Chorley St James' Church of England Primary School
Devonport Way, Chorley, PR6 0TE
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Voluntary aided school
- Ages
- 3 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Headteacher
- Mrs Claire Greenway
- Diocese
- Diocese of Blackburn
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Constituency
- Chorley
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 180
- Pupils on roll
- 229
- URN
- 119467
- Local authority
- Lancashire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01257264638
About this school
Chorley St James' Church of England Primary School is a Church of England voluntary aided primary school in Chorley. It teaches children aged 3 to 11 and has 229 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
- Outstanding
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Outstanding
- Personal development
- Outstanding
- Leadership and management
- Outstanding
- Early years
- Outstanding
- 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 | 29 | 30 | 31 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 52% | 70% | 58% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 3% | 7% | 6% |
| Expected standard in reading | 55% | 83% | 68% |
| Expected standard in maths | 66% | 80% | 74% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 55% | 77% | 65% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 103.0 | 106.0 | 102.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 103.0 | 104.0 | 102.0 |
| Reading progress | -1.90 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +0.50 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -1.20 | - | - |
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 Chorley St James' Church of England 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 | Lancashire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 52% | 58.3% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 70% | 58.3% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 58% | 58.8% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 4.5% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.7% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 3.6% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 229 |
| 2023/24 | 233 |
| 2024/25 | 237 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Chorley St James' Church of England Primary School compares
Chorley St James' Church of England Primary School ranked 275th of 445 primary schools in Lancashire for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 36% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 93% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 58% | 3.6% | 18.8% | 229 | — |
| Highfield Community Primary School | 64% | 3.8% | 40.3% | 234 | 0.2 miles |
| Sacred Heart Catholic Primary School, Chorley | 67% | 5% | 19.9% | 157 | 0.3 miles |
| St Peter's CofE Primary School Chorley | 62% | 5.5% | 27.3% | 289 | 0.6 miles |
| St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Chorley | 74% | 4.4% | 29.9% | 219 | 0.7 miles |
| Duke Street Primary School | 38% | 5.4% | 44.8% | 317 | 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.
Inspection history
- 13 June 2023
-
Ungraded inspection report15 January 2020
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 18.75%
- English as an additional language
- 10.5%
- Overall absence
- 3.59%
- Persistent absence
- 8.38%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Highfield Community Primary School0.2 miles
Primary · Chorley
-
Sacred Heart Catholic Primary School, Chorley0.3 miles
Primary · Chorley
-
St Peter's CofE Primary School Chorley0.6 miles
Primary · Chorley
-
St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Chorley0.7 miles
Primary · Chorley
-
Duke Street Primary School0.7 miles
Primary · Chorley
Other schools in Chorley
Chorley St James' Church of England Primary School ranks 30th of the 40 ranked primary schools in Chorley.
- Abbey Village Primary School Primary
- Adlington Primary School Primary
- Adlington St Paul's Church of England Primary School Primary
- Balshaw Lane Community Primary School Primary
- Brindle St James' Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School Primary
- Brinscall St John's CofE and Methodist Primary School Primary
- Buckshaw Primary School Primary
- Chorley All Saints Church of England Primary School and Nursery Unit Primary
- Chorley, the Parish of St Laurence Church of England Primary School Primary
- Christ Church Charnock Richard CofE Primary School Primary
- Clayton-le-Woods Church of England Primary School Primary
- Clayton-le-Woods Manor Road Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does Chorley St James' Church of England Primary School teach?
- Chorley St James' Church of England Primary School teaches children aged 3 to 11. It is a primary school in Chorley.
- Who is the headteacher of Chorley St James' Church of England Primary School?
- The headteacher of Chorley St James' Church of England Primary School is Mrs Claire Greenway, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Chorley St James' Church of England Primary School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Chorley St James' Church of England 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 big is Chorley St James' Church of England Primary School?
- Chorley St James' Church of England Primary School has 229 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 11.
- Is Chorley St James' Church of England Primary School full?
- Chorley St James' Church of England Primary School has capacity for 180 pupils and 229 on roll (127%), 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 Chorley St James' Church of England Primary School a faith school?
- Yes. Chorley St James' Church of England Primary School is designated Church of England, in the Diocese of Blackburn.
- Does Chorley St James' Church of England Primary School have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records Chorley St James' Church of England Primary School as having nursery classes.
- How have Chorley St James' Church of England Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 52% in 2022/23 and 58% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Chorley St James' Church of England Primary School rank locally?
- Chorley St James' Church of England Primary School ranked 275th of 445 primary schools in Lancashire for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 36% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 93% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Chorley St James' Church of England Primary School's absence rate?
- Chorley St James' Church of England Primary School's overall absence rate is 3.6% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Chorley St James' Church of England Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Chorley St James' Church of England 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 30 June 2026.