St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School, Rochdale
St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School is a primary school for pupils aged 2 to 11 in Rochdale, part of Forward As One Church of England Multi Academy Trust. It has a Church of England religious character. Its 2025 Key Stage 2 results were the 8th-highest of the 32 schools in Rochdale with published results, and 4,824th of 14,452 across England. It was 76% full in 2025.
- SATs results
- Above England average
- Demand
- Every first choice offered
- Attendance
- In line with England
Reception applications for September 2027 close in 80 days
Deadline Friday 15 January 2027. Apply to Lancashire (the council where you live). Offers on 16 April.
Data last updated 27 Oct 2026
St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School in detail
Results
In 2025, 82% of Year 6 pupils at St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School reached the expected standard in reading and 82% in maths. At the average state primary the figures were 75% and 74% in Lancashire and 77% and 75% across England.
Results were similar in 2024 (70% in reading, 90% in maths).
With small year groups, a few pupils can move these figures by several points.
Getting a place at St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School
For September 2026 entry, 12 families put St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School as their first choice and 23 named it as one of their preferences, for 13 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. Every family who put it first was offered a place there for 2026 entry.
Admissions history and your chances at St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School are Our Lady and St Anselm's Roman Catholic Primary School, Whitworth (1.1 miles, Good, 83% reading, 93% maths); Britannia Community Primary School (1.1 miles, Good, 76% reading, 83% maths); Bacup St Saviour's Community Primary School (1.7 miles, Good, 73% reading, 73% maths); and St Bartholomew's Church of England Primary School (1.8 miles, Good, 82% reading, 75% maths).
St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School's 2025 results were higher than 3 of these 4 schools.
Our Lady and St Anselm's Roman Catholic Primary School, WhitworthBritannia Community Primary SchoolBacup St Saviour's Community Primary SchoolSt Bartholomew's Church of England Primary School
The trust
St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School is one of 17 schools run by Forward As One Church of England Multi Academy Trust, an academy trust.
Across the trust's primary schools, 69% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths in 2024/25.
All 17 schools in Forward As One Church of England Multi Academy Trust
Who goes there
39.4% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well above the average state school (25%), and 0.9% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
In 2026, 18 pupils (16.5%) received SEN support and 3 (2.8%) 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 social, emotional and mental health needs.
Staffing
St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School had 7 teachers in 2026, one for every 13 pupils: more teachers per pupil than a typical primary school, at about one for every 20.
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Walsden Rail Station, about 2.7 miles away in a straight line.
6 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Land Gate (by), 110 metres away.
Suspensions and exclusions
St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School recorded no suspensions or permanent exclusions in 2024/25.
Sources: DfE school performance data (averages: state mainstream schools); DfE school-level applications and offers; council admissions booklets; DfE appeals statistics; DfE multi-academy trust performance data; DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; DfE school workforce census; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); DfE exclusions statistics
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 4 years agoOverall
Latest (ungraded) inspection: The school remains Good.
St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School has had no graded Ofsted inspection since it took its current form in February 2022. Before that, as St John with St Michael Church of England Primary School, Shawforth (URN 119690), it was rated Good in May 2012.
At a Glance
39.4%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
Yes
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
Primary Performance (KS2)
Academic year 2024/25KS2 Results (% meeting expected standard)
Reading has improved from 70% to 82% (2024 to 2025). Maths has declined from 90% to 82% (2024 to 2025). Writing has declined from 80% to 76% (2024 to 2025).
Class Sizes
24.0
Avg class size
27.0
Infant (KS1)
22.5
KS2
3
Total classes
2025/26 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby primary schools
Keep up with St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School
Before and after school care
St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School is on the Department for Education's free breakfast clubs programme (list updated July 2026), which pays for a free breakfast club for pupils before school. Source: Free breakfast clubs: schools on the programme, Department for Education Free breakfast clubs in Lancashire
Term dates
St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School is an academy, so it sets its own term dates: check the school's website. As a guide, see Lancashire's term dates for its community schools.
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
You apply to the council where you live. St John With St Michael Church of England 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
- 3
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 1
- Children hurt
- 0
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 3 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 1 serious and 2 slight.
No children aged 0 to 15 were among the people hurt.
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 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 St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School
Will you get a place at St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School:
- The straight-line distance from your home to St John With St Michael Church of England 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 St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School for 2022 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
76%
Available places
91 pupils
120 places
29 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Rochdale
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Rochdale
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: Every first choice offered
Inspection History
Ungraded inspection: The school remains Good.
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
18
SEN Support
3
EHC Plans
19.3%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
109
Total Pupils
51
Boys
58
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
7
Teachers
15.6:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£39,164
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£6,487
Per pupil
£720k
Total funding
£53k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
4.8%
Overall absence
9.4%
Persistent absence
85
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
Secondary Schools Nearby
Secondary schools pupils are likely to move to
St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School
Questions parents ask about St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School
What are SATs results like at St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School?
Of the pupils at St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School who took the 2025 Key Stage 2 assessments, 82% reached the expected standard in reading and 82% did so in maths.
What is St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School's Ofsted rating?
St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School has had no graded Ofsted inspection since it took its current form in February 2022. Before that, as St John with St Michael Church of England Primary School, Shawforth (URN 119690), it was rated Good in May 2012.
What is the catchment area for St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School?
No fixed boundary. When St John With St Michael Church of England 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 St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School?
St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School was not full in 2025: it ran at 76% of its 120 places.
How big are the classes at St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School?
Classes at St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School average 24 pupils (2025/26).
How many pupils go to St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School?
St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School has around 109 pupils on roll. 39% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School?
4.8% of sessions were missed at St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School in 2024/25. 9.4% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School?
Apply through Lancashire's coordinated admissions process, naming St John With St Michael Church of England 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 St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School have a breakfast club or after-school club?
St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School is on the Department for Education's free breakfast clubs programme (list updated July 2026), which pays for a free breakfast club for pupils before school.
How many road collisions happen near St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 3 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 1 serious and 2 slight. No children aged 0 to 15 were among the people hurt. 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 Lancashire is 12 (the median across 707 schools, same distance and years).
Where is St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School?
St John With St Michael Church of England Primary School is at Moss Side Street, Shawforth, Rochdale, Lancashire, OL12 8EP.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)