Ofsted: Good emoji_events #7 in Darlington public Top 17% UK

Abbey Junior School

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

personMr Jonathan Mark Briggs

corporate_fareTHE FEDERATION OF ABBEY SCHOOLS ACADEMY TRUST

location_onDarlington, DL3 8NN

language Visit Website phone 1325380748

verified

Ofsted

Good

Inspected 2018

groups

Students

352

school

Expected Standard

77%

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Age Range

7-11

summarize

Abbey Junior School is a Academy converter primary school in Darlington, serving ages 7-11. Rated Good by Ofsted. Ranks in the top 17% of primary schools nationally.

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School Summary

Abbey Junior School is an academy converter in Darlington, admitting pupils aged 7-11. It is part of THE FEDERATION OF ABBEY SCHOOLS ACADEMY TRUST. The school has approximately 352 pupils on roll, of whom 8% are eligible for free school meals.

In 2025, 77% of pupils met the expected standard in Reading, Writing and Maths combined, with 8% achieving the higher standard. The school ranks #7 of 27 primaries in Darlington and #2,471 of 14,143 nationally.

Ofsted last inspected the school in 2018. The school's current overall rating is Good.

The pupil-to-qualified-teacher ratio is 28.2:1. There are no current teaching vacancies.

In the 2024/25 academic year, there were no permanent exclusions. The average suspension rate was 0.3 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

77%

LA 60%

Reading91% LA 70%

Writing86% LA 70%

Maths86% LA 71%

Read SS

109

Maths SS

108

GPS SS

110

Progress (0 = national avg)

Read

Write

Maths

2024

R/W/M Expected Standard

62%

LA 56%England 61%

Reading71% LA 69% · Eng 74%

Writing73% LA 69% · Eng 72%

Maths74% LA 68% · Eng 73%

Read SS

106

Maths SS

106

GPS SS

108

Progress (0 = national avg)

Read

Write

Maths

2023

R/W/M Expected Standard

74%

LA 55%England 60%

Reading86% LA 70% · Eng 73%

Writing80% LA 68% · Eng 71%

Maths82% LA 67% · Eng 73%

Read SS

108

Maths SS

106

GPS SS

109

Progress (0 = national avg)

1.0

Read

LA -0.4

-0.3 to 2.3

0.4

Write

LA 0.1

-0.8 to 1.7

0.1

Maths

LA -0.6

-1.1 to 1.4

2019

R/W/M Expected Standard

82%

LA 65%England 65%

Reading84% LA 73% · Eng 73%

Writing92% LA 78% · Eng 78%

Maths94% LA 80% · Eng 79%

Read SS

107

Maths SS

108

GPS SS

110

Progress (0 = national avg)

1.0

Read

LA 0.5

-0.3 to 2.3

0.4

Write

LA 1.0

-0.8 to 1.6

1.6

Maths

LA 0.9

0.5 to 2.8

2018

R/W/M Expected Standard

86%

LA 64%

Reading91% LA 77%

Writing95% LA 80%

Maths94% LA 75%

Read SS

109

Maths SS

108

GPS SS

111

Progress (0 = national avg)

0.7

Read

LA 0.7

-0.6 to 2

0.1

Write

LA 0.7

-1.2 to 1.4

0.7

Maths

LA 1.0

-0.5 to 1.9

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Report Archive

20 June 2023

Inspection Report

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09 January 2018

Inspection Report

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18 December 2012

Inspection Report

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14 February 2012

Inspection Report

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Inspection Report

Inspection History

3 Evaluations

2018-01-09

None Legacy

No Judgement

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

Development

Leadership

2012-12-18

S5 Inspection Legacy

Good

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Good

2010-11-23

None EIF

Requires improvement

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Requires improvement

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

0.3%per term

sentiment_satisfied Below Average (Good)

National average: 0.8% for this term (primary).

Pupils Suspended 1+ Times

0.3%(1 pupils)

Spring term 2025

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

Permanent Exclusions

0pupils

verified Excellent (Zero)

National average: 1.225% of pupils excluded per term.

Pastoral Context: In the Spring term of 2025, this school served a headcount of 352 pupils. During this period, there were 1 temporary suspensions. The school's suspension rate was 0.3%, which is below the termly national average of 0.8%.

