Overleigh St Mary's Church of England Primary School
Overleigh St Mary's Church of England Primary School is a converter academy in Chester for boys and girls aged 3 to 11. It has 447 pupils, 3 more than it has places for. About 13 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far fewer than at most schools in England. Ofsted's last grade was inspected 2024, no overall grade.
Old Wrexham Road, Handbridge, Chester, CH4 7HS01244 267525osm.cheshire.sch.ukMiss Emma Drew headteacherAll details
What Ofsted found
Ofsted's last full inspection was on 8 October 2024, back when it gave schools one overall grade. Read the report on Ofsted's website.
Not judged Between September 2024 and November 2025, Ofsted graded each area but stopped giving one overall word.
Results
Year 6 results (SATs), summer 2025
58 children took the tests. Here is how they did against every state primary in England. These are the results of Overleigh St Mary's CofE Primary School, the school this one replaced.
All Year 6 measures, year by year
| Measure | 2025† | 2024† | 2023† | 2019† | 2018† | 2017† | Cheshire West and Chester | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils tested | 58 | 57 | 58 | 59 | 58 | 59 | – | – |
| Reached the expected level at 11Expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 52% | 60% | 57% | 68% | 69% | 44% | 62% | 63% |
| Working above the expected levelHigher standard in reading, writing and maths | 9% | 11% | 7% | 10% | 14% | 7% | 6% | 8% |
| Reading scoreReading average scaled score | 102.0 | 106.0 | 105.0 | 106.0 | 106.0 | 105.0 | 105.9 | 105.6 |
| Maths scoreMaths average scaled score | 103.0 | 103.0 | 105.0 | 105.0 | 105.0 | 102.0 | 104.5 | 104.6 |
| Grammar and spelling scoreGPS average scaled score | 105.0 | 105.0 | 107.0 | 109.0 | 107.0 | 105.0 | 105.2 | 105.2 |
| Expected level: readingReading expected standard | 67% | 82% | 74% | 78% | 81% | 78% | – | – |
| Expected level: mathsMaths expected standard | 62% | 65% | 72% | 85% | 71% | 59% | – | – |
| Expected level: writingWriting expected standard (teacher assessed) | 55% | 61% | 78% | 75% | 79% | 61% | – | – |
| Reading progressReading progress score | – | – | -0.6 | +1.0 | +0.1 | +1.3 | – | – |
| Maths progressMaths progress score | – | – | +0.7 | -0.7 | -0.5 | -3.3 | – | – |
| Expected level: low-income pupilsExpected standard, disadvantaged | 21% | 44% | 20% | 71% | 60% | 14% | – | – |
| Expected level: other pupilsExpected standard, non-disadvantaged | 61% | 63% | 65% | 67% | 72% | 53% | – | – |
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.
† These results are for Overleigh St Mary's CofE Primary School, the school this one replaced in April 2025. Same building and the same children. It got a new registration number, usually because it joined an academy trust.
Does every child do well here?
A good school does well by every child, not just on average. Each row compares two groups of pupils here. The grey marks show the same two groups across England. None of the gaps is smaller than the gap across England. When a group has fewer than about ten pupils, its figures jump around a lot from year to year.
At the end of primary school, 2025
Low-income means the child has had free school meals at some point in the last six years. A group's figure isn't published when it has fewer than six pupils.
Getting a place
Admissions policy not published. As a Church of England school it may put families of that faith first. Check the school's own admissions rules.
Cheshire West and Chester council has drawn an official catchment area for this school. You can see it on the map below; it covers about 7.3 square kilometres. Living inside it moves your child up the queue when there are more applicants than places. It doesn't guarantee a place: the council's admissions rules decide the order.
Set your home postcode at the top of the page to see whether you live inside it.
Fewer than one place in twenty is empty, so in most years more families apply than there are places. Living close by, or already having a child here, makes a real difference.
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 Cheshire West and Chester council's admissions booklet, send it to us.
What a home inside the catchment costs
Every home sold inside the council's catchment area, of any type, from HM Land Registry records. If homes here cost more than the district average, that is the price people pay to live close enough to get in.
Who goes here
Who the school teaches, from the latest school census.
Infant classes (Reception to Year 2) average 29.3 pupils (England 25.5); junior classes (Years 3 to 6) average 29.5 (England 27.3).
The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: Specific learning difficulty (15), Autistic spectrum disorder (10), language and communications needs (7), Moderate learning difficulty (6), emotional and mental health (5), Profound and multiple learning difficulty (2).
Attendance and behaviour
In 2024/25 pupils were in school 95.4% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.
