Ofsted: Outstanding trending_up Places Available emoji_events #140 in County Durham public Top 63% UK

St Benet's Catholic Primary School, Ouston

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

personMrs Catherine Young

corporate_fareBISHOP WILKINSON CATHOLIC EDUCATION TRUST

location_onChester le Street, DH2 1QX

language Visit Website phone 1914105857

verified

Ofsted

Outstanding

Inspected 2024

groups

Students

247

school

Expected Standard

59%

local_fire_department

Demand Ratio

1.0x

summarize

St Benet's Catholic Primary School, Ouston is a Academy converter primary school in Chester le Street, serving ages 3-11. Rated Outstanding by Ofsted — the highest possible grade. Ranks in the top 63% of primary schools nationally.

article

School Summary

St Benet's Catholic Primary School, Ouston is an academy converter in Chester le Street, County Durham, admitting pupils aged 3-11. It is part of BISHOP WILKINSON CATHOLIC EDUCATION TRUST. The school has approximately 216 pupils on roll, of whom 8% are eligible for free school meals.

In 2025, 59% of pupils met the expected standard in Reading, Writing and Maths combined, with 4% achieving the higher standard. The school ranks #140 of 185 primaries in County Durham and #10,601 of 14,143 nationally.

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

In the most recent admissions cycle, applications were at 1.0× capacity.

The pupil-to-qualified-teacher ratio is 23.9:1. There are no current teaching vacancies.

In the 2024/25 academic year, there were no permanent exclusions. The average suspension rate was 0.9 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

59%

LA 60%

Reading81% LA 72%

Writing74% LA 72%

Maths74% LA 72%

Read SS

105

Maths SS

103

GPS SS

103

Progress (0 = national avg)

Read

Write

Maths

2024

R/W/M Expected Standard

48%

LA 58%England 61%

Reading81% LA 73% · Eng 74%

Writing77% LA 71% · Eng 72%

Maths52% LA 70% · Eng 73%

Read SS

106

Maths SS

100

GPS SS

101

Progress (0 = national avg)

Read

Write

Maths

2023

R/W/M Expected Standard

73%

LA 58%England 60%

Reading83% LA 72% · Eng 73%

Writing87% LA 71% · Eng 71%

Maths73% LA 71% · Eng 73%

Read SS

107

Maths SS

104

GPS SS

104

Progress (0 = national avg)

0.0

Read

LA -0.6

-2.2 to 2.3

-0.2

Write

LA -0.1

-2.4 to 2.0

-2.1

Maths

LA -0.9

-4.2 to 0.0

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Report Archive

17 December 2024

Inspection Report

picture_as_pdf Download PDF

06 March 2021

Inspection Report

picture_as_pdf Download PDF

Inspection Report

Inspection History

3 Evaluations

2024-12-17

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

Good

Behaviour

Outstanding

Development

Outstanding

Leadership

Good

2011-12-06

S5 Inspection EIF

Outstanding

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Good

2007-02-08

None EIF

Good

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Good

Wellbeing, SEN & Pastoral Care

gavel

Behaviour & Discipline (Suspensions & Exclusions)

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

Suspension Rate

0.5%per term

sentiment_satisfied Below Average (Good)

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

Pupils Suspended 1+ Times

0.5%(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 216 pupils. During this period, there were 1 temporary suspensions. The school's suspension rate was 0.5%, 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)	216	1	0.5%	0.8%
2024/25 (Autumn term)	214	3	1.4%	0.9%
2023/24 (Summer term)	226	0	0.0%	0.8%
2023/24 (Spring term)	223	1	0.4%	0.7%
2023/24 (Autumn term)	218	0	0.0%	0.8%
2022/23 (Summer term)	244	1	0.4%	0.7%
2022/23 (Spring term)	247	0	0.0%	0.6%
2022/23 (Autumn term)	243	0	0.0%	0.6%
2021/22 (Summer term)	242	0	0.0%	0.5%
2021/22 (Spring term)	236	0	0.0%	0.5%
2021/22 (Autumn term)	225	0	0.0%	0.5%

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

accessibility_new

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 5 pupils

Autistic Spectrum Disorder 4 pupils

Specific Learning Difficulty 3 pupils

Moderate Learning Difficulty 3 pupils

Social, Emotional & Mental Health 2 pupils

Severe Learning Difficulty 1 pupils

Hearing Impairment 1 pupils

Visual Impairment 1 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.

96.0%Positive

My child feels safe at this school.

94.0%Positive

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

20.0%Positive

View All Survey Responseskeyboard_arrow_down

The school makes sure its pupils are well behaved.

strongly agree51%

agree38%

disagree2%

strongly disagree2%

don't know8%

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

strongly agree47%

agree38%

disagree9%

strongly disagree4%

don't know2%

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

strongly agree38%

agree26%

disagree13%

strongly disagree9%

not applicable13%

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

yes21%

no79%

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

strongly agree18%

agree36%

disagree27%

strongly disagree18%

The school has high expectations for my child.

strongly agree55%

agree28%

disagree9%

strongly disagree2%

don't know6%

My child does well at this school.

strongly agree49%

agree42%

disagree8%

strongly disagree2%

The school lets me know how my child is doing.

strongly agree43%

agree45%

disagree6%

strongly disagree6%

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

strongly agree55%

agree38%

disagree2%

strongly disagree2%

don't know4%

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

strongly agree60%

agree36%

disagree4%

The school supports my child's wider personal development.

strongly agree45%

agree40%

disagree9%

strongly disagree2%

don't know4%

I would recommend this school to another parent.

yes83%

no17%

Top Primary Schools in County Durham

Other highly-ranked schools in the same local authority

View all arrow_forward

West Cornforth Primary School

Outstanding

location_on Ferryhill, DL17 9HP

emoji_events #1 in LA

Cleves Cross Primary and Nursery School Academy

Outstanding

location_on Ferryhill, DL17 8QY

emoji_events #2 in LA

Sacriston Academy

Good

location_on Durham, DH7 6LQ

emoji_events #3 in LA

Coxhoe Primary School

Good

location_on Durham, DH6 4EJ

emoji_events #4 in LA

Framwellgate Moor Primary School

Outstanding

location_on Durham, DH1 5BG

emoji_events #5 in LA

Burnopfield Primary School

Good

location_on Newcastle-upon-Tyne, NE16 6PT

emoji_events #6 in LA

View all schools in County Durham arrow_forward

School Summary

Academic Performance

Primary Performance Trends (KS2)

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Inspection History

Admissions Insight

How Places Are Allocated

Faith Priority (Roman Catholic)

Distance to School

School Capacity

Primary Admission Trends

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 County Durham

West Cornforth Primary School

Cleves Cross Primary and Nursery School Academy

Sacriston Academy

Coxhoe Primary School

Framwellgate Moor Primary School

Burnopfield Primary School