View Historical Disciplinary Records (2017–2025)keyboard_arrow_down

Year / Term	Headcount	Suspensions	Susp. Rate	Nat. Avg
2024/25 (Spring term)	352	1	0.3%	0.8%
2024/25 (Autumn term)	351	1	0.3%	0.9%
2023/24 (Summer term)	347	1	0.3%	0.8%
2023/24 (Spring term)	347	3	0.9%	0.7%
2023/24 (Autumn term)	343	8	2.3%	0.8%
2022/23 (Summer term)	350	1	0.3%	0.7%
2022/23 (Spring term)	352	6	1.7%	0.6%
2022/23 (Autumn term)	350	0	0.0%	0.6%
2021/22 (Summer term)	360	1	0.3%	0.5%
2021/22 (Spring term)	353	0	0.0%	0.5%
2021/22 (Autumn term)	357	0	0.0%	0.5%
2020/21 (Summer term)	351	0	0.0%	0.4%
2020/21 (Spring term)	353	0	0.0%	0.1%
2020/21 (Autumn term)	348	0	0.0%	0.4%
2019/20 (Summer term)	360	0	0.0%	0.0%
2019/20 (Spring term)	360	1	0.3%	0.4%
2019/20 (Autumn term)	363	0	0.0%	0.6%
2018/19 (Summer term)	359	0	0.0%	0.4%
2018/19 (Spring term)	359	0	0.0%	0.5%
2018/19 (Autumn term)	358	0	0.0%	0.5%
2017/18 (Summer term)	349	0	0.0%	0.5%
2017/18 (Spring term)	353	0	0.0%	0.4%
2017/18 (Autumn term)	352	0	0.0%	0.5%
2016/17 (Summer term)	360	2	0.6%	0.4%
2016/17 (Spring term)	357	0	0.0%	0.4%
2016/17 (Autumn term)	356	0	0.0%	0.5%

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.

Speech, Language & Communication 13 pupils

Social, Emotional & Mental Health 10 pupils

Autistic Spectrum Disorder 5 pupils

Specific Learning Difficulty 5 pupils

Moderate Learning Difficulty 2 pupils

Multi-Sensory Impairment 1 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.

89.0%Positive

My child feels safe at this school.

93.0%Positive

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

14.0%Positive

View All Survey Responseskeyboard_arrow_down

The school makes sure its pupils are well behaved.

strongly agree36%

agree49%

disagree11%

strongly disagree4%

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

strongly agree42%

agree49%

disagree9%

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

strongly agree31%

agree18%

disagree9%

strongly disagree9%

don't know2%

not applicable31%

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.

strongly agree49%

agree40%

disagree7%

don't know4%

My child does well at this school.

strongly agree60%

agree33%

disagree4%

don't know2%

The school lets me know how my child is doing.

strongly agree42%

agree49%

disagree9%

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

strongly agree53%

agree40%

disagree2%

don't know4%

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

strongly agree60%

agree31%

disagree4%

don't know4%

The school supports my child's wider personal development.

strongly agree40%

agree42%

disagree7%

strongly disagree4%

don't know7%

I would recommend this school to another parent.

yes87%

no13%

Top Primary Schools in Darlington

Other highly-ranked schools in the same local authority

View all arrow_forward

St Teresa's Catholic Primary School

Good

location_on Darlington, DL1 4NL

emoji_events #1 in LA

Springfield Academy

Good

location_on Darlington, DL1 2AN

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Gurney Pease Academy

Good

location_on Darlington, DL1 2NG

emoji_events #3 in LA

Mowden Junior School

Good

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emoji_events #4 in LA

Mount Pleasant Primary School

Good

location_on Darlington, DL3 9HE

emoji_events #5 in LA

St John's Church of England Academy

Outstanding

location_on Darlington, DL1 4UB

emoji_events #6 in LA

View all schools in Darlington 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 Primary Schools in Darlington

St Teresa's Catholic Primary School

Springfield Academy

Gurney Pease Academy

Mowden Junior School

Mount Pleasant Primary School

St John's Church of England Academy