St James-the-Less Roman Catholic Primary School, Rawtenstall
Unity Way, Rawtenstall, Rossendale, BB4 8SU
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Voluntary aided school
- Ages
- 5 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Roman Catholic
- Headteacher
- Mrs Jessica Bell-Shaw
- Diocese
- Diocese of Salford
- Constituency
- Rossendale and Darwen
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 210
- Pupils on roll
- 211
- URN
- 119665
- Local authority
- Lancashire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01706216190
About this school
St James-the-Less Roman Catholic Primary School, Rawtenstall is a Roman Catholic voluntary aided primary school in Rossendale. It teaches children aged 5 to 11 and has 211 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 19 January 2023, 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 | 31 | 30 | 32 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 87% | 73% | 81% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 13% | 7% | 19% |
| Expected standard in reading | 90% | 77% | 81% |
| Expected standard in maths | 87% | 80% | 88% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 90% | 80% | 84% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 107.0 | 104.0 | 106.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 108.0 | 104.0 | 107.0 |
| Reading progress | +1.20 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +3.80 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +3.00 | - | - |
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-the-Less Roman Catholic Primary School, Rawtenstall 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 | 87% | 58.3% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 73% | 58.3% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 81% | 58.8% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 4% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.4% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 3.5% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 212 |
| 2023/24 | 209 |
| 2024/25 | 213 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St James-the-Less Roman Catholic Primary School, Rawtenstall compares
St James-the-Less Roman Catholic Primary School, Rawtenstall ranked 38th of 445 primary schools in Lancashire for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 89% 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 | 81% | 3.5% | 14.1% | 211 | — |
| St Mary's CofE Primary School Rawtenstall | 50% | 5.5% | 23.4% | 182 | 0.1 miles |
| Rawtenstall St Paul's Church of England Primary School | 44% | 4.8% | 14.3% | 276 | 0.4 miles |
| Rawtenstall Balladen Community Primary School | 32% | 7.6% | 46.7% | 109 | 0.8 miles |
| St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, Haslingden | 71% | 3% | 18.6% | 139 | 1.0 miles |
| Haslingden Primary School | 58% | 5.1% | 39.4% | 372 | 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)
- 14.08%
- English as an additional language
- 1.4%
- Overall absence
- 3.53%
- Persistent absence
- 4.37%
Location
Nearby schools
-
St Mary's CofE Primary School Rawtenstall0.1 miles
Primary · Rossendale
-
Rawtenstall St Paul's Church of England Primary School0.4 miles
Primary · Rawtenstall
-
Rawtenstall Balladen Community Primary School0.8 miles
Primary · Rossendale
-
St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, Haslingden1.0 miles
Primary · Rossendale
-
Haslingden Primary School1.4 miles
Primary · Rossendale
Other schools in Rossendale
St James-the-Less Roman Catholic Primary School, Rawtenstall ranks 2nd of the 13 ranked primary schools in Rossendale.
- Crawshawbooth Primary School Primary
- Haslingden Broadway Primary School Primary
- Haslingden Primary School Primary
- Helmshore Primary School Primary
- Rawtenstall Balladen Community Primary School Primary
- Rawtenstall Newchurch Church of England Primary School Primary
- St Anne's Church of England Primary School Primary
- St Mary's CofE Primary School Rawtenstall Primary
- St Mary's Roman Catholic Primary School, Haslingden Primary
- St Peter's Roman Catholic Primary School, Newchurch Primary
- Water Primary School Primary
- Waterfoot Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does St James-the-Less Roman Catholic Primary School, Rawtenstall teach?
- St James-the-Less Roman Catholic Primary School, Rawtenstall teaches children aged 5 to 11. It is a primary school in Rossendale.
- Who is the headteacher of St James-the-Less Roman Catholic Primary School, Rawtenstall?
- The headteacher of St James-the-Less Roman Catholic Primary School, Rawtenstall is Mrs Jessica Bell-Shaw, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was St James-the-Less Roman Catholic Primary School, Rawtenstall last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St James-the-Less Roman Catholic Primary School, Rawtenstall, 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-the-Less Roman Catholic Primary School, Rawtenstall?
- St James-the-Less Roman Catholic Primary School, Rawtenstall has 211 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 5 to 11.
- Is St James-the-Less Roman Catholic Primary School, Rawtenstall full?
- St James-the-Less Roman Catholic Primary School, Rawtenstall has capacity for 210 pupils and 211 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-the-Less Roman Catholic Primary School, Rawtenstall a faith school?
- Yes. St James-the-Less Roman Catholic Primary School, Rawtenstall is designated Roman Catholic, in the Diocese of Salford.
- Does St James-the-Less Roman Catholic Primary School, Rawtenstall have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records St James-the-Less Roman Catholic Primary School, Rawtenstall as having no nursery classes.
- How have St James-the-Less Roman Catholic Primary School, Rawtenstall's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 87% in 2022/23 and 81% 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-the-Less Roman Catholic Primary School, Rawtenstall rank locally?
- St James-the-Less Roman Catholic Primary School, Rawtenstall ranked 38th of 445 primary schools in Lancashire for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 89% 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 St James-the-Less Roman Catholic Primary School, Rawtenstall's absence rate?
- St James-the-Less Roman Catholic Primary School, Rawtenstall's overall absence rate is 3.5% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St James-the-Less Roman Catholic Primary School, Rawtenstall's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St James-the-Less Roman Catholic Primary School, Rawtenstall'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.