St James' Catholic Primary School Orrell
St James Road, Orrell, Wigan, WN5 7AA
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Voluntary aided school
- Ages
- 4 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Roman Catholic
- Headteacher
- Mr Gary Hayes
- Diocese
- Archdiocese of Liverpool
- Constituency
- Makerfield
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 405
- Pupils on roll
- 347
- URN
- 106492
- Local authority
- Wigan
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01942748455
About this school
St James' Catholic Primary School Orrell is a Roman Catholic voluntary aided primary school in Wigan. It teaches children aged 4 to 11 and has 347 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. 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 17 February 2022, 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 | 61 | 60 | 60 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 84% | 87% | 80% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 16% | 13% | 20% |
| Expected standard in reading | 90% | 92% | 90% |
| Expected standard in maths | 97% | 90% | 88% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 97% | 92% | 87% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 110.0 | 109.0 | 110.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 110.0 | 108.0 | 109.0 |
| Reading progress | +3.50 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +1.80 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +4.30 | - | - |
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' Catholic Primary School Orrell 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 | 84% | 62.4% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 87% | 62.7% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 80% | 63.3% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 3.8% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.3% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 3.4% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 401 |
| 2023/24 | 385 |
| 2024/25 | 371 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St James' Catholic Primary School Orrell compares
St James' Catholic Primary School Orrell ranked 17th of 97 primary schools in Wigan for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 87% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 95% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 80% | 3.4% | 11.1% | 347 | — |
| Orrell Newfold Community Primary School | 93% | 3.8% | 11.2% | 447 | 0.1 miles |
| Orrell Holgate Academy | 86% | 4% | 17% | 198 | 0.4 miles |
| St Thomas the Martyr Voluntary Aided Church of England Primary School | 76% | 5.1% | 30.6% | 211 | 1.2 miles |
| Orrell Lamberhead Green Academy | 78% | 6.1% | 38.6% | 408 | 1.4 miles |
| St John's CofE Primary School | 71% | 6.8% | 40.6% | 185 | 1.4 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)
- 11.05%
- English as an additional language
- 3.2%
- Overall absence
- 3.37%
- Persistent absence
- 4.86%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Orrell Newfold Community Primary School0.1 miles
Primary · Wigan
-
Orrell Holgate Academy0.4 miles
Primary · Wigan
-
St Thomas the Martyr Voluntary Aided Church of England Primary School1.2 miles
Primary · Skelmersdale
-
Orrell Lamberhead Green Academy1.4 miles
Primary · Wigan
-
St John's CofE Primary School1.4 miles
Primary · Wigan
Other schools in Wigan
St James' Catholic Primary School Orrell ranks 16th 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 year groups does St James' Catholic Primary School Orrell teach?
- St James' Catholic Primary School Orrell teaches children aged 4 to 11. It is a primary school in Wigan.
- Who is the headteacher of St James' Catholic Primary School Orrell?
- The headteacher of St James' Catholic Primary School Orrell is Mr Gary Hayes, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was St James' Catholic Primary School Orrell last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St James' Catholic Primary School Orrell, 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 James' Catholic Primary School Orrell?
- St James' Catholic Primary School Orrell has 347 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 11.
- Is St James' Catholic Primary School Orrell full?
- St James' Catholic Primary School Orrell has capacity for 405 pupils and 347 on roll (86%), 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' Catholic Primary School Orrell a faith school?
- Yes. St James' Catholic Primary School Orrell is designated Roman Catholic, in the Archdiocese of Liverpool.
- Does St James' Catholic Primary School Orrell have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records St James' Catholic Primary School Orrell as having no nursery classes.
- How have St James' Catholic Primary School Orrell's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 84% in 2022/23 and 80% 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' Catholic Primary School Orrell rank locally?
- St James' Catholic Primary School Orrell ranked 17th of 97 primary schools in Wigan for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 87% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 95% 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' Catholic Primary School Orrell's absence rate?
- St James' Catholic Primary School Orrell's overall absence rate is 3.4% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St James' Catholic Primary School Orrell's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St James' Catholic Primary School Orrell'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.