School Chooser

Scarisbrick St Mark's Church of England Primary School

Primary · ages 3-11MixedChurch of England40 pupilsNurseryOrmskirkLancashire
School Chooser Score
63
In line with
similar schools
Likely range 32 to 85, so it could be “above”
Out of 100. Better than 59% of the 50 schools most like it. Much the same over the last five years.
OfstedGoodConfirmed by Ofsted, January 2023
Reached the expected level at 1160%England 63%
Attendance95.1%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families10%Far fewer than most schools
Places65 spare40 pupils, 105 places
Pupils per teacher13.3School workforce census

Scarisbrick St Mark's Church of England Primary School is a Church of England school (voluntary controlled) in Ormskirk for boys and girls aged 3 to 11. It has 40 pupils and room for 105. About 10 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far fewer than at most schools in England. We give it 63 out of 100. That puts it in line with schools like it, ahead of 59% of the 50 schools most like it. Ofsted's last grade was good, back in 2023.

Southport Road, Scarisbrick, Ormskirk, L40 9RE01704 880636st-marks.lancs.sch.ukMrs Suzanne Christy headteacherAll details

What Ofsted found

A shorter visit on 12 January 2023 found nothing to change the school's grade. Read the report on Ofsted's website.

Good overall. A shorter follow-up visit found nothing to change that. The last full inspection was before September 2019, which is as far back as Ofsted's public records go, so we can't show its date or the grades for each area.

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 1160%
England 63%
Official name: Expected standard in reading, writing and maths
Working above the expected level20%
England 8%
Official name: Higher standard in reading, writing and maths
Reading score113.0
England 105.6
Official name: Reading average scaled score
Maths score103.0
England 104.6
Official name: Maths average scaled score
Trend
Reached the expected level at 11
2017 to 2025
2017: 50%50%20172018: 69%69%20182019: 100%100%20192023: 57%57%20232024: 17%17%20242025: 60%60%2025
Since 2017: +10%Steady overall
All Year 6 measures, year by year
Measure202520242023201920182017LancashireEngland
Pupils tested10676136
Reached the expected level at 11Expected standard in reading, writing and maths60%17%57%100%69%50%61%63%
Working above the expected levelHigher standard in reading, writing and maths20%0%14%17%31%17%8%8%
Reading scoreReading average scaled score113.0100.0102.0110.0107.0101.0105.2105.6
Maths scoreMaths average scaled score103.096.0102.0109.0106.0107.0104.2104.6
Grammar and spelling scoreGPS average scaled score107.099.0105.0113.0110.0107.0104.9105.2
Expected level: readingReading expected standard90%50%57%100%85%50%
Expected level: mathsMaths expected standard60%17%71%100%69%83%
Expected level: writingWriting expected standard (teacher assessed)70%83%86%100%92%83%
Reading progressReading progress score+4.2+1.4-1.5
Maths progressMaths progress score+4.6+1.6+3.8

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 Church of England school it may put families of that faith first. Check the school's own admissions rules.

Plenty of spare places49 pupils for 105 places, 2024/25
47% full

56 places were empty (53% of the total), so almost everyone who applies gets in. Pupil numbers have grown by 17% 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 roll40Census January 2026
Places10538% full
Pupils from low-income families10%10% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English15%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support23%9 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan3%1 pupil with a plan
Pupils with extra funding (pupil premium)14%£9,300 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls20 / 20
White British pupils80%

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: Moderate learning difficulty (6), language and communications needs (2), Autistic spectrum disorder (1), Other difficulty or disability (1).

How the mix of pupils has changed
Census202620252024202320222021
Pupils on roll405453484657
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals10%26%30%38%37%37%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language15%9%4%2%2%5%
Pupils getting extra supportSEN support20%19%17%11%12%
Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans2%2%2%2%4%

Attendance and behaviour

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 95.1% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance95.1%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school10.6%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Suspensions per 100 pupils0.02024/25, no permanent exclusions
Missed without permission0.4%of school time, 2024/25
Attendance year by year
Measure2024/252023/242022/232021/222020/212018/19England
Sessions missedOverall absence4.9%6.9%5.1%5.0%6.0%5.1%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence4.5%6.6%4.9%4.7%5.5%5.1%
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence0.4%0.3%0.2%0.3%0.5%0.1%
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence10.6%20.5%15.0%16.3%19.6%9.3%12.8%
SuspensionsSuspension rate0.00.00.00.01.8
Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions00000

