School Chooser

St Gabriel's Catholic Primary School

Primary · ages 3-11MixedRoman Catholic239 pupilsNurseryStoke-on-TrentCheshire East
School Chooser Score
89
Well above
similar schools
Likely range 77 to 95, so it could be “above”
Out of 100. Better than 72% of the 50 schools most like it. Slipping year on year.
OfstedOutstandingLast Ofsted inspection, June 2024
Reached the expected level at 1167%England 63%
Attendance95.9%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families3%Far fewer than most schools
PlacesFull239 pupils, 211 places
Pupils per teacher26.3School workforce census

St Gabriel's Catholic Primary School is a Roman Catholic school (voluntary aided) in Stoke-on-Trent for boys and girls aged 3 to 11. It has 239 pupils, 28 more than it has places for. About 2 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far fewer than at most schools in England. We give it 89 out of 100. That puts it well above schools like it, ahead of 72% of the 50 schools most like it. Ofsted's last grade was outstanding, back in 2024.

Well Lane, Alsager, Stoke-on-Trent, ST7 2PG01270 875770stgabriels.cheshire.sch.ukMr Edward J Byrne headteacherAll details

What Ofsted found

Ofsted's last full inspection was on 12 June 2024, back when it gave schools one overall grade. Read the report on Ofsted's website.

Outstanding overall.

TeachingOfsted calls this “quality of education”
Outstanding
BehaviourOfsted calls this “behaviour and attitudes”
Outstanding
WellbeingOfsted calls this “personal development”
Outstanding
LeadershipOfsted calls this “leadership and management”
Good
Early years
Outstanding
Safeguarding
Effective
Yes

Results

Year 6 results (SATs), summer 2025

30 children took the tests. Here is how they did against every state primary in England.

Reached the expected level at 1167%
England 63%
Official name: Expected standard in reading, writing and maths
Working above the expected level7%
England 8%
Official name: Higher standard in reading, writing and maths
Reading score105.0
England 105.6
Official name: Reading average scaled score
Maths score105.0
England 104.6
Official name: Maths average scaled score
Trend
Reached the expected level at 11
2017 to 2025
2017: 65%65%20172018: 80%80%20182019: 86%86%20192023: 69%69%20232024: 70%70%20242025: 67%67%2025
Since 2017: +2%Declining overall
All Year 6 measures, year by year
Measure202520242023201920182017Cheshire EastEngland
Pupils tested303029293031
Reached the expected level at 11Expected standard in reading, writing and maths67%70%69%86%80%65%65%63%
Working above the expected levelHigher standard in reading, writing and maths7%0%0%3%7%6%7%8%
Reading scoreReading average scaled score105.0106.0108.0108.0108.0107.0106.2105.6
Maths scoreMaths average scaled score105.0107.0107.0109.0106.0104.0105.1104.6
Grammar and spelling scoreGPS average scaled score103.0105.0106.0110.0108.0107.0106.0105.2
Expected level: readingReading expected standard80%80%76%93%90%81%
Expected level: mathsMaths expected standard80%93%86%100%87%68%
Expected level: writingWriting expected standard (teacher assessed)70%80%76%90%80%71%
Reading progressReading progress score+2.8+1.8+0.3-0.8
Maths progressMaths progress score+2.8+2.1+0.2-3.3

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.

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

Reached the expected level at 11Boys vs girls
57%75%
Gap 18 ptsEngland 5 pts
First groupSecond groupEngland, each group

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

Full211 pupils for 210 places, 2024/25
101% full

The school is full, with 1 more pupils than it has places for. More families apply than can get in, so things like how close you live and whether an older brother or sister is already here decide who gets a place. 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 Cheshire East 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 roll239Census January 2026
Places211113% full
Pupils from low-income families3%3% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English6%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support4%10 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan3%8 pupils with a plan
Average class size29.86 classes, January 2026; England 25.4
Classes with more than 30 pupils17%Infant classes are capped at 30 by law; England 10%
Pupils with extra funding (pupil premium)3%£9,300 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls123 / 116
White British pupils83%

Infant classes (Reception to Year 2) average 29.5 pupils (England 25.5); junior classes (Years 3 to 6) average 30.0 (England 27.3).

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: language and communications needs (7), Moderate learning difficulty (4), emotional and mental health (3), Autistic spectrum disorder (2), Physical disability (1), Specific learning difficulty (1).

