Darwen, St Barnabas CofE Primary Academy
Knowlesly Road, Darwen, BB3 2JA
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 4 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Trust
- CIDARI EDUCATION LIMITED
- Head Teacher
- Mrs Rebecca Ham
- Diocese
- Diocese of Blackburn
- Sponsor
- Cidari Trust
- Constituency
- Rossendale and Darwen
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 210
- Pupils on roll
- 207
- URN
- 141483
- Local authority
- Blackburn with Darwen
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01254702996
About this school
Darwen, St Barnabas CofE Primary Academy is a Church of England primary academy in Darwen. It teaches children aged 4 to 11 and has 207 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Darwen, St Barnabas CofE Primary Academy, and its latest judgement is set out below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Numbers and a report only go so far, so visit in person before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Confirmed by a short inspection, not a full one
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 29 March 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 | 29 | 30 | 31 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 69% | 67% | 65% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 3% | 17% | 0% |
| Expected standard in reading | 90% | 87% | 74% |
| Expected standard in maths | 79% | 70% | 81% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 90% | 70% | 77% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 106.0 | 106.0 | 105.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 105.0 | 104.0 | 103.0 |
| Reading progress | -0.70 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -0.70 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -0.90 | - | - |
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 Darwen, St Barnabas CofE 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 | Blackburn with Darwen average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 69% | 57.3% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 67% | 57.2% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 65% | 60.7% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 4.5% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.5% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 3.7% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 207 |
| 2023/24 | 202 |
| 2024/25 | 205 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Darwen, St Barnabas CofE Primary Academy compares
Darwen, St Barnabas CofE Primary Academy ranked 23rd of 51 primary schools in Blackburn with Darwen for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 53% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 91% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 65% | 3.7% | 10.2% | 207 | — |
| Ashleigh Primary School | 66% | 3.9% | 15.1% | 220 | 0.4 miles |
| Darwen St Peter's Church of England Primary School | 43% | 6.2% | 33.9% | 240 | 0.8 miles |
| St Joseph's Roman Catholic Primary School, Darwen | 70% | 5% | 16.8% | 165 | 0.9 miles |
| Darwen Aldridge Sudell Primary | 64% | 7.9% | 45.6% | 167 | 1.1 miles |
| Holy Trinity VC School | 62% | 7% | 58.7% | 119 | 1.2 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)
- 10.24%
- English as an additional language
- 0%
- Overall absence
- 3.65%
- Persistent absence
- 5.62%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Ashleigh Primary School0.4 miles
Primary · Darwen
-
Darwen St Peter's Church of England Primary School0.8 miles
Primary · Darwen
-
St Joseph's Roman Catholic Primary School, Darwen0.9 miles
Primary · Darwen
-
Darwen Aldridge Sudell Primary1.1 miles
Primary · Darwen
-
Holy Trinity VC School1.2 miles
Primary · Darwen
Other schools in Darwen
Darwen, St Barnabas CofE Primary Academy ranks 5th of the 14 ranked primary schools in Darwen.
- Ashleigh Primary School Primary
- Avondale Primary School Primary
- Darwen Aldridge Sudell Primary Primary
- Darwen St James CofE Primary Academy Primary
- Darwen St Peter's Church of England Primary School Primary
- Hoddlesden St Paul's Church of England Primary School Primary
- Holy Trinity VC School Primary
- Lower Darwen Primary School Primary
- St Cuthbert's Church of England Primary School Primary
- St Edward's RC Primary School, a Voluntary Academy Primary
- St James' Church of England Primary School Primary
- St Joseph's Roman Catholic Primary School, Darwen Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Darwen, St Barnabas CofE Primary Academy teach?
- Darwen, St Barnabas CofE Primary Academy teaches children aged 4 to 11. It is a primary school in Darwen.
- Who is the head teacher of Darwen, St Barnabas CofE Primary Academy?
- The head teacher of Darwen, St Barnabas CofE Primary Academy is Mrs Rebecca Ham, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Darwen, St Barnabas CofE Primary Academy been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Darwen, St Barnabas CofE 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 many pupils are at Darwen, St Barnabas CofE Primary Academy?
- Darwen, St Barnabas CofE Primary Academy has 207 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 11.
- Is Darwen, St Barnabas CofE Primary Academy full?
- Darwen, St Barnabas CofE Primary Academy has capacity for 210 pupils and 207 on roll (99%), so it is close to full. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Darwen, St Barnabas CofE Primary Academy a faith school?
- Yes. Darwen, St Barnabas CofE Primary Academy is designated Church of England, in the Diocese of Blackburn.
- Does Darwen, St Barnabas CofE Primary Academy have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records Darwen, St Barnabas CofE Primary Academy as having no nursery classes.
- Is Darwen, St Barnabas CofE Primary Academy part of an academy trust?
- Darwen, St Barnabas CofE Primary Academy is part of CIDARI EDUCATION LIMITED. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Darwen, St Barnabas CofE Primary Academy's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 69% in 2022/23 and 65% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Darwen, St Barnabas CofE Primary Academy compare with other schools in Blackburn with Darwen?
- Darwen, St Barnabas CofE Primary Academy ranked 23rd of 51 primary schools in Blackburn with Darwen for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 53% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 91% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Darwen, St Barnabas CofE Primary Academy's absence rate?
- Darwen, St Barnabas CofE Primary Academy's overall absence rate is 3.7% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Darwen, St Barnabas CofE Primary Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Darwen, St Barnabas CofE 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 1 July 2026.