St Catharine's CofE Primary School
Scholefield Lane, Scholes, Wigan, WN1 3LP
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Voluntary aided school
- Ages
- 4 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Headteacher
- Mrs Sue Pittendreigh
- Diocese
- Diocese of Liverpool
- Constituency
- Wigan
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 210
- Pupils on roll
- 205
- URN
- 106464
- Local authority
- Wigan
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01942733081
About this school
St Catharine's CofE Primary School is a Church of England voluntary aided primary school in Wigan. It teaches children aged 4 to 11 and has 205 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected St Catharine's CofE Primary School, 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
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
- Outstanding
- Personal development
- Good
- Leadership and management
- Outstanding
- 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 | 30 | 30 | 29 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 73% | 40% | 38% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 20% | 7% | 0% |
| Expected standard in reading | 80% | 50% | 52% |
| Expected standard in maths | 90% | 73% | 72% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 83% | 67% | 38% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 106.0 | 101.0 | 102.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 109.0 | 106.0 | 102.0 |
| Reading progress | +0.60 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +0.60 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +4.20 | - | - |
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 Catharine's CofE 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 | Wigan average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 73% | 62.4% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 40% | 62.7% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 38% | 63.3% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 6.3% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 6.3% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5.6% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 208 |
| 2023/24 | 208 |
| 2024/25 | 204 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St Catharine's CofE Primary School compares
St Catharine's CofE Primary School ranked 95th of 97 primary schools in Wigan for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 10% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 47% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 38% | 5.6% | 53.9% | 205 | — |
| St Patrick's Catholic Primary School | 73% | 6.5% | 37.5% | 348 | 0.1 miles |
| Britannia Bridge Primary School | 50% | 7.3% | 45% | 223 | 0.5 miles |
| St Mary and St John Catholic Primary School | 67% | 3.6% | 15.2% | 209 | 0.5 miles |
| St William's Catholic Primary School | 54% | 5.9% | 44.8% | 235 | 0.5 miles |
| Mab's Cross Primary School | 57% | 4.2% | 21.3% | 461 | 0.6 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.
Inspection history
- 20 June 2023
-
Ungraded inspection report23 January 2020
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 53.92%
- English as an additional language
- 14.7%
- Overall absence
- 5.59%
- Persistent absence
- 14.92%
Location
Nearby schools
-
St Patrick's Catholic Primary School0.1 miles
Primary · Wigan
-
Britannia Bridge Primary School0.5 miles
Primary · Wigan
-
St Mary and St John Catholic Primary School0.5 miles
Primary · Wigan
-
St William's Catholic Primary School0.5 miles
Primary · Wigan
-
Mab's Cross Primary School0.6 miles
Primary · Wigan
Other schools in Wigan
St Catharine's CofE Primary School ranks 64th of the 66 ranked primary schools in Wigan.
- Appley Bridge All Saints Church of England Primary Academy Primary
- Aspull Church Primary School Primary
- Beech Hill Community Primary School Primary
- Bickershaw CofE Primary School Primary
- Billinge Chapel End Primary School Primary
- Britannia Bridge Primary School Primary
- Bryn St Peter's CofE Primary School Primary
- Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery Primary
- Castle Hill St Philip's CofE Primary School Primary
- Dalton St Michael's Church of England Primary School Primary
- Garswood Primary and Nursery School Primary
- Highfield St Matthew's Church of England Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does St Catharine's CofE Primary School teach?
- St Catharine's CofE Primary School teaches children aged 4 to 11. It is a primary school in Wigan.
- Who is the headteacher of St Catharine's CofE Primary School?
- The headteacher of St Catharine's CofE Primary School is Mrs Sue Pittendreigh, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has St Catharine's CofE Primary School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St Catharine's CofE 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 many pupils are at St Catharine's CofE Primary School?
- St Catharine's CofE Primary School has 205 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 11.
- Is St Catharine's CofE Primary School full?
- St Catharine's CofE Primary School has capacity for 210 pupils and 205 on roll (98%), so it is close to full. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is St Catharine's CofE Primary School a faith school?
- Yes. St Catharine's CofE Primary School is designated Church of England, in the Diocese of Liverpool.
- Does St Catharine's CofE Primary School have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records St Catharine's CofE Primary School as having no nursery classes.
- How have St Catharine's CofE Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 73% in 2022/23 and 38% 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 Catharine's CofE Primary School compare with other schools in Wigan?
- St Catharine's CofE Primary School ranked 95th of 97 primary schools in Wigan for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 10% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 47% 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 Catharine's CofE Primary School's absence rate?
- St Catharine's CofE Primary School's overall absence rate is 5.6% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St Catharine's CofE Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St Catharine's CofE 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.