St Edward's RC Primary School, a Voluntary Academy
Academy converter primary school in Darwen (Blackburn with Darwen).
Location
iSchool location from Get Information about Schools. Nearby schools are coloured by phase. Open Map+ for a full-screen map with neighbourhood deprivation (England only).About
iWritten by WhatSchool from official school data (Get Information about Schools, DfE and Ofsted).St Edward's RC Primary School, a Voluntary Academy is a Roman Catholic primary school located in Darwen, Blackburn with Darwen. The school caters for boys and girls aged 4 to 11 and currently has 201 pupils on roll, with a capacity of 208. It is part of the ROMERO CATHOLIC ACADEMY TRUST. The school is led by Mrs Vannessa Knowles.
Enrichment
3 activitiesiFound on the school website by WhatSchool. Not verified by Governance Register; the school website is the authority.- Music
- Forest School
- Purple Mash
Awards
2 awardsiFound on the school website by WhatSchool. Not verified by Governance Register; the school website is the authority.- Anti-Bullying CharterRecognised award
- Leading Parent Partnership AwardWorking with families
Key facts
- URN
- 150080
- Type
- Academy converter
- Phase
- Primary
- Ages
- 4 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Roman Catholic
- Sixth form
- Does not have a sixth form
- Nursery
- No Nursery Classes
- Local authority
- Blackburn with Darwen
- Constituency
- Rossendale and Darwen
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Opened
- 2024
Governing body (7 current, 4 former)
iAcademy trust: local governing body and trust board.Leadership
| Name | Role | How appointed | Term |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ms Natalie Fitzgerald | Chair of Local Governing Body | Appointed by foundation/Trust | since 2025 · until 2028 |
| Mr Robert Beardsworth Former | Chair of Local Governing Body | Foundation/sponsor members | since 2024 · term ended 2025 |
Full governing body
| Name | Role | How appointed | Term |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mr Robert Beardsworth | Local Governor | Appointed by academy members | since 2025 · until 2028 |
| Ms Alison Allen | Local Governor | Parent appointed by GB/board due to no election candidates | since 2024 · until 2028 |
| Ms Alys Nokes | Local Governor | Elected by school staff | since 2024 · until 2028 |
| Mrs Vannessa Knowles | Local Governor | Ex-officio by virtue of office as headteacher/principal | since 2024 |
| Mr Martin Hester | Local Governor | Appointed by foundation/Trust | since 2024 · until 2028 |
| Father Brian Kealey | Local Governor | Ex-officio foundation governor (appointed by foundation by virtue of the office they hold) | since 2024 · until 2028 |
| Ms Natalie Fitzgerald Former | Local Governor | Appointed by foundation/Trust | since 2024 · term ended 2025 |
| Ms Felicity Watson Former | Local Governor | Appointed by foundation/Trust | since 2024 · term ended 2026 |
| Ms Katie McNally Former | Local Governor | Elected by parents | since 2023 · term ended 2026 |
Source: Department for Education, Get Information about Schools (governance records, as at 25 October 2026). Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Names are shown as published; there are no addresses or contact details. Current and former are worked out from term end dates when the page loads. Object or ask for removal · Report an issue with this record