Dubmire Primary

About Dubmire Primary

If you're a parent considering Dubmire Primary, the first thing you'll notice from the most recent Parent View survey is a very strong vote of confidence: 95% of the 66 respondents said they would recommend the school. That's a powerful signal, and it's backed up by the fact that the school is genuinely popular. For the 2025/26 intake, Dubmire received 82 applications for its 60 places, giving an oversubscription ratio of 1.37. Of those 82 applications, 62 were first-preference choices, meaning the vast majority of families who wanted a place here had it as their top pick. The school is clearly a sought-after option in Sunderland, and the parent feedback suggests why. On questions about whether children are happy, feel safe, and do well, the combined 'strongly agree' and 'agree' responses sit at 97%, 92%, and 91% respectively. Parents also feel well-informed: 98% agreed the school makes them aware of what their child will learn, and 89% agreed they're kept up to date on progress.

Academically, Dubmire Primary is a strong performer, though the picture is more nuanced than the headline Ofsted rating might suggest. In its most recent inspection in October 2024, Ofsted judged the school Outstanding for quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, and leadership and management, while early years provision and personal development were rated Good. This is a notable upgrade from its previous Good rating in 2019. Looking at the 2023/24 Key Stage 2 results, 64% of pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined. That's just below the local authority average of 67%, but the school's individual subject scores tell a better story: 83% reached the expected standard in reading, 76% in writing, and 74% in maths. The average scaled scores were 104 in both reading and maths, which is in line with the national average. At the higher standard, 19% of pupils achieved that level in both reading and maths, while 7% did so in writing and the combined measure. Nationally, Dubmire sits in the 46th percentile for its combined expected standard score.

Dubmire is a larger-than-average primary, with 488 pupils on roll against a capacity of 420, and it includes a nursery provision for children aged three and up. The school is non-denominational and mixed. Facilities are varied and include a forest school, a sensory room, an ICT suite, art studios, and a library, plus playing fields and an outdoor playground. The sports on offer include football, netball, tennis, cricket, and gymnastics, while clubs range from film and science to coding and chess. For families with children who have additional needs, the school lists SEND provisions for moderate learning difficulty, speech, language and communication needs, autistic spectrum disorder, hearing impairment, physical disability, and social, emotional and mental health needs. That said, the Parent View data on SEND support is worth noting: 40% of parents strongly agreed that the school gives SEND children the support they need, but 33% disagreed, and 7% strongly disagreed, with only 13% agreeing. This suggests that while many families are happy, there is a significant minority who feel provision could be better. Dubmire is one of only nine primary schools in Sunderland rated Outstanding by Ofsted, and the nearest other Outstanding school is Bernard Gilpin Primary, 2.1 km away.

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