St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School
Manchester Road, Astley, Manchester, M29 7DY
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Voluntary aided school
- Ages
- 4 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Roman Catholic
- Headteacher
- Mr Gareth Doherty
- Diocese
- Archdiocese of Liverpool
- Constituency
- Worsley and Eccles
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 210
- Pupils on roll
- 212
- URN
- 106510
- Local authority
- Wigan
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01942883912
About this school
St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School is a Roman Catholic voluntary aided primary school in Manchester. It teaches children aged 4 to 11 and has 212 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected St Ambrose Barlow Catholic 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
- 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 | 30 | 31 | 30 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 83% | 71% | 73% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 20% | 13% | 0% |
| Expected standard in reading | 90% | 90% | 90% |
| Expected standard in maths | 87% | 87% | 87% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 90% | 90% | 93% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 110.0 | 108.0 | 108.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 107.0 | 106.0 | 108.0 |
| Reading progress | +3.20 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +2.00 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +1.40 | - | - |
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 Ambrose Barlow 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 | Wigan average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 83% | 62.4% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 71% | 62.7% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 73% | 63.3% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 3.9% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.6% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 3.8% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 210 |
| 2023/24 | 211 |
| 2024/25 | 210 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School compares
St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School ranked 32nd of 97 primary schools in Wigan for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 73% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 89% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 73% | 3.8% | 8.6% | 212 | — |
| St Stephen's CofE Primary School | 63% | 3.9% | 19.3% | 240 | 0.3 miles |
| Tyldesley Primary School | 81% | 4.7% | 5.6% | 441 | 0.8 miles |
| St Gabriel's Catholic Primary School | 72% | 5.6% | 56% | 375 | 1.1 miles |
| Garrett Hall Primary School | 77% | 4.3% | 6.5% | 520 | 1.2 miles |
| Tyldesley St George's Central CofE Primary School and Nursery | 61% | 5.6% | 40.3% | 330 | 1.2 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)
- 8.57%
- English as an additional language
- 12.4%
- Overall absence
- 3.75%
- Persistent absence
- 4.42%
Location
Nearby schools
-
St Stephen's CofE Primary School0.3 miles
Primary · Manchester
-
Tyldesley Primary School0.8 miles
Primary · Manchester
-
St Gabriel's Catholic Primary School1.1 miles
Primary · Leigh
-
Garrett Hall Primary School1.2 miles
Primary · Manchester
-
Tyldesley St George's Central CofE Primary School and Nursery1.2 miles
Primary · Manchester
Other schools in Manchester
St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School ranks 54th 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 Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School teach?
- St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School teaches children aged 4 to 11. It is a primary school in Manchester.
- Who is the headteacher of St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School?
- The headteacher of St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School is Mr Gareth Doherty, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St Ambrose Barlow 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 many pupils are at St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School?
- St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School has 212 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 11.
- Is St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School full?
- St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School has capacity for 210 pupils and 212 on roll (101%), so it is at or above 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 Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School a faith school?
- Yes. St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School is designated Roman Catholic, in the Archdiocese of Liverpool.
- Does St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School as having no nursery classes.
- How have St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 83% in 2022/23 and 73% 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 Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School compare with other schools in Wigan?
- St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School ranked 32nd of 97 primary schools in Wigan for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 73% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 89% 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 Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School's absence rate?
- St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School's overall absence rate is 3.8% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St Ambrose Barlow Catholic Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St Ambrose Barlow 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.