Attendance year by year
| Measure | 2024/25† | 2023/24† | 2022/23† | 2021/22† | 2020/21† | 2018/19† | England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sessions missedOverall absence | 4.6% | 5.2% | 6.3% | 5.8% | 2.6% | 3.4% | 5.2% |
| Missed with permissionAuthorised absence | 3.5% | 4.3% | 5.0% | 4.6% | 2.1% | 2.7% | – |
| Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence | 1.1% | 1.0% | 1.4% | 1.2% | 0.5% | 0.7% | – |
| Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence | 10.8% | 11.8% | 22.7% | 16.1% | 4.7% | 5.7% | 12.8% |
† These attendance figures are for Overleigh St Mary's CofE Primary School, the school this one replaced in April 2025. Same building and the same children. It got a new registration number, usually because it joined an academy trust.
Staff and money
From the government's count of school staff in November 2025 and the school's published accounts.
Money
From the academy accounts return, year to August 2025. The per-pupil figures are compared with other primary schools in England that report their accounts the same way.
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
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.
| School | Type | Distance | Pupils | Ofsted | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Belgrave Primary School | Academy | 0.7 miles | 211 | Good 2023 | 93 | Compare |
| The Grosvenor Park Church of England Academy | Free school | 0.9 miles | 198 | Good 2023 | 49 | Compare |
| Lache Primary School | Academy | 1.0 miles | 169 | Good 2024 | 41 | Compare |
| St Clare's Catholic Primary School | Roman Catholic | 1.0 miles | 163 | Not inspected | 34 | Compare |
| Boughton Heath Academy | Academy | 1.3 miles | 225 | Outstanding 2024 | 98 | Compare |
| Chester Blue Coat Church of England Primary School | Church of England | 1.3 miles | 369 | Good 2023 | 43 | Compare |
| Cherry Grove Primary School | Council | 1.3 miles | 274 | Not inspected | 73 | Compare |
| Huntington Community Primary School | Council | 1.3 miles | 385 | Good 2023 | 57 | Compare |
Questions parents ask
Is Overleigh St Mary's Church of England Primary School a good school?
Overleigh St Mary's Church of England Primary School doesn't have a score yet. Ofsted rated it not judged at its last inspection in October 2024.
What is Overleigh St Mary's Church of England Primary School's Ofsted rating?
Ofsted rated Overleigh St Mary's Church of England Primary School not judged at its last full inspection on 8 October 2024.
How good are Overleigh St Mary's Church of England Primary School's SATs results?
In summer 2025, 52% of Year 6 children reached the expected level in reading, writing and maths. Across England it was 63%. 9% went further and reached the higher level.
How many pupils does Overleigh St Mary's Church of England Primary School have?
447 pupils aged 3 to 11 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 444 places, so it is 101% full.
Is Overleigh St Mary's Church of England Primary School oversubscribed?
Often. Fewer than one place in twenty was empty in 2024/25, so popular year groups fill up.
What is attendance like at Overleigh St Mary's Church of England Primary School?
Pupils were in school 95.4% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 11% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.
How big are the classes at Overleigh St Mary's Church of England Primary School?
The average class had 29.8 pupils in January 2026. Across England it was 25.4. 13% of classes 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
- Old Wrexham Road, Handbridge, Chester, CH4 7HS
- Telephone
- 01244 267525
- Website
- www.osm.cheshire.sch.uk
- Headteacher
- Miss Emma Drew
- Type of school
- Converter academy (Academy converter, academies)
- Phase
- Primary school, ages 3-11, with nursery
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England, Diocese of Chester
- Multi-academy trust
- Chester Diocesan Academies Trust (32 schools)
- Local authority
- Cheshire West and Chester
- Ward
- Handbridge Park
- Constituency
- Chester South and Eddisbury
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Opened
- 1 April 2025 (academy converter)
- URN
- 150917 · LAESTAB 8963172 · UKPRN 10095215
- Formerly
- Overleigh St Mary's CofE Primary School
Where these figures come from
- School details: Department for Education, Get Information About Schools, refreshed daily (this page rebuilt 13 September 2026).
- Inspections: Ofsted management information, monthly; latest publication in our data 27 August 2026.
- Year 6 results: DfE key stage 2 tables, 2024/25.
- Attendance: DfE pupil absence in schools in England, 2024/25 full year.
- Pupil characteristics: DfE school census, January 2026.
- Staff: DfE school workforce census, November 2025.
- Class sizes: DfE schools, pupils and their characteristics, January 2026.
- Pupil premium: DfE allocations and conditions of grant, 2026 to 2027.
- Money: DfE financial benchmarking and insights tool, academy accounts return 2024/25.
- Catchment area: Cheshire West and Chester council open data (Open Government Licence), reprojected to WGS84.
- House prices: HM Land Registry price paid data, December 2023 to December 2025, placed by postcode.
- Neighbourhood: police.uk street-level crime, HM Land Registry price paid data, NaPTAN bus stops, English Indices of Deprivation 2025.
- All under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Full list and update calendar.