Bowerham Primary & Nursery School

Lancaster · LA1 4BS

General information Primary School · 2-11 years Who goes here 498 pupils, 14.8% FSM

Educational attainment Ofsted report card

Parent score Rate this school No reviews yet - be the first SEN 10.2% on SEN support Behaviour 3.6% absence rate Staff 14.4% turnover Financials £6,563 per pupil Environment Buildings and facilities

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Bowerham Primary & Nursery School

General Information

Address: Bowerham Road, Lancaster, LA1 4BS – View on map
Phone: 0152463999
Website: Visit school website
Headteacher: Mrs Jo Banks
Age range: 2-11 years
Demand for places (Reception, September 2026): 50 families put it first for 52 places – 10 for every 10 places. Every one of them was offered a place. No places went to families living outside the council area. Children putting it first, for every 10 places: 2023 13 · 2024 12 · 2025 10 · 2026 10
Sixth form: No
Intake: Mixed
Religious character: Does not apply
Nursery provision: Yes

Who goes here

498 pupils out of 532 places

Pupils eligible for free school meals: 68
% eligible for free school meals: 14.8%
Pupil mix: 4 in 10 (more mixed than the Lancaster average)
English as an additional language: 17% (England 22%)

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Teacher turnover: 14.4% a year (Lancaster 11.5%, typical in England 13.9%)
Where they went: about 38% moved to another school, 62% left state schools altogether (retirement, other careers, independent schools, abroad)
Data years: 2022/23 to 2024/25 (average of 3 years, DfE school workforce census)

Teachers who moved school or left state schools in the year after each November, as a share of all the school's teachers. Some turnover is healthy – retirements, promotions, moving house.

Behaviour

Awaiting Data

About this Behaviour status

We've asked this school for real behaviour figures under Freedom of Information and haven't had a response yet.

Across Lancashire: suspensions by reason

Suspensions for sexual misconduct: 9 (0.1 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.2)
Permanent exclusions for sexual misconduct: 3
Suspensions for bullying: 18 (0.2 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.2)
Suspensions for abuse against sexual orientation or gender identity: 7 (0.1 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.0)
Data year: 2024/25 (DfE suspensions and exclusions statistics)

These are figures for all state primary schools in Lancashire (the council area this school is in), not this school's own – the government doesn't publish them school by school. A suspension can have up to three reasons. Most sexual harassment between pupils never leads to a suspension, so these figures show only part of the picture.

Attendance

Overall absence: 3.6%
Persistently absent pupils: 6.0%
Data year: 2024/25

About persistent absence

A pupil is counted as "persistently absent" if they miss 10% or more of their possible school sessions - roughly one day in every two weeks. Schools and Ofsted both pay close attention to this figure specifically, since it can highlight a pattern the overall absence rate alone might hide.

SEN

No dedicated Unit or Resourced Provision

SEN Unit and Resourced Provision

Most mainstream schools don't have a dedicated SEN Unit or Resourced Provision - it isn't a mark against a school that doesn't, just a different kind of setup than one that does.

Pupils on SEN Support: 10.2%
Pupils with an EHC Plan: 3.6%
Data year: 2025/26

Most common needs - SEN Support

Speech, language and communications needs: 15 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 13 pupils
Other difficulty or disability: 11 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 6 pupils
SEN support but no specialist assessment of type of need: 3 pupils

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Speech, language and communications needs: 7 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 6 pupils
Other difficulty or disability: 3 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 1 pupil
Multi-sensory impairment: 1 pupil

These figures show the makeup of the school.

About these SEND figures

These figures give a sense of the makeup of the school - they aren't a judgement on the quality of support provided.

Parent score - no reviews yet –

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Behaviour

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Openness

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Teaching Quality

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School Ethos

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Ability to Deal with Problems

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Headteacher Approval

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SafeguardingSafeguarding (parent rating)How parents rate the school on keeping children safe - how safe their child feels, and how well concerns are listened to and acted on. It's parents' experience, not an inspection result; Ofsted checks safeguarding separately.

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Wraparound CareWraparound Care (parent rating)How parents rate the school's breakfast and after-school clubs - availability, cost and quality. Only asked for infant, junior and primary schools, where it matters most for working parents.

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Would recommend –

Educational Attainment

Ofsted report card January 2026

Ofsted's new report cards grade each part of school life separately, instead of giving one overall word.

