St Mary's Catholic Junior Academy
Barn Way, Newton-le-Willows, WA12 9QQ
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 7 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Roman Catholic
- Trust
- THE LIVERPOOL JOINT CATHOLIC AND CHURCH OF ENGLAND ACADEMIES TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mrs Samantha Birchall
- Diocese
- Archdiocese of Liverpool
- Sponsor
- The Dioceses of Liverpool Joint Catholic and Church of England Academy Trust
- Constituency
- St Helens North
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 240
- Pupils on roll
- 219
- URN
- 150302
- Local authority
- St. Helens
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01744678603
About this school
St Mary's Catholic Junior Academy is a Roman Catholic primary academy in Newton-le-Willows. It teaches children aged 7 to 11 and has 219 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
Overall judgement at the last full inspection
This inspection took place under the previous framework, which gave a single overall grade. Ofsted now publishes report cards instead, so newer inspections of other schools will look different. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Requires improvement
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Good
- Personal development
- Good
- Leadership and management
- Requires improvement
- Safeguarding
- Effective
This inspection took place when the school was registered as St Mary's Catholic Junior School (URN 104816).
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2024/25 |
|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 57 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 72% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 14% |
| Expected standard in reading | 81% |
| Expected standard in maths | 81% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 72% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 106.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 105.0 |
Trends over time
How St Mary's Catholic Junior 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 | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | — | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 7.1% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5.3% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
How St Mary's Catholic Junior Academy compares
St Mary's Catholic Junior Academy ranked 14th of 52 primary schools in St. Helens for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 71% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 54% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 72% | 5.3% | 17.9% | 219 | — |
| St Mary's Catholic Infant Academy | — | 3.6% | 11.9% | 173 | 0.2 miles |
| The District CofE Primary School | 60% | 5.7% | 51.4% | 365 | 0.2 miles |
| Newton-le-Willows Primary School | 58% | 5.3% | 25.7% | 563 | 0.4 miles |
| Wargrave CofE Primary School | 57% | 5.2% | 35.6% | 424 | 0.6 miles |
| Lyme Community Primary School | 62% | 6.2% | 38.2% | 218 | 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.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 17.9%
- English as an additional language
- 2.6%
- Overall absence
- 5.26%
- Persistent absence
- 10.78%
Location
Nearby schools
-
St Mary's Catholic Infant Academy0.2 miles
Primary · St Helens
-
The District CofE Primary School0.2 miles
Primary · Newton-le-Willows
-
Newton-le-Willows Primary School0.4 miles
Primary · Newton-le-Willows
-
Wargrave CofE Primary School0.6 miles
Primary · Newton-le-Willows
-
Lyme Community Primary School0.7 miles
Primary · Newton-le-Willows
Other schools in Newton-le-Willows
St Mary's Catholic Junior Academy ranks 2nd of the 6 ranked primary schools in Newton-le-Willows.
- Lyme Community Primary School Primary
- Newton-le-Willows Primary School Primary
- St Peter's CofE Primary School Primary
- The District CofE Primary School Primary
- Wargrave CofE Primary School Primary
- Hope Academy Secondary
- Wargrave House School Special schools
- Willow Bank School Special schools
Common questions
- What year groups does St Mary's Catholic Junior Academy teach?
- St Mary's Catholic Junior Academy teaches children aged 7 to 11. It is a primary school in Newton-le-Willows.
- Who is the headteacher of St Mary's Catholic Junior Academy?
- The headteacher of St Mary's Catholic Junior Academy is Mrs Samantha Birchall, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was St Mary's Catholic Junior Academy last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St Mary's Catholic Junior 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 Mary's Catholic Junior Academy?
- St Mary's Catholic Junior Academy has 219 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 7 to 11.
- Is St Mary's Catholic Junior Academy full?
- St Mary's Catholic Junior Academy has capacity for 240 pupils and 219 on roll (91%), 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 St Mary's Catholic Junior Academy a faith school?
- Yes. St Mary's Catholic Junior Academy is designated Roman Catholic, in the Archdiocese of Liverpool.
- Does St Mary's Catholic Junior Academy have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records St Mary's Catholic Junior Academy as having no nursery classes.
- Who runs St Mary's Catholic Junior Academy?
- St Mary's Catholic Junior Academy is part of THE LIVERPOOL JOINT CATHOLIC AND CHURCH OF ENGLAND ACADEMIES TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How does St Mary's Catholic Junior Academy rank locally?
- St Mary's Catholic Junior Academy ranked 14th of 52 primary schools in St. Helens for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 71% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 54% 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 Mary's Catholic Junior Academy's absence rate?
- St Mary's Catholic Junior Academy's overall absence rate is 5.3% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St Mary's Catholic Junior Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St Mary's Catholic Junior 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.