The school year has only just begun, but if you’ve got a kid leaving nursery in nine months, you’re probably already thinking about where you’re going to send them next September. And, of course, you want to make sure that their first step into education is as good as they can get.
Ofsted’s four-grade rating of schools’ overall effectiveness was ditched last year (in favour of a more comprehensive, five grade system), so the Telegraph decided to step in to help fill the gap. Obviously, your options are limited by your catchment area, but the Telegraph’s list helps you see which schools near you are the top performing.
The paper delved into data from more than 15,000 state-funded primary schools across England, then scored and ranked them. The scores are based on stats from the 2023-24 academic year, with points dished out for nine factors including class sizes; writing, reading and maths test results; comparison with local authority average; levels of truancy and the proportion of pupils meeting expectations.
Twelve schools were awarded perfect overall scores of 40 out of 40 and four boasted the top average results in key stage two reading, writing and maths of 113.7 out of 120 (the national average is 105). But Meysey Hampton Church of England Primary School in Gloucestershire came out on top, thanks to every single one of its students meeting the expected national benchmark test standard of 100 out of 120, and an impressive 44 percent achieving the highest standard of 110 or above.
The schools following very closely behind were St Mary’s Catholic Primary School in Warwickshire, Adlington Primary School in Cheshire East and Askwith Primary School in North Yorkshire.
The 10 best primary schools in England, according to the Telegraph
- Meysey Hampton Church of England Primary School
- St Mary’s Catholic Primary School
- Adlington Primary School
- Askwith Primary School
- South Farnham School
- St Mary’s Bryanston Square CofE School
- The Ilseys Primary School
- Haughton St Giles CofE Primary Academy
- Stockland Church of England Primary Academy
- Whitchurch Primary School
Find the Telegraph’s full primary schools guide here.
Sending your child to secondary school next year? The Telegraph has ranked those too.
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