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Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Primary School

Primary · Bolton · BL5 3DU

Data updated

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Outstanding

Graded inspection under the pre-November 2025 system

This is an overall-effectiveness grade from the previous inspection framework. The school has not yet had a report-card inspection.

Quality of education: OutstandingBehaviour & attitudes: OutstandingPersonal development: OutstandingLeadership & management: OutstandingSafeguarding effective: Yes

Inspected 16 April 2024

Read the Ofsted report ↗

At a glance

417 pupils · 99% of 420 capacity (January 2026 census)

School type
Voluntary aided school
Age range
4–11
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
Roman Catholic
Admissions
Non-selective
Free school meals
9.1% of pupils (January 2026)
English as additional language
9.4% of pupils (2024/2025)
SEN support
4.3% of pupils (2024/2025)
EHC plan
1.9% of pupils (2024/2025)
Website
https://www.sacred-heart.bolton.sch.uk
URN
105243

In figures

For September 2026 entry, 57 families named it first for 59 Reception places, 0.97 first choices per place. We hold 5 Reception admissions rounds for it, 2022 to 2026; none was decided by a published distance. Ofsted last graded it Outstanding on 16 April 2024, under the framework used before November 2025. In the 2025/26 autumn and spring terms its pupils missed 4.4% of sessions, against 6.6% across England.

Admissions demand: Reception entry, September 2026

0.97 first-choice applications per place

59 places offered · 57 first-choice applications · roughly balanced

First-choice applications per place, by entry year

19/20
20/21
21/22
22/23
23/24
24/25
25/26
26/27

Source: DfE applications and offers on national offer day · how demand is measured

Catchment area

Catchment area: not named in the council's figures. The council did not publish a cutoff distance for 2026 entry.

Admissions cutoff distance: Reception

The council did not publish a cutoff distance for 2026 entry.

Source: the admissions authority's published figures · how cutoffs work

Key stage 2 results (2024/2025)

61 pupils at the end of key stage 2 in 2024/2025

Reaching the expected standard in reading, writing & maths
74%
England 62%
Reaching the higher standard
21%
England 8%
Average scaled score (reading)
107
England 106
Average scaled score (maths)
107
England 105

Source: DfE performance tables 2024/2025 · what “suppressed” means

Schools with a similar intake

Meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths, 2024/2025

This school74%
Median of its 12 closest peers67.5%
Bolton average65.5%
England62%

On meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths, this school is ahead of the schools that teach a comparable intake.

They are matched on intake, not location, so most are not local: see nearby schools for those you could apply to.

SchoolOfstedResult
Witham St Hughs AcademyLincoln · 81 miles awayOutstanding83%
Carnarvon Primary SchoolNottingham · 78 miles awayGood74%
Allington Primary SchoolMaidstone · 202 miles awayOutstanding83%
Oakmeadow Church of England Primary and Nursery SchoolShrewsbury · 62 miles awayNo current grade51%
Yeo Moor Primary SchoolClevedon · 147 miles awayGood77%
Stanbridge Primary SchoolBristol · 143 miles awayExpected standard63%
Swanmore Church of England Aided Primary SchoolSouthampton · 189 miles awayGood57%
Priorslee AcademyTelford · 60 miles awayNeeds attention61%
Denton West End Primary SchoolManchester · 17 miles awayGood61%
Bovingdon Primary AcademyHemel Hempstead · 151 miles awayGood92%
Cedars Park Community Primary SchoolStowmarket · 175 miles awayGood72%
Cooper and Jordan Church of England Primary SchoolWalsall · 70 miles awayGood63%

It is not a ranking. Source: DfE performance tables 2024/2025 · how the matching works

Pupils by ethnicity (January 2026)

White British 74% (Bolton 46%, England 60%) · Black African 4% (Bolton 8%, England 5%) · Asian Indian 3% (Bolton 10%, England 4%) · Any other White background 3% (Bolton 3%, England 7%) · Asian Chinese 3% (Bolton 1%, England 1%) · Asian Pakistani 2% (Bolton 18%, England 5%) · Mixed White and Black African 2% (Bolton 1%, England 1%) · Mixed White and Asian 2% (Bolton 2%, England 2%) · Any other ethnic group 2% (Bolton 3%, England 3%) · Any other Mixed background 2% (Bolton 2%, England 3%) · Any other Asian background 1% (Bolton 3%, England 2%) · other groups together 1%