Staff and money

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

Teachers3.0full-time equivalent, 3 people
Pupils per teacher13.3Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers100%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants1.8full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£58,533
Teachers who left in the year0%2024/25, for any reason including retirement
Vacancies0

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£8,451England £7,738. Total £456k
Income per pupil£8,526England £7,697. Total £460k
Spent on teachers per pupil£4,318England £3,480
Money in reserve4%Not much put by: £20k, £378 per pupil. England 6%
Money in against money out+£4,056it took in more than it spent this year
Where the money goes£8,451spent 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 m1712 months to June 2026, mostly violence and sexual offences
Local crime rate43 per 1,000 people53% lower than the England average
Typical house price£242,975West Lancashire
Nearest bus stop30 mSt Marks CEPS, 8 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
St Mary's Catholic Primary School, ScarisbrickRoman Catholic0.9 miles56Report card 20266Compare
Kew Woods Primary SchoolAcademy1.8 miles426Good 202355Compare
Halsall St Cuthbert's Church of England Primary SchoolChurch of England2.2 miles190No overall grade 202585Compare
Bishop David Sheppard Church of England Primary SchoolChurch of England2.6 miles194Good 202311Compare
Norwood Primary SchoolCouncil2.8 miles621Good 202225Compare
St Philip's Church of England Primary SchoolChurch of England2.9 miles207Good 202375Compare
Holy Family Catholic Primary SchoolCatholic2.9 miles188Good 202424Compare
Birkdale Primary SchoolCouncil2.9 miles430Good 202412Compare

Compared with schools like it

Our score compares Scarisbrick St Mark's Church of England Primary School with the 41 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 41 schools are dotted all over the country, so we don't list them. What matters is where this school sits among them.

Beats59%of schools with a similar mix of pupils
In the upper half of its group. Its score of 63 is 6 points above the typical school in the group.
0Lowest of the group 0 · middle 57 · highest 98100

How the score was worked out

The score is out of 100. A 63 means that once everything below is added up, this school comes out ahead of 63% of primary schools in England. Results bounce around from year to year, especially in small schools, so we also show a likely range: 32 to 85. 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 inspection18% (normally 20%, cut because the inspection is old)in line
+0.02
Ofsted grade, 3.7 years old
Progress pupils make0%no data
Direction of travel over five years10%in line
+0.08
results and attendance rising year on year
Attendance and behaviour10%in line
+0.04
2024/25; 47 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 Scarisbrick St Mark's Church of England Primary School a good school?

It is about average. Scarisbrick St Mark's Church of England Primary School scores 63 out of 100. That is in line with schools that take in a similar mix of pupils, and ahead of 59% of the 50 schools most like it in England. The score could fairly be anywhere from 32 to 85, so a few points either way between schools doesn't mean much.

What is Scarisbrick St Mark's Church of England Primary School's Ofsted rating?

Ofsted rated Scarisbrick St Mark's Church of England Primary School good at its last full inspection on 12 January 2023.

How good are Scarisbrick St Mark's Church of England Primary School's SATs results?

In summer 2025, 60% of Year 6 children reached the expected level in reading, writing and maths. Across England it was 63%. 20% 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 Scarisbrick St Mark's Church of England Primary School have?

40 pupils aged 3 to 11 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 105 places, so it is 38% full.

Is Scarisbrick St Mark's Church of England Primary School oversubscribed?

Probably not. 56 places were empty in 2024/25 (53% of the total), so most families who apply get a place.

What is attendance like at Scarisbrick St Mark's Church of England Primary School?

Pupils were in school 95.1% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 11% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

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

Contact and details

Address
Southport Road, Scarisbrick, Ormskirk, L40 9RE
Telephone
01704 880636
Website
www.st-marks.lancs.sch.uk
Headteacher
Mrs Suzanne Christy
Type of school
Church of England school (voluntary controlled) (Voluntary controlled school, local authority maintained schools)
Phase
Primary school, ages 3-11, with nursery
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
Church of England, Diocese of Liverpool
Local authority
Lancashire
Ward
Rural West
Constituency
West Lancashire
Setting
Smaller rural: Nearer to a major town or city
URN
119410 · LAESTAB 8883191 · UKPRN 10072075

Where these figures come from