Willow Bank School
Special schoolWillow Bank School is a special school in St. Helens, for pupils aged 8 to 16. It had 70 pupils at the school census in January 2026.
Ofsted
Latest inspections as at 30 September 2026Report card, May 2026: safeguarding met
- Inspection
- Report card, 12 May 2026
- Safeguarding
- Met
- Inclusion
- Expected standard
- Curriculum and teaching
- Needs attention
- Achievement
- Needs attention
- Attendance and behaviour
- Needs attention
- Personal development and wellbeing
- Expected standard
- Early years
- Not applicable
- Post-16 provision
- Not applicable
- Leadership and governance
- Expected standard
Outcomes as Ofsted published them. Report cards (from November 2025) give no overall grade, and grades under different frameworks can’t be compared.
Results
Department for EducationIn 2024/25, 0% of pupils at Willow Bank School met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths, against 62% in St. Helens and 62% in England.
0% reached the higher standard (8% in England).
In 2025/26, the average Attainment 8 score at Willow Bank School was 9.4, against 43.6 in St. Helens and 46.2 in England.
0% of its pupils got grade 5 or above in English and maths GCSEs (46.3% in England).
End of primary school (KS2)
2024/25| Measure | This school | St. Helens | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 62% | 62% |
| Reached the higher standard | 0% | 8% | 8% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 90 | 105 | 106 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 92 | 104 | 105 |
End of secondary school (KS4, GCSEs)
2025/26, provisional| Measure | This school | St. Helens | England |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average Attainment 8 score | 9.4 | 43.6 | 46.2 |
| Grade 5 or above in English and maths | 0% | 41% | 46.3% |
| Grade 4 or above in English and maths | 0% | 61.2% | 64.8% |
| Pupils at the end of KS4 | 7 | – | – |
- Willow Bank School teaches pupils with needs that most schools' pupils do not have, often in very small year groups, so its results are not a fair comparison with mainstream schools. They are not shown on the map.
- Progress scores from KS1 to KS2 were not published for 2024/25, because the KS1 tests that give the starting point were cancelled in 2020 and 2021.
- The 2025/26 figures are provisional. The Department for Education publishes revised ones later in the school year.
- Progress 8 cannot be worked out for 2025/26, because the KS2 tests that give the starting point were cancelled in 2020 and 2021.
- Results reflect the pupils a school admits as well as its teaching, and a year's results can move a lot in a small school.
Schools nearby
In a straight line- Lyme Community Primary SchoolPrimary. Graded inspection, November 2024: no overall grade. 62% met the expected standard at KS2 (2024/25)870 m
- The District CofE Primary SchoolPrimary. Good (overall), October 2021, before the school changed. 60% met the expected standard at KS2 (2024/25)1.3 km
- Burtonwood Community Primary SchoolPrimary. Good (overall), May 2023. 81% met the expected standard at KS2 (2024/25)1.6 km
- St Mary's Catholic Junior AcademyPrimary. Requires improvement (overall), November 2022, before the school changed. 72% met the expected standard at KS2 (2024/25)1.6 km
- Grange Valley Primary SchoolPrimary. School remains Outstanding, May 2024. 71% met the expected standard at KS2 (2024/25)1.6 km
- Wargrave CofE Primary SchoolPrimary. Graded inspection, November 2024: no overall grade. 57% met the expected standard at KS2 (2024/25)1.8 km
Admissions and catchments are set by councils and schools, which Open Index doesn’t map. Every school in St. Helens
Where these figures come from
- Schools: the school lists of the Department for Education, the Welsh Government and the Scottish Government, with Ofsted’s latest inspections for England.
- Results: the Department for Education’s school performance tables (Open Government Licence).