Safeguarding Met
Inclusion Strong standard
Curriculum and teaching Strong standard
Achievement Expected standard
Attendance and behaviour Strong standard
Personal development and wellbeing Strong standard
Early years Strong standard
Leadership and governance Strong standard

Before this, under the old system, Ofsted rated the school Good (2021). The report card above replaces that grade.

How Ofsted report cards work

Since November 2025, Ofsted grades each area of a school on its own five-point scale, and no longer gives a single word like “Good” or “Outstanding”. Safeguarding (keeping children safe) is simply met or not met.

Exceptional The very best practice nationally
Strong standard Above what Ofsted expects
Expected standard What Ofsted expects of every school
Needs attention Some weaknesses the school needs to fix
Urgent improvement Serious weaknesses needing urgent action

“Expected standard” is a sound result – it's what Ofsted expects a good school to do. Report cards aren't directly comparable with the old single grades, which is why we don't turn them into one.

Year 6 SATs results

Met the expected standard in reading, writing & maths: 60% (England 62%)
Reached the higher standard: 12% (England 8%)
Compared with the area: in line with the Lancaster average (60%)
Compared with schools with similar pupils: As expected (3-year average 61% against an expected 64%)
3-year average (expected standard): 61%
Expected standard by subject: Reading 83% · Writing 74% · Maths 67% · Grammar, punctuation & spelling 79%
Average test scores: reading 107, maths 103
Based on: 58 Year 6 pupils, 2024/25

View the School Context Comparator – how this school's SATs results compare with schools teaching similar pupils.

SATs results over time

This schoolLancaster averageEngland↘ Falling Down 8 percentage points since 2022/23. In 2024/25 this school was in line with the Lancaster average (60%).

Year 6 SATs: joint 25th of 49 junior and primary schools in the area

=21Lancaster Ryelands Primary School63%
=21Scotforth St Paul's Church of England Primary and Nursery School63%
=25Bowerham Primary & Nursery School60%
=25Morecambe and Heysham Sandylands Community Primary School60%
#27Bolton-le-Sands Church of England Primary School59%

Click to see the full ranking

Year 6 SATs ranking

Junior and primary schools in this area, ranked by the % of Year 6 pupils meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (official DfE results, 2024/25). Schools with the same result share a place (shown as =). In small schools one or two children can move a school several places, so treat close positions as roughly equal.

Rank School Score

#1Dolphinholme Church of England Primary School85%
#2The Cathedral Catholic Primary School, Lancaster80%
#3St Bernadette's Catholic Primary School, Lancaster79%
#4Heysham St Peter's Church of England Primary School76%
#5Slyne-with-Hest, St Luke's, Church of England Primary School74%
=6Caton St Paul's Church of England Primary School73%
=6Great Wood Primary School73%
=6Morecambe and Heysham Torrisholme Community Primary School73%
#9Ellel St John the Evangelist Church of England Primary School71%
=10Moorside Primary School70%
=10Morecambe and Heysham Grosvenor Park Primary School70%
=10Mossgate Primary School70%
=10Over Kellet Wilson's Endowed Church of England Primary School70%
=14Nether Kellet Community Primary School69%
=14Quernmore Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School69%
#16Cawthorne's Endowed School67%
#17Lancaster Dallas Road Community Primary School65%
=18Lancaster Christ Church Church of England Primary School64%
=18Overton St Helen's Church of England Primary School64%
=18St Wilfrid's Cof E Primary School64%
=21Carnforth Christ Church, Church of England, Voluntary Aided Primary School63%
=21Caton Primary School63%
=21Lancaster Ryelands Primary School63%
=21Scotforth St Paul's Church of England Primary and Nursery School63%
=25Bowerham Primary & Nursery School60%
=25Morecambe and Heysham Sandylands Community Primary School60%
#27Bolton-le-Sands Church of England Primary School59%
=28Silverdale St John's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School57%
=28St Patrick's Catholic Primary School57%
#30Hornby St Margaret's Church of England Primary School55%
=31Cockerham Parochial CofE Primary School54%
=31Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Primary School, Carnforth54%
=33Lancaster Road Primary School53%
=33Morecambe and Heysham Westgate Primary School53%
=35St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Morecambe52%
=35West End Primary School52%
=37Melling St Wilfrid Church of England Primary School50%
=37Wray with Botton Endowed Primary School50%
#39Willow Lane Community Primary School46%
#40Arkholme Church of England Primary School42%
#41Trumacar Nursery and Community Primary School41%
=42Leck St Peter's Church of England Primary School40%
=42Skerton St Luke's Church of England Primary School40%
=44Poulton-le-Sands Church of England Primary School36%
=44Warton Archbishop Hutton's VC Primary School36%
#46St Josephs Catholic Primary School, Lancaster33%
#47Castle View Primary Academy31%
#48Morecambe Bay Community Primary School30%
#49Carnforth Community Primary School29%

