St Mary’s Catholic Primary Voluntary Academy (Brigg) Review 2026: High-attaining Catholic primary with strong routines and a tight-knit feel

Strong Key Stage 2 outcomes are the headline here, alongside a clearly structured school day that begins with liturgical prayer. The school has served the Brigg parish and community since 1966, and its Catholic character shapes daily life through worship, chaplaincy, and a virtue-led approach to behaviour and leadership.

For a state primary, results are striking. In 2024, 93% of pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and mathematics combined, a figure that sits well above the England average of 62%. This review will suit families who value a faith-centred ethos, strong early reading, and clear expectations, and who are comfortable with a smaller school where children are likely to be known well by staff.

The school’s identity is explicit: Catholic virtues are used as shared language, with half-termly focus areas such as Love, Faith, Courage, Joy, Resilience and Justice. This is not an abstract values poster, it sits alongside practical expectations about relationships, responsibility, and participation in school life.

Daily rhythm matters here. The published timetable builds liturgical prayer into the morning routine, and that signals the tone: calm, structured, and purposeful. Pupils are also organised into four houses linked to the evangelists, St Matthew, St Mark, St Luke and St John, with house captains and vice-captains elected by pupil vote. That blend of prayer, routine, and pupil leadership tends to suit children who respond well to clear structures and visible roles.

Leadership is stable and clearly signposted to parents. Mr J Leech is listed as headteacher on the school website, and the most recent Ofsted report also records James Leech as headteacher.

The wider governance context is also relevant. The school joined the Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Multi-Academy Trust in August 2022, which matters for admissions (the trust is the admissions authority) and for how school improvement is supported.

For parents trying to interpret primary results, two measures are especially useful: the combined expected standard (reading, writing and mathematics) and the higher standard.

In 2024, 93.33% of pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and mathematics combined, compared with an England average of 62%. At the higher standard, 47% achieved greater depth in reading, writing and mathematics, compared with an England average of 8%. Those are standout figures for a state primary, and they suggest the school is supporting both broad attainment and higher prior attainers.

Reading, mathematics, and grammar, punctuation and spelling (GPS) scaled scores were also high: 110 in reading, 110 in mathematics, and 109 in GPS (a combined total of 329 across reading, maths and GPS).

Rankings should be read as context, not as a promise for an individual child. Ranked 606th in England and 1st in Brigg for primary outcomes (FindMySchool ranking based on official data), the school sits well above England average (top 10%). For families comparing nearby options, the FindMySchool Local Hub and Comparison Tool can help you view these outcomes side-by-side with other local primaries, using the same measures and the same year of data.

Early reading appears to be a sustained priority, rather than a short-term initiative. The school uses a consistent approach to phonics, with targeted extra help for pupils who need it, and the intent is clear: build fluency early so pupils can access the wider curriculum with confidence. By the end of Year 2, many pupils are described as confident, fluent readers.

Across the wider curriculum, the picture is a mix of strength and development work. Curriculum planning is described as ambitious and challenging in most subjects, with attention to the important knowledge leaders want pupils to learn and remember, and with content designed to connect to what pupils already know. The main improvement point is consistency, some subjects need clearer identification of the most important knowledge so that pupils build depth across the whole curriculum, not only in the strongest areas.

The early years environment is intended to be well matched to children’s needs, with strong routines and expectations that are built steadily through the school. The school also highlights indoor and outdoor learning environments, including forest school provision, which is often a good fit for children who learn best through a balance of structured teaching and practical, active experience.

Support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities is described as integrated rather than separate. Needs are identified early, adaptations and adult support help pupils learn alongside peers, and leaders monitor whether that support is working.

As a primary school, transition is about readiness and informed choice rather than guaranteed routes. For most families in Brigg, the practical next step is a local secondary, and the two town secondaries are The Vale Academy and Sir John Nelthorpe School.

What matters at this stage is preparation: building strong reading fluency, secure number sense, and study habits that will carry into Year 7. With such strong Key Stage 2 attainment measures, many pupils should arrive at secondary school academically confident, but families should still pay attention to fit, travel time, and each secondary’s pastoral approach.

