Ofsted: Outstanding

Valley Gardens Middle School

verifiedData: DfE 2024/25–2025/26 · Ofsted

personMr David Godfrey

corporate_fareThe North Tyneside Learning Trust

location_onWhitley Bay, NE25 9AQ

language Visit Website phone 1919176667

verified

Ofsted

Outstanding

Inspected 2024

groups

Students

772

school

Expected Standard

72%

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Age Range

9-13

summarize

Valley Gardens Middle School is a Foundation school secondary school in Whitley Bay, serving ages 9-13. Rated Outstanding by Ofsted — the highest possible grade.

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School Summary

Valley Gardens Middle School is a foundation school in Whitley Bay, North Tyneside, admitting pupils aged 9-13. It is part of The North Tyneside Learning Trust. The school has approximately 773 pupils on roll, of whom 7% are eligible for free school meals.

In 2025, 72% of pupils met the expected standard in Reading, Writing and Maths combined, with 15% achieving the higher standard. The school ranks #14 of 50 primaries in North Tyneside and #3,077 of 15,231 nationally.

Ofsted last inspected the school in 2024. The school's current overall rating is Outstanding. Inspectors assessed quality of education as Outstanding, behaviour and attitudes Outstanding, personal development Outstanding, and leadership and management Outstanding.

The pupil-to-qualified-teacher ratio is 21.1:1. There are no current teaching vacancies.

In the 2024/25 academic year, there were 2 permanent exclusions. The average suspension rate was 2.5 per 1,000 pupils per term.

verified Source: DfE 2024/25–2025/26 · Ofsted

Academic Performance

verified Data: UK Gov 2024/25

school

Primary Performance Trends (KS2)

2025

R/W/M Expected Standard

72%

LA 57%

Reading90% LA 71%

Writing77% LA 66%

Maths85% LA 70%

Read SS

109

Maths SS

107

GPS SS

107

Progress (0 = national avg)

Read

Write

Maths

2024

R/W/M Expected Standard

76%

LA 58%England 61%

Reading89% LA 72% · Eng 74%

Writing91% LA 67% · Eng 72%

Maths87% LA 69% · Eng 73%

Read SS

109

Maths SS

107

GPS SS

108

Progress (0 = national avg)

Read

Write

Maths

2023

R/W/M Expected Standard

80%

LA 56%England 60%

Reading90% LA 70% · Eng 73%

Writing95% LA 67% · Eng 71%

Maths83% LA 67% · Eng 73%

Read SS

109

Maths SS

107

GPS SS

109

Progress (0 = national avg)

0.7

Read

LA -0.6

-0.3 to 1.6

4.1

Write

LA -0.7

3.2 to 4.9

-0.6

Maths

LA -1.3

-1.5 to 0.2

2019

R/W/M Expected Standard

88%

LA 60%England 65%

Reading91% LA 69% · Eng 73%

Writing96% LA 74% · Eng 78%

Maths90% LA 74% · Eng 79%

Read SS

109

Maths SS

108

GPS SS

110

Progress (0 = national avg)

1.4

Read

LA 0.3

0.5 to 2.3

3.3

Write

LA 0.4

2.5 to 4.1

0.1

Maths

LA 0.2

-0.6 to 0.9

2018

R/W/M Expected Standard

79%

LA 64%

Reading87% LA 73%

Writing91% LA 77%

Maths86% LA 74%

Read SS

108

Maths SS

107

GPS SS

110

Progress (0 = national avg)

-0.3

Read

LA 0.2

-1.2 to 0.6

1.2

Write

LA 0.6

0.4 to 2

Maths

LA 0.3

-0.8 to 0.8

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Report Archive

19 November 2024

Inspection Report

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25 June 2013

Inspection Report

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09 January 2012

Inspection Report

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10 June 2009

Inspection Report

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17 October 2005

Inspection Report

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27 November 2000

Inspection Report

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Inspection Report

Inspection History

3 Evaluations

2024-11-19

S5 Inspection EIF

Not Judged

info

Why no overall grade?

