St John Southworth RC Primary School, A Voluntary Academy
Lomeshaye Road, Nelson, BB9 0DQ
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 5 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Roman Catholic
- Trust
- ROMERO CATHOLIC ACADEMY TRUST
- Headteacher
- Miss Jemma Stuttard
- Diocese
- Diocese of Salford
- Sponsor
- Romero Catholic Academy Trust
- Constituency
- Pendle and Clitheroe
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 210
- Pupils on roll
- 209
- URN
- 149849
- Local authority
- Lancashire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01282613906
About this school
St John Southworth RC Primary School, A Voluntary Academy is a Roman Catholic primary academy in Nelson. It teaches children aged 5 to 11 and has 209 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 10 November 2021, 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.
This inspection took place when the school was registered as St John Southworth Roman Catholic Primary School, Nelson (URN 119655).
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 31 | 33 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 32% | 18% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 3% |
| Expected standard in reading | 52% | 33% |
| Expected standard in maths | 45% | 48% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 55% | 48% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 100.0 | 97.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 99.0 | 99.0 |
Trends over time
How St John Southworth RC Primary School, A Voluntary 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 | Lancashire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | — | 58.3% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 32% | 58.3% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 18% | 58.8% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | — | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 7.5% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5.7% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2023/24 | 209 |
| 2024/25 | 212 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St John Southworth RC Primary School, A Voluntary Academy compares
St John Southworth RC Primary School, A Voluntary Academy ranked 437th of 445 primary schools in Lancashire for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 5% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 43% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 18% | 5.7% | 37.7% | 209 | — |
| Marsden Community Primary School | 65% | 5.2% | 32.6% | 415 | 0.2 miles |
| Whitefield Infant School and Nursery | — | 5.9% | 35.4% | 336 | 0.3 miles |
| Nelson St Paul's Church of England Primary School | 58% | 6.3% | 34.4% | 408 | 0.3 miles |
| Lomeshaye Junior School | 80% | 4.6% | 41.7% | 352 | 0.4 miles |
| Nelson St Philip's Church of England Primary School | 58% | 7.1% | 42.1% | 137 | 0.5 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)
- 37.74%
- English as an additional language
- 56.1%
- Overall absence
- 5.74%
- Persistent absence
- 15.46%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Marsden Community Primary School0.2 miles
Primary · Nelson
-
Whitefield Infant School and Nursery0.3 miles
Primary · Nelson
-
Nelson St Paul's Church of England Primary School0.3 miles
Primary · Nelson
-
Lomeshaye Junior School0.4 miles
Primary · Nelson
-
Nelson St Philip's Church of England Primary School0.5 miles
Primary · Nelson
Other schools in Nelson
St John Southworth RC Primary School, A Voluntary Academy ranks 16th of the 16 ranked primary schools in Nelson.
- Barrowford School Primary
- Barrowford St Thomas Church of England Primary School Primary
- Blacko Primary School Primary
- Bradley Primary School Primary
- Castercliff Primary School Primary
- Great Marsden St John's Primary School A Church of England Academy Primary
- Holy Saviour Roman Catholic Primary School, Nelson Primary
- Holy Trinity Roman Catholic Primary School, a Voluntary Academy Primary
- Lomeshaye Junior School Primary
- Marsden Community Primary School Primary
- Nelson St Paul's Church of England Primary School Primary
- Nelson St Philip's Church of England Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does St John Southworth RC Primary School, A Voluntary Academy teach?
- St John Southworth RC Primary School, A Voluntary Academy teaches children aged 5 to 11. It is a primary school in Nelson.
- Who is the headteacher of St John Southworth RC Primary School, A Voluntary Academy?
- The headteacher of St John Southworth RC Primary School, A Voluntary Academy is Miss Jemma Stuttard, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was St John Southworth RC Primary School, A Voluntary Academy last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St John Southworth RC Primary School, A Voluntary 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 St John Southworth RC Primary School, A Voluntary Academy?
- St John Southworth RC Primary School, A Voluntary Academy has 209 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 5 to 11.
- Is St John Southworth RC Primary School, A Voluntary Academy full?
- St John Southworth RC Primary School, A Voluntary Academy has capacity for 210 pupils and 209 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 John Southworth RC Primary School, A Voluntary Academy a faith school?
- Yes. St John Southworth RC Primary School, A Voluntary Academy is designated Roman Catholic, in the Diocese of Salford.
- Does St John Southworth RC Primary School, A Voluntary Academy have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records St John Southworth RC Primary School, A Voluntary Academy as having no nursery classes.
- Who runs St John Southworth RC Primary School, A Voluntary Academy?
- St John Southworth RC Primary School, A Voluntary Academy is part of ROMERO CATHOLIC ACADEMY TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have St John Southworth RC Primary School, A Voluntary Academy's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 32% in 2023/24 and 18% 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 John Southworth RC Primary School, A Voluntary Academy rank locally?
- St John Southworth RC Primary School, A Voluntary Academy ranked 437th of 445 primary schools in Lancashire for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 5% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 43% 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 John Southworth RC Primary School, A Voluntary Academy's absence rate?
- St John Southworth RC Primary School, A Voluntary Academy's overall absence rate is 5.7% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St John Southworth RC Primary School, A Voluntary Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St John Southworth RC Primary School, A Voluntary 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 10 July 2026.