St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy, Bacup

Ofsted's report card from its 14 April 2026 inspection grades St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy on 7 areas: 2 expected standard and 5 needs attention. Report cards replaced single-word judgements in November 2025, on a five-point scale from exceptional to urgent improvement.

Early years - Expected standard. "Due to ambitious leadership, children in the early years get off to a secure start."

Personal development and wellbeing - Expected standard. "Leaders are ambitious for pupils' personal development and wellbeing."

Achievement - Needs attention. "Over time, many pupils have not achieved well."

Attendance and behaviour - Needs attention. "The persistent absence of some pupils, particularly disadvantaged pupils and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), is stubbornly high."

Curriculum and teaching - Needs attention. "Considerable changes in staffing have negatively impacted leaders' ability to move teaching forward as quickly as they intended."

Inclusion - Needs attention. "Leaders use additional funding to support disadvantaged pupils, particularly through pastoral support to help pupils manage their emotions and behaviour."

Leadership and governance - Needs attention. "Over time, the school has experienced considerable instability in teaching and leadership."

Safeguarding standards were met.

Ofsted's next steps for the school: "Leaders should ensure that the variability with which the curriculum is taught is reduced so that all pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities and disadvantaged pupils, learn all that they should and are ready for the next stage of their education"; "Leaders should continue to embed their systems for prompting regular attendance so that pupils' attendance rates rise and the proportion of pupils who are persistently absent reduces"; "Leaders should ensure that teachers use the information that they hold about pupils' needs to adapt their teaching so that these pupils overcome barriers to learning and achieve well"; "Leaders should ensure that their high expectations of behaviour are applied in all aspects of school life so that small incidents of disengagement are reduced further"; "Leaders should help staff in the early years to consistently use high-quality interactions to deepen children's learning".

In its own words: "Get in touch with our school office now to find out more, arrange a visit or ask any questions."

In 2025, 48% of Year 6 pupils at St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy reached the expected standard in reading and 30% in maths. At the average state primary the figures were 75% and 74% in Lancashire and 77% and 75% across England.

Results fell from 53% in reading and 42% in maths in 2024.

With small year groups, a few pupils can move these figures by several points.

For September 2026 entry, 5 families put St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy as their first choice and 15 named it as one of their preferences, for 5 places offered. That is one first choice for every place. Every family who put it first was offered a place there for 2026 entry.

The nearest other state primary schools to St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy are Bacup Thorn Primary School (0.5 miles, Good, 76% reading, 85% maths); Bacup St Saviour's Community Primary School (0.7 miles, Good, 73% reading, 73% maths); Britannia Community Primary School (0.8 miles, Good, 76% reading, 83% maths); and Sharneyford Primary School (0.9 miles, Good, 60% reading, 50% maths).

Each of them had higher 2025 results than St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy.

St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy is one of 18 schools run by Romero Catholic Academy Trust, an academy trust.

Across the trust's primary schools, 56% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths in 2024/25.

75.5% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well above the average state school (25%), and 8.5% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.

The largest ethnic groups are White British (84%), Mixed (8%) and Asian (5%).

In 2026, 23 pupils (24.5%) received SEN support and 11 (11.7%) 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 speech, language and communication needs.

There is no railway, tram or Underground station within about three miles of St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy.

7 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Pennine Road (adjacent), 70 metres away.

Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy stands in is among the 20% most deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.

In 2024/25, St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy issued 118 suspensions, 84.3 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and 1 permanent exclusion.