View full Ofsted inspection report

Financials

Spending per pupil: £6,563 (2024-25)

About this spending figure

A higher or lower position here isn't a sign of a better or worse school - schools have different needs and circumstances - but it can help reassure you that a school has sufficient funding behind your child's education.

42nd of 52 primary schools in Lancaster for spending per pupil

#40Lancaster Christ Church Church of England Primary School£6,752
#41Caton St Paul's Church of England Primary School£6,615
#42Bowerham Primary & Nursery School£6,563
#43Moorside Primary School£6,444
#44Lancaster Dallas Road Community Primary School£6,329

Click to see the full ranking

Spending Per Pupil ranking

Based on official DfE financial return data (Consistent Financial Reporting / Academies Accounts Return) - not a ranking of school quality.

Rank School Score

#1Thurnham Glasson Christ Church, Church of England Primary School£28,663
#2Tatham Fells Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School£18,051
#3Melling St Wilfrid Church of England Primary School£17,754
#4Hornby St Margaret's Church of England Primary School£12,281
#5Dolphinholme Church of England Primary School£11,248
#6Yealand Church of England Primary School£10,629
#7Leck St Peter's Church of England Primary School£10,245
#8Castle View Primary Academy£10,059
#9Silverdale St John's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School£9,942
#10Cawthorne's Endowed School£9,897
#11Carnforth Community Primary School£9,867
#12Caton Primary School£9,683
#13Cockerham Parochial CofE Primary School£9,394
#14Wray with Botton Endowed Primary School£9,149
#15St Josephs Catholic Primary School, Lancaster£8,853
#16Morecambe Bay Community Primary School£8,738
#17Lancaster Ryelands Primary School£8,133
#18Poulton-le-Sands Church of England Primary School£7,884
#19Lancaster Road Primary School£7,876
#20Over Kellet Wilson's Endowed Church of England Primary School£7,824
#21Willow Lane Community Primary School£7,764
#22St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Morecambe£7,656
#23Warton Archbishop Hutton's VC Primary School£7,649
#24West End Primary School£7,564
#25Trumacar Nursery and Community Primary School£7,559
#26Arkholme Church of England Primary School£7,531
#27Quernmore Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School£7,270
#28Skerton St Luke's Church of England Primary School£7,257
#29Morecambe and Heysham Westgate Primary School£7,235
#30St Patrick's Catholic Primary School£7,216
#31The Cathedral Catholic Primary School, Lancaster£7,206
#32Mossgate Primary School£7,183
#33Nether Kellet Community Primary School£7,178
#34Morecambe and Heysham Grosvenor Park Primary School£7,095
#35Morecambe and Heysham Sandylands Community Primary School£6,909
#36Carnforth Christ Church, Church of England, Voluntary Aided Primary School£6,906
#37Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Primary School, Carnforth£6,894
#38Slyne-with-Hest, St Luke's, Church of England Primary School£6,832
#39Overton St Helen's Church of England Primary School£6,759
#40Lancaster Christ Church Church of England Primary School£6,752
#41Caton St Paul's Church of England Primary School£6,615
#42Bowerham Primary & Nursery School£6,563
#43Moorside Primary School£6,444
#44Lancaster Dallas Road Community Primary School£6,329
#45Great Wood Primary School£6,314
#46St Bernadette's Catholic Primary School, Lancaster£6,165
#47St Wilfrid's Cof E Primary School£6,160
#48Ellel St John the Evangelist Church of England Primary School£6,055
#49Scotforth St Paul's Church of England Primary and Nursery School£6,043
#50Heysham St Peter's Church of England Primary School£6,007
#51Bolton-le-Sands Church of England Primary School£5,968
#52Morecambe and Heysham Torrisholme Community Primary School£5,846

View on the Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool (GOV.UK)

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