Source: DfE schools, pupils and their characteristics, January 2026 census · how to read these figures

Attendance (2025/26 autumn and spring terms)

Sessions missed (overall absence)
4.4%
England 6.6%
Pupils missing 10%+ of sessions (persistent absence)
8.6%
England 17.5%

Suspensions and permanent exclusions (2024/25)

1.92 suspensions per 100 pupils and 0 permanent exclusions · England, primary schools: 2.47 suspensions and 0.03 permanent exclusions per 100 pupils · Bolton: 2.36 suspensions and 0.07 permanent exclusions per 100 pupils

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Source: DfE pupil absence data, autumn and spring terms, and DfE suspensions and permanent exclusions, school-level file · how absence is measured · how to read exclusions

Staffing

Pupils per qualified teacher
23.5
England 18.5

Full-time-equivalent, 2025/26.

Teacher retention (2024/25)

73% of teachers stayed at the school the following year · 27% moved to another state school

Vacancies (November 2025)

0% of teaching posts vacant, 0% filled temporarily · England, council-maintained primaries: 0.18% vacant, 0.36% temporary

Teacher sickness absence (reported in the November 2024 census)

31.3% of teachers took sickness absence, 4.2 days each on average · England, all state-funded schools: 61.8%, 8.1 days

Teacher pay (November 2025)

Mean salary of full-time qualified teachers £46,072; 6.7% on the leadership pay range · England, primary schools: £50,856, 17.3%

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Source: DfE School Workforce Census · how these figures are counted

Spending per pupil (2025-26)

This school£6,521
Typical primary school£7,202

Where the money went (2025-26)

Share of spending, with the median for primary schools in brackets: Staff 78% (76%) · premises 5% (5%) · occupation (energy, rates, cleaning) 7% (8%) · supplies and services 9% (9%) · educational supplies 7% (4%) · bought-in professional services 3% (3%) · catering 5% (5%)

Reserves (2025-26)

Revenue reserve £27,537; in-year balance -£87,677

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Higher spending is not a measure of quality. Source: council-maintained school finance return, 2025-26, DfE · how spending is compared

Inspection history since 2015

Source: Ofsted management information · ungraded visits and the two inspection systems

The area around the school

Child poverty (IDACI)
7/10less deprived than most of England
Overall deprivation (IMD)
6/10around the middle for England
Census 2021This areaEngland
Adults with a degree or higher33%33.9%
Adults with no qualifications16.2%18.1%
In managerial or professional work31.6%33.2%
Households deprived in two or more ways17.8%18.1%
Residents in very good health48.4%48.5%
Homes owned by the occupier71%62.3%
Social housing11.2%17.1%
Privately rented17.8%20.5%
Detached houses18.8%22.9%
Flats9.3%22.2%
Homes with four or more bedrooms15.8%21.1%
Households with no car or van20%23.5%

These figures describe the area, not the pupils. Source: Census 2021 (ONS) and English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG) for small area E01004894 · how to read area figures

What homes cost nearby

Median sale price
£233,000513 sales within 1 km, January 2024 to September 2026
Typical range
£160,000–£310,000the middle half of sales
England median
£300,000all sales over the same period
Detached (181)£355,000
Semi-detached (142)£225,000
Terraced (136)£165,500
Flat (54)£114,000

Homes around this school are cheaper than most school neighbourhoods in England, comparing the median within 1 km across every state school.

Source: HM Land Registry sales within 1 km since January 2024 · how sales are counted. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. This data is licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Postcodes located with OS Code-Point Open: contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026; contains Royal Mail data © Royal Mail copyright and database right 2026; contains National Statistics data © Crown copyright and database right 2026.

Roads around the school

Child pedestrian casualties
3an urban school averages 2.0
Collisions at school-run times
2an urban school averages 5.7
All reported collisions
9an urban school averages 30.5
Of those, serious or fatal
3an urban school averages 6.1

A high count usually reflects traffic, not an unsafe school. Source: DfT road casualty statistics (STATS19), collisions within 500 m, 2021–2025 · what is counted

Nearby schools