Gamesley Primary School

About Gamesley Primary School

Gamesley Primary School sits within Derbyshire’s High Peak borough, a local authority with 353 primary schools. In the most recent local rankings, it placed 220th among them, placing it in the bottom half of the area’s primary schools. The top-performing peers in the same local authority — Wessington Primary School, Redhill Primary School, and Longford CofE Primary School — all achieved perfect ranking scores, a benchmark Gamesley is some way from reaching. The school is led by headteacher Deborah Meredith and serves 197 pupils, well below its capacity of 364. A significant proportion of its intake, 73.1%, qualify for free school meals, which is notably high and reflects the challenges the community faces. The school has a nursery provision for children from age two, making it an option for families seeking an early start within a state primary setting.

Academically, Gamesley’s most recent Key Stage 2 results, from the 2023/24 academic year, show that 38% of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined. That is well below the Derbyshire local authority average of 59%. The school’s ranking on this metric places it 29th out of 34 schools in High Peak, and in the bottom 50% nationally. In individual subjects, reading saw 66% of pupils reach the expected standard, with 16% achieving a higher score; writing matched that 66% expected rate, though only 9% reached the higher threshold. Maths had 53% at the expected level and 9% at the higher level. Average scaled scores were 103 in reading and 101 in maths. Ofsted’s most recent graded inspection, in April 2023, rated the school Good overall, with all categories — quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and early years provision — each judged Good. This marks a significant improvement from the previous inspection in 2018, when the school was rated Inadequate.

The school offers a broad range of facilities including a forest school, sports hall, gymnasium, library, ICT suite, and a chapel. Sports on offer include netball, athletics, gymnastics, dance, cross country and cricket, while clubs extend to art, coding, book club and choir. For families with children who have additional needs, the school lists SEND provisions covering moderate learning difficulty, social, emotional and mental health needs, speech, language and communication needs, hearing and visual impairment, physical disability, and autistic spectrum disorder. Admissions for the 2025/26 year show the school was oversubscribed: 24 applications were received for 17 places, with all 17 first-preference applicants offered a spot. This suggests a local demand that outstrips capacity, despite the school’s below-average academic outcomes. Gamesley Primary will suit families in the High Peak area who value the strong pastoral and SEND support, the nursery provision, and the improved Ofsted rating, and who are comfortable with results that sit below the local average.

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