Families who want to plan ahead can use FindMySchool’s Map Search to understand practical travel and to explore alternative secondaries within a realistic radius, particularly if your household sits near boundaries where options can change year by year.

This is a state school with no tuition fees. Admissions for Reception are coordinated by North Lincolnshire Council, while the Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Multi-Academy Trust is the admissions authority, with local governing body involvement in decisions.

The school is oversubscribed on the latest available intake data, with 37 applications and 19 offers for the Reception entry route shown around 1.95 applications for each place offered. In practice, that means families should treat admission as competitive, and plan their application carefully and early.

For September 2026 Reception entry, the council deadline is Thursday 15 January 2026, and applications are described as opening from 15 November 2025. The local authority also points parents to apply via its online portal and highlights the importance of applying by the deadline.

As a Catholic school, faith-based criteria may apply, and the school notes that families applying on faith grounds may need to complete a supplementary information form as part of the process. That is a key practical step for Catholic schools, and it is worth checking the current admissions policy wording for the exact evidence required and how it is used in tie-break situations.

A smaller primary can sometimes offer the best of both worlds: enough breadth for friendships, but not so large that children become anonymous. Here, the evidence points towards a relationship-led culture with clear routines and consistent expectations, particularly from early years upwards.

Pupil leadership is encouraged in several ways. Across different sources, examples include play leaders, chaplaincy leaders, school council, mental health ambassadors, mini-vinnies, and wellbeing ambassadors. That matters because leadership roles in a primary setting are often less about prestige and more about building confidence, responsibility, and a habit of service, which fits well with the school’s stated mission and virtue framework.

Safeguarding is described as effective, with staff training and appropriate escalation to other agencies where needed.

Extracurricular provision is signposted clearly to parents, with lunchtime and after-school clubs. Specific examples include coding and wellbeing club, and the most recent Ofsted report also references clubs such as martial arts and Lego club. The practical implication is that children who benefit from structured social time beyond lessons should find accessible options without needing long travel or external providers.

Sport appears to be taken seriously, with the school reporting that it has achieved a School Games Gold standard, linked to inclusive sport and physical activity. This can be particularly valuable for pupils who gain confidence through movement, teamwork, and routines outside the classroom.

Music is also supported through the parent association, Friends of St Mary’s, which raises funds through events such as Christmas and summer fairs and notes ongoing support for music provision. For children who benefit from performance, ensemble work, or structured practice, that kind of sustained support can make enrichment more consistent across year groups.

Outdoor learning is another stated feature, including forest school provision, which often works well as a complement to formal lessons.

The published school day runs from 8:45am to 3:15pm, and the timetable includes a short liturgical prayer slot at the start of the day.

Wraparound care is stated as available, with arrival from 7:30am and an end time of 5:35pm. Parents should check current booking arrangements and capacity, particularly if you need regular after-school provision on specific days.

For travel, many families will walk in Brigg, and Brigg rail station is the local rail reference point for the town.

• Competition for places. The most recent application and offer figures indicate oversubscription, which can make admission the key constraint even for local families.

• Faith expectations. The Catholic character is central to daily life, including worship and a virtue-led approach. Families who want a more secular experience should weigh whether this is the right fit.

• Curriculum consistency across subjects. External evaluation highlights that while curriculum planning is strong in most areas, some subjects need sharper identification of the most important knowledge so that pupils build depth consistently.

• Personal development breadth. A stated development area is strengthening some pupils’ understanding of world religions, British values, and protected characteristics, which is relevant for families who prioritise structured preparation for life in modern Britain.

This is a Catholic primary with a clear sense of purpose, strong routines, and unusually high recent Key Stage 2 outcomes for a state school. It suits families who want a faith-shaped education, a structured day that includes prayer and pupil leadership, and an academic profile that suggests pupils are well prepared for secondary transition.

The main challenge is securing a place in an oversubscribed intake. For families considering it, the priority is to understand the admissions criteria early, confirm any faith documentation requirements, and use FindMySchool tools to compare outcomes locally while keeping an eye on practical travel.