is not affiliated with the school.

Getting There

Train Stations

Castleton (Manchester) Rail Station (Entrance)
489m · 8 min walk

Bus Stops

Mount Street (opp)
103m · 2 min walk
Leander Drive (W-bound)
179m · 3 min walk
Vicarage Road North (opp)
180m · 3 min walk
Trows Lane (opp)
250m · 4 min walk
Queensway (Stop C)
357m · 6 min walk
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Capacity & Demand

School Occupancy

94%

Near capacity

197 pupils

210 capacity

13 spare places available

Area Demand Pressure - Rochdale

Low pressure
New homes approved:1,845
Projected new pupils:461

Based on MHCLG housing supply data for Rochdale

Admissions Demand - Rochdale

Low demand0.83x oversubscription

Places available

3,187

Applications

2,652

Got 1st preference

91.7%

Got preferred school

98.2%

Primary admissions across Rochdale (2025/26)

Inspection History(109)

Date not published by Ofsted
Good
Date not published by Ofsted
Good
Date not published by Ofsted
Good

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SEN Provision

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Pupil Demographics

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Teachers & Staff

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School Funding

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Pupil Absence
2024/25

4.2997%

Overall absence

9.71429%

Persistent absence

175

Enrolments

Authorised3.16896%
Unauthorised1.13075%
Persistent (10%+)9.71429%
Severe (50%+)0%

Absence trend

3.05837%
18/19
2.32604%
20/21
5.06998%
21/22
3.91648%
22/23
4.45545%
23/24
4.2997%
24/25
Overall absence rate

Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.

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