St James' CofE Primary School, Birch-in-Rusholme
Cromwell Range, Birch-in-Rusholme, Manchester, M14 6HW
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Voluntary aided school
- Ages
- 3 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Headteacher
- Mr Gavin Shortall
- Diocese
- Diocese of Manchester
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Constituency
- Manchester Rusholme
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 236
- Pupils on roll
- 222
- URN
- 105508
- Local authority
- Manchester
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01612246173
About this school
St James' CofE Primary School, Birch-in-Rusholme is a Church of England voluntary aided primary school in Manchester. It teaches children aged 3 to 11 and has 222 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected St James' CofE Primary School, Birch-in-Rusholme, and its latest judgement is set out below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Seeing a school for yourself shows what no page can, so arrange a visit before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Confirmed by a short inspection, not a full one
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 18 January 2023, where inspectors confirmed the school remains Good. The school's last full inspection took place before September 2019, so its area grades are not part of Ofsted's current published data. Older reports are on the school's Ofsted page.
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 30 | 30 | 27 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 63% | 73% | 74% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 10% | 7% | 11% |
| Expected standard in reading | 83% | 83% | 89% |
| Expected standard in maths | 70% | 80% | 81% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 73% | 87% | 89% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 105.0 | 106.0 | 109.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 104.0 | 106.0 | 107.0 |
| Reading progress | +1.30 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +0.30 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +0.40 | - | - |
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 James' CofE Primary School, Birch-in-Rusholme has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Manchester average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 63% | 52.1% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 73% | 54.1% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 74% | 57.1% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 5.6% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 5.5% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 6% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 229 |
| 2023/24 | 219 |
| 2024/25 | 215 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St James' CofE Primary School, Birch-in-Rusholme compares
St James' CofE Primary School, Birch-in-Rusholme ranked 19th of 125 primary schools in Manchester for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 76% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 38% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 74% | 6% | 45.1% | 222 | — |
| Birchfields Primary School | 49% | 6.3% | 57.9% | 592 | 0.5 miles |
| Heald Place Primary School | 52% | 4.5% | 52.4% | 572 | 0.6 miles |
| Longsight Community Primary | 52% | 5.7% | 56% | 205 | 0.7 miles |
| The Divine Mercy Roman Catholic Primary School | 38% | 5% | 48.8% | 406 | 0.7 miles |
| St Agnes C of E Primary School | 48% | 7.7% | 42.3% | 429 | 0.7 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)
- 45.13%
- English as an additional language
- 43.7%
- Overall absence
- 6%
- Persistent absence
- 17.11%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Birchfields Primary School0.5 miles
Primary · Manchester
-
Heald Place Primary School0.6 miles
Primary · Manchester
-
Longsight Community Primary0.7 miles
Primary · Manchester
-
The Divine Mercy Roman Catholic Primary School0.7 miles
Primary · Manchester
-
St Agnes C of E Primary School0.7 miles
Primary · Manchester
Other schools in Manchester
St James' CofE Primary School, Birch-in-Rusholme ranks 39th of the 252 ranked primary schools in Manchester.
- Abbey Hey Primary Academy Primary
- Abbott Community Primary School Primary
- Acacias Community Primary School Primary
- Acre Hall Primary School Primary
- Aldwyn Primary School Primary
- Alkrington Primary School Primary
- All Saints C of E Primary School Primary
- All Saints Church of England Primary School, Stand Primary
- All Saints Primary School Primary
- Alma Park Primary School Primary
- Armitage CofE Primary School Primary
- Ashbury Meadow Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does St James' CofE Primary School, Birch-in-Rusholme teach?
- St James' CofE Primary School, Birch-in-Rusholme teaches children aged 3 to 11. It is a primary school in Manchester.
- Who is the headteacher of St James' CofE Primary School, Birch-in-Rusholme?
- The headteacher of St James' CofE Primary School, Birch-in-Rusholme is Mr Gavin Shortall, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has St James' CofE Primary School, Birch-in-Rusholme been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St James' CofE Primary School, Birch-in-Rusholme, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How many pupils are at St James' CofE Primary School, Birch-in-Rusholme?
- St James' CofE Primary School, Birch-in-Rusholme has 222 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 11.
- Is St James' CofE Primary School, Birch-in-Rusholme full?
- St James' CofE Primary School, Birch-in-Rusholme has capacity for 236 pupils and 222 on roll (94%), 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 James' CofE Primary School, Birch-in-Rusholme a faith school?
- Yes. St James' CofE Primary School, Birch-in-Rusholme is designated Church of England, in the Diocese of Manchester.
- Does St James' CofE Primary School, Birch-in-Rusholme have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records St James' CofE Primary School, Birch-in-Rusholme as having nursery classes.
- How have St James' CofE Primary School, Birch-in-Rusholme's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 63% in 2022/23 and 74% 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 James' CofE Primary School, Birch-in-Rusholme compare with other schools in Manchester?
- St James' CofE Primary School, Birch-in-Rusholme ranked 19th of 125 primary schools in Manchester for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 76% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 38% 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 James' CofE Primary School, Birch-in-Rusholme's absence rate?
- St James' CofE Primary School, Birch-in-Rusholme's overall absence rate is 6% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St James' CofE Primary School, Birch-in-Rusholme's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St James' CofE Primary School, Birch-in-Rusholme'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.