Lakes Primary School

About Lakes Primary School

Lakes Primary School sits within the Redcar and Cleveland local authority, where it ranks 39th out of 41 primary schools on the key stage 2 expected standard measure. That places it firmly in the bottom tier locally, well behind the top-performing peers in the area — Badger Hill Academy, Newcomen Primary School, and Lockwood Primary School. The school’s ranking score of 41 puts it 45 points behind Badger Hill Academy, the highest-ranked peer. Newcomen Primary School, which is just 0.8 kilometres away, also holds an Outstanding Ofsted rating, one of only four such schools in the authority. Lakes itself is a mixed, state-funded primary for children aged 2 to 11, with a current roll of 271 pupils against a capacity of 315. The school has a nursery provision and does not have a religious character. Its headteacher is H Ede, and the school serves a community where 46.2 per cent of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well above the national average.

Academically, the most recent data from the 2023/24 key stage 2 assessments shows that 41 per cent of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined. That is significantly below the local authority average of 65 per cent. In individual subjects, 51 per cent met the expected standard in reading, 59 per cent in maths, and 66 per cent in writing. At the higher standard, the figures are 15 per cent in reading, 12 per cent in maths, and 12 per cent in writing, with just 7 per cent reaching the higher threshold across all three subjects. Average scaled scores were 102 for reading and 101 for maths. The school’s most recent Ofsted inspection, an ungraded visit in November 2022, confirmed that the school remains Good, with leadership and management also rated Good. This represents a clear improvement from the previous graded inspection in 2012, when the school was rated Requires Improvement overall, with early years provision and leadership both requiring improvement at that time.

The school offers a broad range of facilities including a library, sensory room, outdoor playground, sports hall, forest school, music rooms and a chapel. Sports provision covers football, cricket, gymnastics, cross country, swimming, athletics and dance, while clubs include drama, book club, coding and chess. For children with additional needs, the school lists support for specific learning difficulties including dyslexia, moderate learning difficulty, social, emotional and mental health needs, speech, language and communication needs, physical disability, autistic spectrum disorder, and other difficulties. For the 2025/26 reception intake, the school was oversubscribed, with 31 applications for 23 places and 21 first-preference offers made. This suggests a steady local demand despite the below-average results. Lakes Primary is likely to suit families who value the on-site nursery, the forest school and sensory room, and who are comfortable with a school that is improving its Ofsted rating but still working to raise academic outcomes toward the local average.

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