The Ferns Primary Academy
Plodder Lane, Farnworth, Bolton, BL4 0DA
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 3 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- NORTHERN EDUCATION TRUST
- Principal
- Mrs Sarah Hambley
- Religious ethos
- None
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Sponsor
- Northern Education Trust
- Constituency
- Bolton South and Walkden
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 420
- Pupils on roll
- 445
- URN
- 138399
- Local authority
- Bolton
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01204471277
About this school
The Ferns Primary Academy is a primary academy in Bolton. It teaches children aged 3 to 11 and has 445 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
- Strong standard
- Achievement
- Strong standard
- Attendance and behaviour
- Expected standard
- Personal development and wellbeing
- Strong standard
- Leadership and governance
- Strong standard
- Early years
- Strong 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 | 56 | 60 | 59 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 75% | 87% | 76% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 11% | 3% | 12% |
| Expected standard in reading | 79% | 87% | 85% |
| Expected standard in maths | 88% | 92% | 85% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 70% | 72% | 83% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 105.0 | 107.0 | 108.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 107.0 | 106.0 | 108.0 |
| Reading progress | -0.70 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +2.70 | - | - |
| 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 The Ferns Primary Academy has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Bolton average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 75% | 63.5% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 87% | 63.3% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 76% | 63.4% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 5.5% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 5.2% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5.5% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 446 |
| 2023/24 | 457 |
| 2024/25 | 450 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How The Ferns Primary Academy compares
The Ferns Primary Academy ranked 21st of 89 primary schools in Bolton for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 80% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 47% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 76% | 5.5% | 38.3% | 445 | — |
| Queensbridge Primary School | 58% | 6.5% | 39.8% | 246 | 0.3 miles |
| Our Lady of Lourdes RC Primary School | 79% | 4% | 23.8% | 236 | 0.4 miles |
| St James CofE Primary School, Farnworth | 67% | 7.5% | 52.9% | 357 | 0.4 miles |
| Highfield Primary School | 66% | 6.4% | 25.9% | 412 | 0.4 miles |
| All Saints CofE Primary School | 66% | 4.9% | 29.3% | 285 | 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
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 38.31%
- English as an additional language
- 28.7%
- Overall absence
- 5.51%
- Persistent absence
- 15.26%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Queensbridge Primary School0.3 miles
Primary · Bolton
-
Our Lady of Lourdes RC Primary School0.4 miles
Primary · Bolton
-
St James CofE Primary School, Farnworth0.4 miles
Primary · Bolton
-
Highfield Primary School0.4 miles
Primary · Bolton
-
All Saints CofE Primary School0.7 miles
Primary · Bolton
Other schools in Bolton
The Ferns Primary Academy ranks 22nd of the 88 ranked primary schools in Bolton.
- All Saints CofE Primary School Primary
- Beacon Primary School Primary
- Beaumont Primary School Primary
- Bishop Bridgeman CofE Primary School Primary
- Blackrod Anglican/Methodist Primary School Primary
- Blackrod Primary School Primary
- Blackshaw Primary School Primary
- Bolton Parish Church, Church of England Primary School Primary
- Bowness Primary School Primary
- Brandwood Primary School Primary
- Brownlow Fold Primary School Primary
- Castle Hill Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does The Ferns Primary Academy teach?
- The Ferns Primary Academy teaches children aged 3 to 11. It is a primary school in Bolton.
- Who is the principal of The Ferns Primary Academy?
- The principal of The Ferns Primary Academy is Mrs Sarah Hambley, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was The Ferns Primary Academy last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected The Ferns Primary Academy, 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 The Ferns Primary Academy?
- The Ferns Primary Academy has 445 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 11.
- Is The Ferns Primary Academy full?
- The Ferns Primary Academy has capacity for 420 pupils and 445 on roll (106%), 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 The Ferns Primary Academy a faith school?
- No. The Ferns Primary Academy has no designated religious character.
- Does The Ferns Primary Academy have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records The Ferns Primary Academy as having nursery classes.
- Who runs The Ferns Primary Academy?
- The Ferns Primary Academy is part of NORTHERN EDUCATION TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have The Ferns Primary Academy's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 75% in 2022/23 and 76% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does The Ferns Primary Academy rank locally?
- The Ferns Primary Academy ranked 21st of 89 primary schools in Bolton for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 80% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 47% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is The Ferns Primary Academy's absence rate?
- The Ferns Primary Academy's overall absence rate is 5.5% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are The Ferns Primary Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, The Ferns Primary Academy'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 7 July 2026.