St James' Lanehead Church of England Primary School
Briercliffe Road, Burnley, BB10 2NH
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Voluntary aided school
- Ages
- 4 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Headteacher
- Mr Mark Elliott
- Diocese
- Diocese of Blackburn
- Constituency
- Burnley
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 280
- Pupils on roll
- 279
- URN
- 119487
- Local authority
- Lancashire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01282426833
About this school
St James' Lanehead Church of England Primary School is a Church of England voluntary aided primary school in Burnley. It teaches children aged 4 to 11 and has 279 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
Ofsted no longer gives schools a single overall grade. Each area of the school's work is graded on a five-point scale, and safeguarding is judged separately.
- Inclusion
- Expected standard
- Curriculum and teaching
- Expected standard
- Achievement
- Expected standard
- Attendance and behaviour
- Expected standard
- Personal development and wellbeing
- Expected standard
- Leadership and governance
- Expected standard
- Early years
- Expected standard
- Safeguarding
- Met
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 39 | 39 | 40 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 64% | 59% | 50% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Expected standard in reading | 72% | 79% | 65% |
| Expected standard in maths | 72% | 67% | 60% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 74% | 69% | 63% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 106.0 | 105.0 | 102.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 104.0 | 102.0 | 101.0 |
| Reading progress | +2.60 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +0.80 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +2.00 | - | - |
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' Lanehead 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 | 64% | 58.3% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 59% | 58.3% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 50% | 58.8% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 4.7% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.9% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 4.6% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 276 |
| 2023/24 | 280 |
| 2024/25 | 280 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St James' Lanehead Church of England Primary School compares
St James' Lanehead Church of England Primary School ranked 346th of 445 primary schools in Lancashire for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 21% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 71% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 50% | 4.6% | 30.7% | 279 | — |
| St John the Baptist RC Primary School, a Voluntary Academy | 59% | 5.5% | 33.5% | 212 | 0.4 miles |
| Casterton Primary Academy | 72% | 5.4% | 35.6% | 291 | 0.5 miles |
| Reedley Primary School | 61% | 5.9% | 44.6% | 408 | 0.7 miles |
| Briercliffe Primary School | 69% | 5% | 16.2% | 388 | 0.8 miles |
| Heasandford Primary School | 60% | 6.1% | 34.5% | 630 | 0.8 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
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 30.71%
- English as an additional language
- 10%
- Overall absence
- 4.56%
- Persistent absence
- 8.61%
Location
Nearby schools
-
St John the Baptist RC Primary School, a Voluntary Academy0.4 miles
Primary · Burnley
-
Casterton Primary Academy0.5 miles
Primary · Burnley
-
Reedley Primary School0.7 miles
Primary · Burnley
-
Briercliffe Primary School0.8 miles
Primary · Burnley
-
Heasandford Primary School0.8 miles
Primary · Burnley
Other schools in Burnley
St James' Lanehead Church of England Primary School ranks 24th of the 33 ranked primary schools in Burnley.
- Barden Primary School Primary
- Briercliffe Primary School Primary
- Burnley Brunshaw Primary School Primary
- Burnley Holy Trinity Church of England Primary School Primary
- Burnley Ightenhill Primary School Primary
- Burnley Lowerhouse Junior School Primary
- Burnley Springfield Community Primary School Primary
- Burnley St Peter's Church of England Primary School Primary
- Burnley St Stephen's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School Primary
- Burnley Stoneyholme Community Primary School Primary
- Casterton Primary Academy Primary
- Cherry Fold Community Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does St James' Lanehead Church of England Primary School teach?
- St James' Lanehead Church of England Primary School teaches children aged 4 to 11. It is a primary school in Burnley.
- Who is the headteacher of St James' Lanehead Church of England Primary School?
- The headteacher of St James' Lanehead Church of England Primary School is Mr Mark Elliott, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was St James' Lanehead Church of England Primary School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St James' Lanehead 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 St James' Lanehead Church of England Primary School?
- St James' Lanehead Church of England Primary School has 279 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 11.
- Is St James' Lanehead Church of England Primary School full?
- St James' Lanehead Church of England Primary School has capacity for 280 pupils and 279 on roll (100%), 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 James' Lanehead Church of England Primary School a faith school?
- Yes. St James' Lanehead Church of England Primary School is designated Church of England, in the Diocese of Blackburn.
- Does St James' Lanehead Church of England Primary School have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records St James' Lanehead Church of England Primary School as having no nursery classes.
- How have St James' Lanehead 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 64% in 2022/23 and 50% 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' Lanehead Church of England Primary School rank locally?
- St James' Lanehead Church of England Primary School ranked 346th of 445 primary schools in Lancashire for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 21% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 71% 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' Lanehead Church of England Primary School's absence rate?
- St James' Lanehead Church of England Primary School's overall absence rate is 4.6% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St James' Lanehead Church of England Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St James' Lanehead 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 15 July 2026.