How do I find schools near me in England?

Enter your postcode in our search form to find all schools within your chosen distance. You can filter by school type (primary/secondary), Ofsted rating, and performance data to find the perfect school for your child.

Are all England schools included in the search?

Yes, our database includes all 25,000+ state schools in England with official data from the Department for Education, including Ofsted ratings, exam results, and school demographics.

How can I compare schools side by side?

After searching for schools, click on any school to view detailed information including Ofsted ratings, GCSE results, Progress 8 scores, and demographics. Premium users can compare up to 4 schools simultaneously.

What school performance data is available?

We provide comprehensive performance data including Ofsted ratings, GCSE results, A-level results, SATs scores, Progress 8 scores, Attainment 8 scores, EBacc achievement rates, and absence data.

How are the top schools in Darwen selected?

Top schools are ordered by the selected metric (Ofsted rating by default). You can also sort by GCSE Attainment 8 (KS4) or KS2 reading/writing/maths. Where data is missing, we fall back to Ofsted and school name to keep ordering consistent.

What does Ofsted Outstanding or Good mean?

Ofsted inspects schools and rates them on a 4‑point scale: Outstanding (Grade 1), Good (Grade 2), Requires improvement (Grade 3), and Inadequate (Grade 4).

What is Attainment 8 and Progress 8?

Attainment 8 measures a pupil’s average achievement across 8 qualifications including English and maths (GCSEs). Progress 8 measures the progress pupils make from the end of primary school to the end of secondary school.

Best Schools in Darwen

Compare 19 schools in Darwen. Data includes Ofsted ratings and exam performance (Attainment 8, Progress 8, KS2 results).

Official data sourced from the Department for Education (DfE) • Last updated 24 Oct 2025

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19

Total Schools

2

Outstanding

13

Good

Primary Schools

15 schools

Secondary Schools

4 schools

Top Performing Schools in Darwen

Ordered by KS2 combined reading/writing/maths meeting expected standard (or the average of subject measures where needed).

Hoddlesden St Paul's Church of England Primary School

Voluntary aided school

Primary

Hoddlesden St Paul's Ce Primary School, Hoddlesden, Darwen, BB3 3NH

Ages: 3-11

Gender: Mixed

Ofsted Rating

Outstanding

Last inspection: 1/10/2013

Performance

Reading Meets Standard

90%

Maths Meets Standard

93%

Reading Progress

+0.9

Maths Progress

+1.9

236 pupils • 0.8% FSM • 0.8% EAL

Darwen, St Barnabas CofE Primary Academy

Academy converter

Primary

Knowlesly Road, Darwen, BB3 2JA

Ages: 4-11

Gender: Mixed

Ofsted Rating

Good

Last inspection: 3/28/2023

Performance

Reading Meets Standard

90%

Maths Meets Standard

79%

Reading Progress

-0.7

Maths Progress

-0.9

207 pupils • 8.7% FSM • 0.0% EAL

St Edward's Roman Catholic Primary School Blackburn

Voluntary aided school

Primary

Blackburn Road, Darwen, BB3 0AA

Ages: 4-11

Gender: Mixed

Ofsted Rating

Good

Last inspection: 1/23/2020

Performance

Reading Meets Standard

86%

Maths Meets Standard

82%

Reading Progress

+1.2

Maths Progress

+0.1

195 pupils • 13.3% FSM • 8.7% EAL

Ashleigh Primary School

Foundation school

Primary

Ross Street, Darwen, BB3 2JT

Ages: 4-11

Gender: Mixed

Ofsted Rating

Good

Last inspection: 3/2/2023

Performance

Reading Meets Standard

74%

Maths Meets Standard

74%

Reading Progress

-0.1

Maths Progress

+1.8

224 pupils • 19.2% FSM • 3.1% EAL

Avondale Primary School

Community school

Primary

Durham Road, Darwen, BB3 1NN

Ages: 4-11

Gender: Mixed

Ofsted Rating

Good

Last inspection: 7/18/2023

Performance

Reading Meets Standard

79%

Maths Meets Standard

79%

Reading Progress

+1.5

Maths Progress

+2.0

399 pupils • 28.3% FSM • 4.3% EAL

St Stephen's Tockholes CofE Primary School

Voluntary aided school

Primary

Rock Lane, Tockholes, Darwen, BB3 0LX

Ages: 4-11

Gender: Mixed

Ofsted Rating

Good

Last inspection: 10/20/2021

Performance

Reading Meets Standard

82%

Maths Meets Standard

82%

Reading Progress

-1.6

Maths Progress

-3.1

62 pupils • 14.5% FSM • 0.0% EAL

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All Schools in Darwen

Ashleigh Primary School

Foundation school

Primary

Ross Street, Darwen, BB3 2JT

Ages: 4-11

Gender: Mixed

Ofsted Rating

Good

Last inspection: 3/2/2023

Performance

Reading Meets Standard

74%

Maths Meets Standard

74%

Reading Progress

-0.1

Maths Progress

+1.8

224 pupils • 19.2% FSM • 3.1% EAL

Avondale Primary School

Community school

Primary

Durham Road, Darwen, BB3 1NN

Ages: 4-11

Gender: Mixed

Ofsted Rating

Good

Last inspection: 7/18/2023

Performance

Reading Meets Standard

79%

Maths Meets Standard

79%

Reading Progress

+1.5

Maths Progress

+2.0

399 pupils • 28.3% FSM • 4.3% EAL

Crosshill Special School

Academy special converter

Secondary, Post-16

Salisbury Road, Darwen, BB3 1HZ

Ages: 11-18

Gender: Mixed

Ofsted Rating

Good

Last inspection: 11/24/2021

Performance

Attainment 8

No data

Progress 8

No data

English & Maths 5+

No data

English & Maths 4+

No data

106 pupils • 32.1% FSM • 22.6% EAL

Darwen Aldridge Community Academy

Academy sponsor led

Secondary, Post-16

Sudell Road, Darwen, BB3 3HD

Ages: 11-19

Gender: Mixed

Ofsted Rating

Requires improvement

Last inspection: 12/15/2022

Performance

Attainment 8

35.8

Progress 8

-0.79

English & Maths 5+

26%

English & Maths 4+

48%

1,106 pupils • 25.7% FSM • 9.9% EAL

Darwen Aldridge Enterprise Studio

Studio schools

Secondary, Post-16

Police Street, Darwen, BB3 1AF

Ages: 13-19

Gender: Mixed

Ofsted Rating

Good

Last inspection: 9/14/2021

Performance

Attainment 8

35.5

Progress 8

-0.90

English & Maths 5+

25%

English & Maths 4+

46%

266 pupils • 42.9% FSM • 3.0% EAL

Darwen St James CofE Primary Academy

Academy converter

Primary

St James Crescent, Darwen, BB3 0EY

Ages: 3-11

Gender: Mixed

Ofsted Rating

Special Measures

Last inspection: 2/23/2023

Performance

Reading Meets Standard

27%

Maths Meets Standard

38%

Reading Progress

-8.4

Maths Progress

-7.6

218 pupils • 46.3% FSM • 22.5% EAL

Showing 6 of 19 schools. Upgrade to unlock all results.

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