From autumn 2024, Ofsted stopped issuing a single headline grade (Outstanding / Good / RI / Inadequate). Instead, each inspection area is graded individually. This follows a major review after the death of headteacher Ruth Perry in 2023. The overall effectiveness field is left as "Not judged" in the published data.

Education

Outstanding

Behaviour

Outstanding

Development

Outstanding

Leadership

Outstanding

2013-06-25

S5 Inspection EIF

Outstanding

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Outstanding

2009-06-10

None EIF

Good

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Good

Wellbeing, SEN & Pastoral Care

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Behaviour & Discipline (Suspensions & Exclusions)

Official Department for Education (DfE) data. Suspensions measure temporary removals due to behavior, while exclusions represent permanent removals.

Suspension Rate

2.1%per term

sentiment_satisfied Below Average (Good)

National average: 7.3% for this term (secondary).

Pupils Suspended 1+ Times

0.9%(7 pupils)

Spring term 2025

Represents the proportion of unique students suspended at least once in this term.

Permanent Exclusions

2pupils

gavel Exclusion recorded

National average: 7.398% of pupils excluded per term.

Pastoral Context: In the Spring term of 2025, this school served a headcount of 773 pupils. During this period, there were 16 temporary suspensions. The school's suspension rate was 2.1%, which is below the termly national average of 7.3%.

View Historical Disciplinary Records (2017–2025)keyboard_arrow_down

Year / Term	Headcount	Suspensions	Susp. Rate	Nat. Avg	Perm. Excl.
2024/25 (Spring term)	773	16	2.1%	7.3%	2
2024/25 (Autumn term)	770	22	2.9%	7.8%	0
2023/24 (Summer term)	765	14	1.8%	7.4%	1
2023/24 (Spring term)	766	7	0.9%	7.1%	1
2023/24 (Autumn term)	770	19	2.5%	8.2%	0
2022/23 (Summer term)	772	3	0.4%	6.6%	0
2022/23 (Spring term)	772	7	0.9%	6.4%	0
2022/23 (Autumn term)	775	15	1.9%	5.9%	0
2021/22 (Summer term)	763	13	1.7%	4.7%	0
2021/22 (Spring term)	765	15	2.0%	4.9%	0
2021/22 (Autumn term)	769	8	1.0%	4.4%	1
2020/21 (Summer term)	759	7	0.9%	3.6%	0
2020/21 (Spring term)	757	2	0.3%	1.0%	0
2020/21 (Autumn term)	753	18	2.4%	3.9%	0
2019/20 (Summer term)	753	1	0.1%	0.0%	0
2019/20 (Spring term)	753	17	2.3%	3.2%	0
2019/20 (Autumn term)	754	13	1.7%	4.2%	0
2018/19 (Summer term)	759	0	0.0%	3.1%	0
2018/19 (Spring term)	762	0	0.0%	3.8%	0
2018/19 (Autumn term)	761	1	0.1%	3.8%	0
2017/18 (Summer term)	755	6	0.8%	3.4%	0
2017/18 (Spring term)	758	4	0.5%	3.0%	0
2017/18 (Autumn term)	759	2	0.3%	3.7%	0
2016/17 (Summer term)	751	7	0.9%	3.0%	0
2016/17 (Spring term)	750	0	0.0%	3.3%	0
2016/17 (Autumn term)	746	0	0.0%	3.1%	0

Source: DfE Suspensions and Permanent Exclusions in England. Data represents termly statistics as published by the Department for Education.

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psychology_alt

Supported Special Educational Needs (SEN)

Primary areas of need currently supported by the school. A high number often indicates specialized internal units or high staff experience in these areas.

Specific Learning Difficulty 42 pupils

Social, Emotional & Mental Health 26 pupils

Speech, Language & Communication 22 pupils

Physical Disability 4 pupils

Autistic Spectrum Disorder 3 pupils

Hearing Impairment 2 pupils

Multi-Sensory Impairment 2 pupils

Other Difficulty/Disability 2 pupils

health_and_safety

Parent View on Pastoral Care

Results from the official Ofsted Parent View survey, reflecting direct parent sentiment regarding the school environment.

