Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery
Whelley, Wigan, WN2 1BP
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 3 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Trust
- THE LEARNING TOGETHER TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mrs Jennifer Woodcock
- Religious ethos
- None
- Diocese
- Diocese of Liverpool
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Sponsor
- Learning Together Trust
- Constituency
- Wigan
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 410
- Pupils on roll
- 326
- URN
- 142028
- Local authority
- Wigan
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01942776188
About this school
Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery is a Church of England primary academy in Wigan. It teaches children aged 3 to 11 and has 326 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. 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 19 July 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 | 43 | 49 | 43 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 58% | 65% | 58% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 2% | 8% | 5% |
| Expected standard in reading | 70% | 76% | 70% |
| Expected standard in maths | 65% | 84% | 67% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 65% | 82% | 65% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 103.0 | 104.0 | 101.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 101.0 | 105.0 | 102.0 |
| Reading progress | -2.40 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -0.10 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -2.70 | - | - |
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 Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Wigan average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 58% | 62.4% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 65% | 62.7% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 58% | 63.3% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 7.5% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 7.5% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 6% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 340 |
| 2023/24 | 335 |
| 2024/25 | 343 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery compares
Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery ranked 65th of 97 primary schools in Wigan 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 38% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 58% | 6% | 47.2% | 326 | — |
| Holy Family RC Primary School, New Springs, Wigan | 87% | 4.1% | 18.8% | 136 | 0.4 miles |
| Mab's Cross Primary School | 57% | 4.2% | 21.3% | 461 | 0.6 miles |
| St Mary and St John Catholic Primary School | 67% | 3.6% | 15.2% | 209 | 0.7 miles |
| St Catharine's CofE Primary School | 38% | 5.6% | 53.9% | 205 | 0.8 miles |
| St Patrick's Catholic Primary School | 73% | 6.5% | 37.5% | 348 | 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.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 47.18%
- English as an additional language
- 12.8%
- Overall absence
- 6%
- Persistent absence
- 14.29%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Holy Family RC Primary School, New Springs, Wigan0.4 miles
Primary · Wigan
-
Mab's Cross Primary School0.6 miles
Primary · Wigan
-
St Mary and St John Catholic Primary School0.7 miles
Primary · Wigan
-
St Catharine's CofE Primary School0.8 miles
Primary · Wigan
-
St Patrick's Catholic Primary School0.8 miles
Primary · Wigan
Other schools in Wigan
Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery ranks 48th of the 66 ranked primary schools in Wigan.
- Appley Bridge All Saints Church of England Primary Academy Primary
- Aspull Church Primary School Primary
- Beech Hill Community Primary School Primary
- Bickershaw CofE Primary School Primary
- Billinge Chapel End Primary School Primary
- Britannia Bridge Primary School Primary
- Bryn St Peter's CofE Primary School Primary
- Castle Hill St Philip's CofE Primary School Primary
- Dalton St Michael's Church of England Primary School Primary
- Garswood Primary and Nursery School Primary
- Highfield St Matthew's Church of England Primary School Primary
- Hindley All Saints CofE Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery teach?
- Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery teaches children aged 3 to 11. It is a primary school in Wigan.
- Who is the headteacher of Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery?
- The headteacher of Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery is Mrs Jennifer Woodcock, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery, 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 Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery?
- Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery has 326 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 11.
- Is Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery full?
- Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery has capacity for 410 pupils and 326 on roll (80%), so it has space against 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 Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery a faith school?
- Yes. Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery is designated Church of England, in the Diocese of Liverpool.
- Does Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery as having nursery classes.
- Who runs Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery?
- Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery is part of THE LEARNING TOGETHER TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 58% 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 Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery rank locally?
- Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery ranked 65th of 97 primary schools in Wigan 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 38% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery's absence rate?
- Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery's overall absence rate is 6% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Canon Sharples Church of England Primary School and Nursery'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 2 July 2026.