School Chooser

Burscough Bridge Methodist School

Primary · ages 5-11MixedMethodist41 pupilsOrmskirkLancashire
School Chooser Score
14
Well below
similar schools
Likely range 6 to 36, so it could be “below”
Out of 100. Better than 34% of the 50 schools most like it. Slipping year on year.
OfstedAs expected teachingOfsted report card, May 2026
Reached the expected level at 1190%England 63%
Attendance93.8%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families39%Far more than most schools
Places64 spare41 pupils, 105 places
Pupils per teacher11.4School workforce census

Burscough Bridge Methodist School is a Methodist school (voluntary controlled) in Ormskirk for boys and girls aged 5 to 11. It has 41 pupils and room for 105. About 39 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far more than at most schools in England. We give it 14 out of 100. That puts it well below schools like it, ahead of 34% of the 50 schools most like it. Ofsted visited in May 2026 and gave it a report card, which is below.

Orrell Lane, Burscough, Ormskirk, L40 0SG01704 892307burscoughbridgemethodistschool.co.ukMrs L Tyrer headteacherAll details

What Ofsted found

Ofsted visited on 6 May 2026. Instead of one overall word, it now gives a grade for each part of school life. Read the full report on Ofsted's website.

TeachingOfsted calls this “curriculum and teaching”
As expected
Achievement
As expected
Behaviour and attendanceOfsted calls this “attendance and behaviour”
As expected
Support for every childOfsted calls this “inclusion”
Strong
WellbeingOfsted calls this “personal development and wellbeing”
Strong
LeadershipOfsted calls this “leadership and governance”
As expected
Early years
As expected
SafeguardingAre pupils kept safe?
Pupils are kept safe
Met
Ofsted's scale:ExceptionalStrong standardExpected standardNeeds attentionUrgent improvement

Ofsted says these new grades can't be lined up against the old one-word grades.

Earlier inspections (1)
DateTypeOutcome
23 March 2022UngradedSchool remains Good

Results

Year 6 results (SATs), summer 2025

10 children took the tests. Here is how they did against every state primary in England. With a year group this small, a couple of children can move the percentages a long way.

Reached the expected level at 1190%
England 63%
Official name: Expected standard in reading, writing and maths
Working above the expected level0%
England 8%
Official name: Higher standard in reading, writing and maths
Reading score108.0
England 105.6
Official name: Reading average scaled score
Maths score105.0
England 104.6
Official name: Maths average scaled score
All Year 6 measures, year by year
Measure202520242023201920182017LancashireEngland
Pupils tested10541354
Reached the expected level at 11Expected standard in reading, writing and maths90%54%61%63%
Working above the expected levelHigher standard in reading, writing and maths0%0%8%8%
Reading scoreReading average scaled score108.0101.0105.2105.6
Maths scoreMaths average scaled score105.0101.0104.2104.6
Grammar and spelling scoreGPS average scaled score106.0102.0104.9105.2
Expected level: readingReading expected standard100%62%
Expected level: mathsMaths expected standard100%54%
Expected level: writingWriting expected standard (teacher assessed)90%85%
Reading progressReading progress score-2.4
Maths progressMaths progress score-3.6

There are no progress figures for 2025. That year group missed their Year 2 tests during Covid, so there was no starting point to measure from. Progress figures come back with the December 2026 results. Tests were cancelled altogether in 2020 and 2021.

Getting a place

Admissions policy not published. As a Methodist school it may put families of that faith first. Check the school's own admissions rules.

Plenty of spare places44 pupils for 84 places, 2024/25
52% full

40 places were empty (48% of the total), so almost everyone who applies gets in. Pupil numbers have stayed about the same since 2021/22.

Each council publishes its own figures on how many families applied and how far away the last child to get a place lived. We are adding councils one at a time. If you have a link to Lancashire council's admissions booklet, send it to us.

Who goes here

Who a school teaches matters. That is why our score compares it with schools that take in a similar mix of children, not with every school in the country.

Pupils on roll41Census January 2026
Places10539% full
Pupils from low-income families39%39% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English0%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support39%16 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan2%1 pupil with a plan
Average class size13.73 classes, January 2026; England 25.4
Classes with more than 30 pupils0%Infant classes are capped at 30 by law; England 10%
Pupils with extra funding (pupil premium)36%£23,250 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls23 / 18
White British pupils93%

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: Other difficulty or disability (7), Specific learning difficulty (3), Autistic spectrum disorder (2), Moderate learning difficulty (2), Hearing impairment (1), language and communications needs (1).

How the mix of pupils has changed
Census202620252024202320222021
Pupils on roll414536435056
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals39%22%22%21%26%23%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language0%0%0%0%0%2%
Pupils getting extra supportSEN support22%28%7%12%18%
Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans9%8%2%0%2%

Attendance and behaviour

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 93.8% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance93.8%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school11.9%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Suspensions per 100 pupils0.02024/25, no permanent exclusions
Missed without permission1.4%of school time, 2024/25
Attendance year by year
Measure2024/252023/242022/232021/222020/212018/19England
Sessions missedOverall absence6.2%5.5%5.4%6.6%2.1%3.1%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence4.8%4.4%3.8%4.6%1.4%3.0%
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence1.4%1.1%1.6%1.9%0.7%0.1%
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence11.9%14.3%15.8%25.6%2.0%3.8%12.8%
SuspensionsSuspension rate0.00.00.00.00.0
Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions00000

Staff and money

From the government's count of school staff in November 2025 and the school's published accounts.

Teachers3.6full-time equivalent, 4 people
Pupils per teacher11.4Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers100%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants1.4full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£51,388
Teachers who left in the year17%2024/25, for any reason including retirement
Vacancies0
Sick days per teacher0.62021/22

Money

From the council school accounts, year to March 2025. The per-pupil figures are compared with other primary schools in England that report their accounts the same way.

