School Chooser

Pace

Pupil referral unit / alternative provision · ages 5-11MixedPupil referral unit16 pupils Free breakfast clubSt HelensSt. Helens
School Chooser ScoreNot scoredWe don't score this type of school.
OfstedNo overall gradeLast Ofsted inspection, June 2025
Pupils from low-income families56%Far more than most schools
Pupils per teacher1.7School workforce census
Pupils on roll16Census January 2026

Pace is a pupil referral unit in St Helens for boys and girls aged 5 to 11. It has 16 pupils. About 56 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far more than at most schools in England. Ofsted's last grade was inspected 2025, no overall grade.

Derbyshire Hill Road, St Helens, WA9 2LH01744 412850alternativeprovision.st-helens.sch.ukMr Michael Power teacher in chargeAll details

What Ofsted found

Ofsted's last full inspection was on 17 June 2025, 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.

TeachingOfsted calls this “quality of education”
Good
BehaviourOfsted calls this “behaviour and attitudes”
Good
WellbeingOfsted calls this “personal development”
Good
LeadershipOfsted calls this “leadership and management”
Good
Safeguarding
Effective
Yes
Earlier inspections (1)
DateTypeOutcome
27 March 2024UngradedSchool remains Good (Concerns) - S5 Next

Getting a place

Admissions policy not published.

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 St. Helens council's admissions booklet, send it to us.

Who goes here

Who the school teaches, from the latest school census.

Pupils on roll16Census January 2026
Pupils from low-income families56%56% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English0%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support69%11 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan31%5 pupils with a plan
Pupils with extra funding (pupil premium)69%£17,050 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls15 / 1
White British pupils100%

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: emotional and mental health (14), Autistic spectrum disorder (1), Moderate learning difficulty (1).

How the mix of pupils has changed
Census202620252024202320222021
Pupils on roll16168335
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals56%69%63%33%67%80%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language0%0%0%0%0%0%
Pupils getting extra supportSEN support81%100%100%33%100%
Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans19%0%0%67%0%

Staff and money

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

Teachers11.0full-time equivalent, 11 people
Pupils per teacher1.7Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers91%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants8.6full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£52,702
Teachers who left in the year17%2024/25, for any reason including retirement
Vacancies0
Sick days per teacher7.82024/25

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£31,127England £7,738. Total £685k
Income per pupil£26,709England £7,697. Total £588k
Spent on teachers per pupil£14,583England £3,480
Money in reserve-12%In the red: -£72k, -£3,264 per pupil. England 6%
Money in against money out-£97kit spent more than it took in this year
Where the money goes£31,127spent 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 m50612 months to June 2026, mostly violence and sexual offences
Local crime rate119 per 1,000 people31% higher than the England average
Nearest bus stop80 mDerbyshire Hill Road, 20 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 schools, nearest first. Hover over a row to see it on the map.

Well aboveAboveIn lineBelowWell belowNot scored
SchoolTypeDistancePupilsOfstedScore
Broad Oak Community Primary SchoolCouncil250 m630No overall grade 202418Compare
Holy Spirit Catholic Primary SchoolRoman Catholic420 m213Not inspected45Compare
Lansbury Bridge SchoolCouncil530 m236Not inspectedCompare
Mill Green SchoolCouncil590 m168No overall grade 2025Compare
St. Cuthbert's Catholic AcademyAcademy0.6 milesNot inspectedCompare
St Augustine of Canterbury Catholic AcademyAcademy0.7 miles549No overall grade 202449Compare
Allanson Street Primary SchoolCouncil0.8 miles454Good 202447Compare
St. Mary's Blackbrook Catholic Primary SchoolRoman Catholic1.0 miles381Good 202320Compare

Questions parents ask

Is Pace a good school?

Pace doesn't have a score yet. Ofsted rated it not judged at its last inspection in June 2025.

What is Pace's Ofsted rating?

Ofsted rated Pace not judged at its last full inspection on 17 June 2025.

How many pupils does Pace have?

16 pupils aged 5 to 11 were on the roll in January 2026.

Does Pace have a breakfast club?

Yes. It is on the government's free breakfast club programme, so every pupil can have a free half-hour breakfast club before school.

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

Contact and details

Address
Derbyshire Hill Road, St Helens, WA9 2LH
Telephone
01744 412850
Website
www.alternativeprovision.st-helens.sch.uk
Teacher In Charge
Mr Michael Power
Free breakfast club
Yes: on the government's programme, so every pupil can have a free half-hour breakfast club before school (listed since September 2026).
Type of school
Pupil referral unit (Pupil referral unit, local authority maintained schools)
Phase
Pupil referral unit / alternative provision, ages 5-11
Gender
Mixed
Local authority
St. Helens
Ward
Parr
Constituency
St Helens North
Setting
Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
URN
104757 · LAESTAB 3421100 · UKPRN 10077027

Where these figures come from