The Ferns Primary Academy, Bolton

Ofsted's report card from its 6 January 2026 inspection grades The Ferns Primary Academy on 7 areas: 5 strong standard and 2 expected standard. Report cards replaced single-word judgements in November 2025, on a five-point scale from exceptional to urgent improvement.

Achievement - Strong standard. "Pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those who are disadvantaged, make consistently secure progress through the curriculum."

Curriculum and teaching - Strong standard. "Leaders have implemented a rigorous curriculum which is set out precisely from the beginning of the early years to the end of Year 6."

Early years - Strong standard. "Leaders have designed a curriculum that is sequenced carefully and rooted in children's starting points."

Leadership and governance - Strong standard. "Leaders show unified determination to meet pupils' academic and wider needs."

Personal development and wellbeing - Strong standard. "Leaders demonstrate a clear understanding of the school's context."

Attendance and behaviour - Expected standard. "Leaders' work is successful in creating a culture in which pupils value coming to school."

Inclusion - Expected standard. "Leaders understand the school's context and use this knowledge to set ambitious expectations for pupils who face additional barriers to their learning or wellbeing."

Safeguarding standards were met.

Ofsted's next steps for the school: "• Leaders should continue to embed the school's adaptive practice so that support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities is consistently highly effective. • Leaders should ensure that behaviour expectations and approaches to behaviour management are consistently applied by all staff".

In 2025, 85% of Year 6 pupils at The Ferns Primary Academy reached the expected standard in reading and 85% in maths. At the average state primary the figures were 77% and 78% in Bolton and 77% and 75% across England.

Results fell from 87% in reading and 92% in maths in 2024.

For September 2026 entry, 39 families put The Ferns Primary Academy as their first choice and 90 named it as one of their preferences, for 46 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. Every family who put it first was offered a place there for 2026 entry.

The nearest other state primary schools to The Ferns Primary Academy are Queensbridge Primary School (0.3 miles, Good, 61% reading, 61% maths); Our Lady of Lourdes RC Primary School (0.4 miles, Good, 86% reading, 86% maths); St James CofE Primary School, Farnworth (0.4 miles, Good, 79% reading, 77% maths); and Highfield Primary School (0.4 miles, Good, 80% reading, 88% maths).

The Ferns Primary Academy's 2025 results were higher than 3 of these 4 schools.

The Ferns Primary Academy is one of 30 schools run by Northern Education Trust, an academy trust.

Across the trust's primary schools, 78% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths in 2024/25.

36 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about The Ferns Primary Academy (as of April 2026): 81% would recommend the school, 86% say their child is happy there and 60% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.

The strongest agreement was that their child feels safe (89%); the weakest, that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (60%).

28.5% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.

The largest ethnic groups are White British (46%) and Asian (41%).

In 2026, 64 pupils (14.4%) received SEN support and 10 (2.2%) 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 Moses Gate Rail Station, about 930 metres away (roughly a 12-minute walk).

15 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Mossfield Road (near), 80 metres away.

Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood The Ferns Primary Academy stands in is among the 10% most deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.

In 2024/25, The Ferns Primary Academy issued 27 suspensions, 6 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and 1 permanent exclusion.

The secondary schools closest to The Ferns Primary Academy are Harper Green School (under 0.1 miles), St James's Church of England High School (0.4 miles) and Mount St Joseph RC High School a Voluntary Academy (0.6 miles).