Spend per pupil£10,215England £7,738. Total £460k
Income per pupil£9,000England £7,697. Total £405k
Spent on teachers per pupil£5,695England £3,480
Money in reserve4%Not much put by: £17k, £385 per pupil. England 6%
Money in against money out-£55kit spent more than it took in this year
Where the money goes£10,215spent per pupil

Reserves are the money left over at the end of the year, kept back for emergencies and big projects. Being in the red year after year is a warning sign. Very large reserves can mean money sitting in the bank instead of being spent on today's pupils. Academy figures are rounded to the nearest £1,000 and include a share of any money the trust holds centrally.

The area around the school

Crimes within 500 m24612 months to June 2026, mostly violence and sexual offences
Local crime rate74 per 1,000 people18% lower than the England average
Typical house price£242,975West Lancashire
Nearest bus stop190 mBurscough Bridge, 15 stops within 500 m

Crime figures come from police.uk. The police record each crime at the nearest of a fixed set of map points rather than the exact spot, so “within 500 m” is only rough. House prices are from HM Land Registry sales nearby over the last two years.

Nearby schools

The closest primary schools, nearest first. Hover over a row to see it on the map.

Well aboveAboveIn lineBelowWell belowNot scored
SchoolTypeDistancePupilsOfstedScore
Burscough Bridge St John's Church of England Primary SchoolChurch of England380 m135Good 202326Compare
Burscough Village Primary SchoolCouncil390 m223Good 202480Compare
Burscough Lordsgate Township Church of England Primary SchoolChurch of England740 m190Good 202446Compare
St John's Catholic Primary School, BurscoughRoman Catholic0.8 miles94Good 202362Compare
Ormskirk Lathom Park Church of England Primary SchoolChurch of England1.6 miles79Report card 202616Compare
Rufford CofE SchoolChurch of England2.4 miles114Good 202487Compare
Ormskirk West End SchoolCouncil2.6 miles130Not inspected5Compare
Ormskirk Church of England Primary SchoolChurch of England2.6 miles411Not inspected42Compare

Compared with schools like it

Our score compares Burscough Bridge Methodist School with the 47 schools in England whose pupils are most like its own. We match on family income, how many children are learning English, special needs, the neighbourhood, the size of the school and how it admits pupils. Those 47 schools are dotted all over the country, so we don't list them. What matters is where this school sits among them.

Beats34%of schools with a similar mix of pupils
In the lower half of its group. Its score of 14 is 10 points below the typical school in the group.
0Lowest of the group 0 · middle 24 · highest 95100

How the score was worked out

The score is out of 100. A 14 means that once everything below is added up, this school comes out ahead of 14% of primary schools in England. Results bounce around from year to year, especially in small schools, so we also show a likely range: 6 to 36. That range is wide enough that the school could sit in the next band, so take the band as a rough guide rather than a verdict. Every part is judged against schools with a similar mix of pupils. For small schools we pull each part towards the group average, so one unusual year can't swing the score too far.

What we looked atHow much it countsAgainst schools like itEffect on the scoreBased on
Results over three years0%no data
Ofsted inspection20%in line
-0.07
Ofsted report card, 0.4 years old
Progress pupils make0%no data
Direction of travel over five years10%well below
-0.37
results and attendance falling year on year
Attendance and behaviour10%below
-0.11
2024/25; 42 pupils
Results, allowing for the mix of pupils0%no data
What parents say0%no data

Worked out on 13 September 2026 (method v1). Read how the score works, including every weight and the checks we run. Think a number is wrong? Tell us.

Questions parents ask

Is Burscough Bridge Methodist School a good school?

The figures are weak. Burscough Bridge Methodist School scores 14 out of 100. That is well below schools that take in a similar mix of pupils, and ahead of 34% of the 50 schools most like it in England. The score could fairly be anywhere from 6 to 36, so a few points either way between schools doesn't mean much. Its results have been slipping over the last five years.

What is Burscough Bridge Methodist School's Ofsted rating?

Ofsted no longer gives schools one overall grade. When it visited on 6 May 2026 it rated teaching as as expected, achievement as as expected, behaviour and attendance as as expected, leadership as as expected.

How good are Burscough Bridge Methodist School's SATs results?

In summer 2025, 90% of Year 6 children reached the expected level in reading, writing and maths. Across England it was 63%. 0% went further and reached the higher level. The year group was small, so the percentages jump around a lot from year to year.

How many pupils does Burscough Bridge Methodist School have?

41 pupils aged 5 to 11 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 105 places, so it is 39% full.

Is Burscough Bridge Methodist School oversubscribed?

Probably not. 40 places were empty in 2024/25 (48% of the total), so most families who apply get a place.

What is attendance like at Burscough Bridge Methodist School?

Pupils were in school 93.8% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 12% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

How big are the classes at Burscough Bridge Methodist School?

The average class had 13.7 pupils in January 2026. Across England it was 25.4. No class had more than 30 pupils.

These answers come straight from the figures on this page and update when new data comes out.

Contact and details

Address
Orrell Lane, Burscough, Ormskirk, L40 0SG
Telephone
01704 892307
Website
www.burscoughbridgemethodistschool.co.uk
Headteacher
Mrs L Tyrer
Type of school
Methodist school (voluntary controlled) (Voluntary controlled school, local authority maintained schools)
Phase
Primary school, ages 5-11
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
Methodist
Local authority
Lancashire
Ward
Burscough Bridge & Rufford
Constituency
West Lancashire
Setting
Larger rural: Nearer to a major town or city
URN
119402 · LAESTAB 8883146 · UKPRN 10078130

Where these figures come from