St Michaels Catholic Primary & Nursery School
St Michael's Road, Widnes, WA8 8TD
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Voluntary aided school
- Ages
- 3 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Roman Catholic
- Headteacher
- Mr Paul Loughran
- Diocese
- Archdiocese of Liverpool
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Constituency
- Widnes and Halewood
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 245
- Pupils on roll
- 253
- URN
- 111393
- Local authority
- Halton
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01514244468
About this school
St Michaels Catholic Primary & Nursery School is a Roman Catholic voluntary aided primary school in Widnes. It teaches children aged 3 to 11 and has 253 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
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
- 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 | 31 | 40 | 29 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 61% | 68% | 72% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 6% | 5% | 3% |
| Expected standard in reading | 68% | 85% | 76% |
| Expected standard in maths | 81% | 75% | 83% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 84% | 80% | 69% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 103.0 | 106.0 | 105.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 105.0 | 105.0 | 103.0 |
| Reading progress | -3.30 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +0.10 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -0.60 | - | - |
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 Michaels Catholic Primary & Nursery 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 | Halton average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 61% | 55.4% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 68% | 56.9% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 72% | 59.4% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 6.1% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 5.8% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5.2% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 240 |
| 2023/24 | 242 |
| 2024/25 | 229 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St Michaels Catholic Primary & Nursery School compares
St Michaels Catholic Primary & Nursery School ranked 13th of 48 primary schools in Halton for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 71% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 56% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 72% | 5.2% | 48% | 253 | — |
| Oakfield Community Primary School | 33% | 6.2% | 51.1% | 291 | 0.6 miles |
| Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Catholic Primary School | 61% | 5.3% | 23.8% | 190 | 0.7 miles |
| Halebank CofE Primary School | 46% | 8.4% | 61.3% | 89 | 0.9 miles |
| Ditton Primary School | 54% | 7.2% | 50% | 322 | 0.9 miles |
| St Michael with St Thomas CE Primary School | 75% | 4.7% | 40.5% | 167 | 0.9 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)
- 48.03%
- English as an additional language
- 6.6%
- Overall absence
- 5.19%
- Persistent absence
- 13.11%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Oakfield Community Primary School0.6 miles
Primary · Widnes
-
Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Catholic Primary School0.7 miles
Primary · Widnes
-
Halebank CofE Primary School0.9 miles
Primary · Widnes
-
Ditton Primary School0.9 miles
Primary · Widnes
-
St Michael with St Thomas CE Primary School0.9 miles
Primary · Widnes
Other schools in Widnes
St Michaels Catholic Primary & Nursery School ranks 5th of the 19 ranked primary schools in Widnes.
- All Saints Upton Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School Primary
- Cronton Church of England Primary Academy Primary
- Ditton Primary School Primary
- Fairfield Primary School Primary
- Farnworth Church of England Controlled Primary School Primary
- Halebank CofE Primary School Primary
- Holy Family Catholic Primary School & Nursery Primary
- Kingsway Primary Academy School Primary
- Lunts Heath Primary School Primary
- Moorfield Primary School Primary
- Oakfield Community Primary School Primary
- Our Lady of Perpetual Succour Catholic Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does St Michaels Catholic Primary & Nursery School teach?
- St Michaels Catholic Primary & Nursery School teaches children aged 3 to 11. It is a primary school in Widnes.
- Who is the headteacher of St Michaels Catholic Primary & Nursery School?
- The headteacher of St Michaels Catholic Primary & Nursery School is Mr Paul Loughran, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was St Michaels Catholic Primary & Nursery School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St Michaels Catholic Primary & Nursery 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 Michaels Catholic Primary & Nursery School?
- St Michaels Catholic Primary & Nursery School has 253 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 11.
- Is St Michaels Catholic Primary & Nursery School full?
- St Michaels Catholic Primary & Nursery School has capacity for 245 pupils and 253 on roll (103%), 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 Michaels Catholic Primary & Nursery School a faith school?
- Yes. St Michaels Catholic Primary & Nursery School is designated Roman Catholic, in the Archdiocese of Liverpool.
- Does St Michaels Catholic Primary & Nursery School have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records St Michaels Catholic Primary & Nursery School as having nursery classes.
- How have St Michaels Catholic Primary & Nursery School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 61% in 2022/23 and 72% 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 Michaels Catholic Primary & Nursery School rank locally?
- St Michaels Catholic Primary & Nursery School ranked 13th of 48 primary schools in Halton for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 71% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 56% 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 Michaels Catholic Primary & Nursery School's absence rate?
- St Michaels Catholic Primary & Nursery School's overall absence rate is 5.2% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St Michaels Catholic Primary & Nursery School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St Michaels Catholic Primary & Nursery 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.