My child is happy at this school.

77.0%Positive

My child feels safe at this school.

86.0%Positive

My child has been bullied and the school dealt with the bullying quickly and effectively.

13.0%Positive

View All Survey Responseskeyboard_arrow_down

The school makes sure its pupils are well behaved.

strongly agree44%

agree39%

disagree10%

strongly disagree2%

don't know5%

The school makes me aware of what my child will learn during the year.

strongly agree46%

agree41%

disagree9%

strongly disagree3%

don't know1%

When I have raised concerns with the school they have been dealt with properly

strongly agree23%

agree21%

disagree13%

strongly disagree14%

don't know4%

not applicable26%

Does your child have special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND)?

yes22%

no78%

My child has special educational needs and/or disabilities, and the school gives them the support they need to succeed.

strongly agree32%

agree23%

disagree17%

strongly disagree29%

The school has high expectations for my child.

strongly agree60%

agree26%

disagree7%

strongly disagree4%

don't know2%

My child does well at this school.

strongly agree41%

agree37%

disagree11%

strongly disagree8%

don't know3%

The school lets me know how my child is doing.

strongly agree36%

agree44%

disagree13%

strongly disagree6%

don't know2%

There is a good range of subjects available to my child at this school.

strongly agree56%

agree38%

disagree3%

strongly disagree1%

don't know2%

My child can take part in clubs and activities at this school.

strongly agree69%

agree28%

disagree1%

strongly disagree1%

The school supports my child's wider personal development.

strongly agree35%

agree36%

disagree13%

strongly disagree8%

don't know8%

I would recommend this school to another parent.

yes74%

no26%

Top Secondary Schools in North Tyneside

Other highly-ranked schools in the same local authority

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Kings Priory School

Good

location_on North Shields, NE30 4RF

emoji_events #1 in LA

Marden High School

Good

location_on North Shields, NE30 3RZ

emoji_events #2 in LA

Whitley Bay High School

Outstanding

location_on Whitley Bay, NE25 9AS

emoji_events #3 in LA

St Thomas More Catholic High School

Good

location_on North Shields, NE29 8LF

emoji_events #4 in LA

George Stephenson High School

Good

location_on Newcastle-upon-Tyne, NE12 6SA

emoji_events #5 in LA

Burnside College

Good

location_on Wallsend, NE28 7LQ

emoji_events #6 in LA

View all schools in North Tyneside arrow_forward

School Summary

Academic Performance

Primary Performance Trends (KS2)

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Inspection History

Admissions Insight

How Places Are Allocated

Distance to School

School Capacity

Students & School Environment

School Size

Language Diversity

Inclusive Support

Attendance

Ethnicity Breakdown

Wellbeing, SEN & Pastoral Care

Behaviour & Discipline (Suspensions & Exclusions)

Supported Special Educational Needs (SEN)

Parent View on Pastoral Care

My child is happy at this school.

My child feels safe at this school.

My child has been bullied and the school dealt with the bullying quickly and effectively.

The school makes sure its pupils are well behaved.

The school makes me aware of what my child will learn during the year.

When I have raised concerns with the school they have been dealt with properly

Does your child have special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND)?

My child has special educational needs and/or disabilities, and the school gives them the support they need to succeed.

The school has high expectations for my child.

My child does well at this school.

The school lets me know how my child is doing.

There is a good range of subjects available to my child at this school.

My child can take part in clubs and activities at this school.

The school supports my child's wider personal development.

I would recommend this school to another parent.

Funding & Staffing

School Funding Allocation

Funding Breakdown

Staffing

Teacher Turnover

Top Secondary Schools in North Tyneside

Kings Priory School

Marden High School

Whitley Bay High School

St Thomas More Catholic High School

George Stephenson High School

Burnside College