Primary school in Blackburn, Blackburn with Darwen
The Olive School, Blackburn
Meins Road, Blackburn, Lancashire, BB2 6QQ
Ofsted
Inspected under the current framework, which gives no overall grade, on 4 March 2025.
Inspections since September 2024 do not give an overall grade, so there is no one-word judgement to report. The full report sets out what inspectors found.
Key stage 2 results 2024/25
Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths
Reached the higher standard
Average reading score
Average maths score
On the headline measure this school is in the top 5% of state-funded primaries in England.
Compared with the fifth of schools whose intake is least disadvantaged, which is where this one sits, it is in the top 10%.
There are no progress measures for primary schools any more. They were calculated from a key stage 1 baseline, and statutory key stage 1 tests ended in 2023, so nothing has been published since. That makes attainment the only official measure — and attainment tracks intake closely, which is why the comparison against similar schools above is the more useful of the two lines.
Pupils
- Pupils on roll
- 638
- Places
- 630
- How full
- Full — 638 pupils against 630 places
- Girls / boys
- 325 / 313
- Overall absence
- 3%
- Persistently absent
- 5%
primary schools average 5.2%
primary schools average 12.8% — pupils missing 10% or more of sessions
- Free school meals, last 6 years
- 4%
- English as an additional language
- 98%
- With an EHC plan
- 4%
- On SEN support
- 7%
England 25.7%
England 18.7%
England 3.5%
England 15%
The neighbourhood around the school
Census 2021 figures for Blackburn with Darwen 010A, the statistical neighbourhood the school sits in — roughly 1,500 residents. It describes the area, not the pupils, who may travel in from further away.
- Adults with a degree
- 46%
- Adults with no qualifications
- 14%
- Households owning their home
- 82%
- Households in social housing
- 3%
- Households with no car
- 11%
- Adults economically inactive
- 42%
England 33.8%
England 18.3%
England 62.7%
England 17%
England 21.9%
England 39.9%
School details
- Type
- Free schools
- Phase
- Primary
- Ages
- Ages 4–11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Muslim
- Sixth form
- No
- Nursery
- No
- Boarding
- Day school
- Trust
- STAR ACADEMIES
- Headteacher
- Executive Headteacher: Smeena Riaz
- Local authority
- Blackburn with Darwen
- Ward
- Billinge & Beardwood
- Constituency
- Blackburn
- URN
- 139813
The unique reference number used in all official school data.
Nearest primary schools
| School | Ofsted | Expected standard | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| St Silas's CofE Primary SchoolAcademy sponsor led | Good 2023 | 59% | 0.4 mi |
| Wensley Fold CofE Primary AcademyAcademy converter | Outstanding 2023 | 83% | 0.5 mi |
| Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Primary School BlackburnVoluntary aided school | No grade | 60% | 0.5 mi |
| Dar Ul MadinahOther independent school | No grade | — | 0.6 mi |
| Queen Elizabeth's Primary SchoolFree schools | No grade | 45% | 0.8 mi |
| St Barnabas and St Paul's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary SchoolVoluntary aided school | Good 2024 | 70% | 0.9 mi |
| Griffin Park Primary SchoolCommunity school | Good 2022 | 75% | 1 mi |
| Lammack Primary SchoolCommunity school | Good 2022 | 81% | 1.1 mi |
Schools with a similar intake
State-funded primary schools nationally whose share of disadvantaged pupils is closest to this school's. This is the fairest like-for-like comparison the published data supports.
| School | Ofsted | Expected standard |
|---|---|---|
| Our Lady of Victories Catholic Primary SchoolVoluntary aided school | Good 2022 | 96% |
| Christ Church Primary SchoolVoluntary aided school | Good 2022 | 77% |
| Mathilda Marks-Kennedy Jewish Primary SchoolVoluntary aided school | No grade | 70% |
| Crook Log Primary SchoolCommunity school | Good 2024 | 75% |
| Upton Primary SchoolCommunity school | Outstanding 2024 | 83% |
| Sinai Jewish Primary SchoolVoluntary aided school | No grade | 86% |
| Hadley Wood Primary SchoolCommunity school | Good 2022 | 100% |
| Tetherdown Primary SchoolCommunity school | Good 2022 | 73% |
Where these figures come from
- School details, address and pupil numbers — Get Information About Schools, the DfE register, as at 14 August 2026.
- Exam results — DfE performance tables, 2024/25.
- Free school meals, EAL and SEN — school census, 2024/25.
- Ofsted — Ofsted management information, latest inspections as at 30 June 2026.
- Neighbourhood figures — ONS Census 2021, lower layer super output area.
All published under the Open Government Licence v3.0. If something here looks wrong, the school's own website is the authority on admissions and open days.