How the mix of pupils has changed
Census202620252024202320222021
Pupils on roll239234207210210204
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals3%4%5%5%4%6%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language6%7%8%6%4%3%
Pupils getting extra supportSEN support4%8%6%4%4%
Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans4%3%3%1%2%

Attendance and behaviour

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 95.9% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance95.9%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school6.0%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Suspensions per 100 pupils1.72024/25, no permanent exclusions
Missed without permission0.9%of school time, 2024/25
Attendance year by year
Measure2024/252023/242022/232021/222020/212018/19England
Sessions missedOverall absence4.1%4.6%4.2%5.5%2.4%2.9%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence3.2%3.7%3.1%5.1%1.9%2.3%
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence0.9%0.8%1.1%0.4%0.4%0.6%
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence6.0%7.6%8.1%10.6%4.3%2.2%12.8%
SuspensionsSuspension rate1.71.00.00.00.0
Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions00000

Staff and money

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

Teachers9.1full-time equivalent, 11 people
Pupils per teacher26.3Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers100%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants8.2full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£51,671
Teachers who left in the year12%2024/25, for any reason including retirement
Vacancies0
Sick days per teacher3.02023/24

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£5,990England £7,738. Total £1.4m
Income per pupil£6,021England £7,697. Total £1.4m
Spent on teachers per pupil£2,638England £3,480
Money in reserve-2%In the red: -£25k, -£108 per pupil. England 6%
Money in against money out+£7,361it took in more than it spent this year
Where the money goes£5,990spent 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 m15112 months to June 2026, mostly violence and sexual offences
Local crime rate46 per 1,000 people50% lower than the England average
Typical house price£300,000Cheshire East
Nearest bus stop30 mSt Gabriel's RC Aided Primary, 5 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
Alsager Highfields Community Primary SchoolAcademy640 m223Good 202363Compare
Cranberry AcademyAcademy960 m434Report card 202638Compare
Excalibur Primary SchoolAcademy0.7 miles242Good 202384Compare
Pikemere SchoolAcademy0.8 miles254Good 202279Compare
Rode Heath Primary SchoolCouncil1.7 miles245Outstanding 202495Compare
St Saviour's CofE AcademyAcademy2.1 miles162Report card 20267Compare
The Reginald Mitchell Primary SchoolAcademy2.2 miles211Good 202368Compare
Ravensmead Primary SchoolCouncil2.6 miles317Good 202416Compare

Compared with schools like it

Our score compares St Gabriel's Catholic Primary 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.

Beats72%of schools with a similar mix of pupils
In the upper half of its group. Its score of 89 is 12 points above the typical school in the group.
0Lowest of the group 34 · middle 77 · highest 98100

How the score was worked out

The score is out of 100. A 89 means that once everything below is added up, this school comes out ahead of 89% of primary schools in England. Results bounce around from year to year, especially in small schools, so we also show a likely range: 77 to 95. 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 years25%above
+0.09
2025, 2024 and 2023 results; 30 pupils
Ofsted inspection20%well above
+0.43
Ofsted grade, 2.3 years old
Progress pupils make20%above
+0.12
DfE progress measure; 30 pupils
Direction of travel over five years10%below
-0.04
results and attendance falling year on year
Attendance and behaviour10%above
+0.09
2024/25; 183 pupils
Results, allowing for the mix of pupils10%below
-0.04
Attainment relative to schools with a similar intake; 30 pupils
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 St Gabriel's Catholic Primary School a good school?

Yes, going by the figures. St Gabriel's Catholic Primary School scores 89 out of 100. That is well above schools that take in a similar mix of pupils, and ahead of 72% of the 50 schools most like it in England. The score could fairly be anywhere from 77 to 95, so a few points either way between schools doesn't mean much. Its results have been slipping over the last five years.

What is St Gabriel's Catholic Primary School's Ofsted rating?

Ofsted rated St Gabriel's Catholic Primary School outstanding at its last full inspection on 12 June 2024.

How good are St Gabriel's Catholic Primary School's SATs results?

In summer 2025, 67% of Year 6 children reached the expected level in reading, writing and maths. Across England it was 63%. 7% went further and reached the higher level.

How many pupils does St Gabriel's Catholic Primary School have?

239 pupils aged 3 to 11 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 211 places, so it is 113% full.

Is St Gabriel's Catholic Primary School oversubscribed?

Probably. The school was full in 2024/25, with 1 more pupils than places. How close you live, and the school's other admissions rules, decide who gets in.

What is attendance like at St Gabriel's Catholic Primary School?

Pupils were in school 95.9% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 6% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

How big are the classes at St Gabriel's Catholic Primary School?

The average class had 29.8 pupils in January 2026. Across England it was 25.4. 17% 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
Well Lane, Alsager, Stoke-on-Trent, ST7 2PG
Telephone
01270 875770
Website
www.stgabriels.cheshire.sch.uk
Headteacher
Mr Edward J Byrne
Type of school
Roman Catholic school (voluntary aided) (Voluntary aided school, local authority maintained schools)
Phase
Primary school, ages 3-11, with nursery
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
Roman Catholic, Diocese of Shrewsbury
Local authority
Cheshire East
Ward
Alsager
Constituency
Congleton
Setting
Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
URN
111339 · LAESTAB 8953536 · UKPRN 10070199

Where these figures come from