St. Mary's Blackbrook Catholic Primary School
Chain Lane, Blackbrook, St Helens, WA11 9QY
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Voluntary aided school
- Ages
- 3 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Roman Catholic
- Headteacher
- Mr Kevin Robinson
- Diocese
- Archdiocese of Liverpool
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Constituency
- St Helens North
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 460
- Pupils on roll
- 381
- URN
- 104802
- Local authority
- St. Helens
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01744678161
About this school
St. Mary's Blackbrook Catholic Primary School is a Roman Catholic voluntary aided primary school in St Helens. It teaches children aged 3 to 11 and has 381 pupils on roll.
You can read Ofsted's latest judgement for the school below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Numbers and a report only go so far, so visit in person before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Overall judgement at the last full inspection
This inspection took place under the previous framework, which gave a single overall grade. Ofsted now publishes report cards instead, so newer inspections of other schools will look different. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Good
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Good
- Personal development
- Good
- Leadership and management
- Good
- Early years
- Good
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 56 | 54 | 58 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 59% | 37% | 53% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 4% | 2% | 7% |
| Expected standard in reading | 70% | 59% | 74% |
| Expected standard in maths | 64% | 48% | 62% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 64% | 46% | 57% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 106.0 | 101.0 | 103.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 100.0 | 99.0 | 102.0 |
| Reading progress | +2.30 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +0.80 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -2.00 | - | - |
Progress measures ended nationally after the 2022/23 school year, when the key stage 1 assessments they were based on were stopped. Blank progress figures in later years are not missing school data.
Trends over time
How St. Mary's Blackbrook Catholic Primary School has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | St. Helens average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 59% | 60.7% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 37% | 60.3% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 53% | 60.1% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 7.6% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 7.9% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 7.2% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 421 |
| 2023/24 | 409 |
| 2024/25 | 400 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St. Mary's Blackbrook Catholic Primary School compares
St. Mary's Blackbrook Catholic Primary School ranked 43rd of 52 primary schools in St. Helens for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 26% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 23% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 53% | 7.2% | 36.6% | 381 | — |
| Ashurst Primary School | 57% | 4.9% | 29.4% | 216 | 0.2 miles |
| Merton Bank Primary School | 28% | 8.3% | 55.1% | 193 | 0.7 miles |
| Legh Vale Primary School | 47% | 4.8% | 29% | 449 | 0.9 miles |
| St Peter and St Paul Catholic Primary School | 61% | 4.4% | 18% | 197 | 0.9 miles |
| Broad Oak Community Primary School | 57% | 6.6% | 67.4% | 630 | 1.1 miles |
Results reflect each school's cohort as much as its teaching, and free school meals share is context, not a judgement. Small gaps between neighbouring schools are rarely meaningful on their own.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 36.64%
- English as an additional language
- 9.8%
- Overall absence
- 7.24%
- Persistent absence
- 17.94%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Ashurst Primary School0.2 miles
Primary · St Helens
-
Merton Bank Primary School0.7 miles
Primary · St Helens
-
Legh Vale Primary School0.9 miles
Primary · St Helens
-
St Peter and St Paul Catholic Primary School0.9 miles
Primary · St Helens
-
Broad Oak Community Primary School1.1 miles
Primary · St Helens
Other schools in St Helens
St. Mary's Blackbrook Catholic Primary School ranks 28th of the 36 ranked primary schools in St Helens.
- Ashurst Primary School Primary
- Bleak Hill Primary School Primary
- Broad Oak Community Primary School Primary
- Carr Mill Primary School Primary
- Corpus Christi Catholic Primary School Primary
- Eaves Primary School Primary
- Eccleston Mere Primary School Primary
- Grange Valley Primary School Primary
- Holy Cross Catholic Primary School Primary
- Holy Spirit Catholic Primary School Primary
- Legh Vale Primary School Primary
- Longton Lane Community Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does St. Mary's Blackbrook Catholic Primary School teach?
- St. Mary's Blackbrook Catholic Primary School teaches children aged 3 to 11. It is a primary school in St Helens.
- Who is the headteacher of St. Mary's Blackbrook Catholic Primary School?
- The headteacher of St. Mary's Blackbrook Catholic Primary School is Mr Kevin Robinson, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was St. Mary's Blackbrook Catholic Primary School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St. Mary's Blackbrook Catholic Primary School, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How big is St. Mary's Blackbrook Catholic Primary School?
- St. Mary's Blackbrook Catholic Primary School has 381 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 11.
- Is St. Mary's Blackbrook Catholic Primary School full?
- St. Mary's Blackbrook Catholic Primary School has capacity for 460 pupils and 381 on roll (83%), so it has space against its published capacity. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is St. Mary's Blackbrook Catholic Primary School a faith school?
- Yes. St. Mary's Blackbrook Catholic Primary School is designated Roman Catholic, in the Archdiocese of Liverpool.
- Does St. Mary's Blackbrook Catholic Primary School have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records St. Mary's Blackbrook Catholic Primary School as having nursery classes.
- How have St. Mary's Blackbrook Catholic Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 59% in 2022/23 and 53% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does St. Mary's Blackbrook Catholic Primary School rank locally?
- St. Mary's Blackbrook Catholic Primary School ranked 43rd of 52 primary schools in St. Helens for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 26% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 23% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is St. Mary's Blackbrook Catholic Primary School's absence rate?
- St. Mary's Blackbrook Catholic Primary School's overall absence rate is 7.2% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St. Mary's Blackbrook Catholic Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St. Mary's Blackbrook Catholic Primary School's key stage results are shown in the results section on this page, with the last three years so you can see the trend rather than a single year.
School details come from the Department for Education's Get Information About Schools register. Inspection outcomes come from Ofsted, and exam results from the Department for Education's school performance service. This page was last updated on 29 June 2026.