Our Lady Queen of Peace Catholic Primary School, Penshaw

About Our Lady Queen of Peace Catholic Primary School, Penshaw

Ofsted's Parent View responses for Our Lady Queen of Peace Catholic Primary School, collected between September 2024 and September 2025, show that 79% of the 73 respondents would recommend the school to other parents. That's a solid vote of confidence, and the breakdown of individual questions backs it up. A combined 93% of parents either agreed or strongly agreed that their child is happy at the school, and 89% felt their child is safe. The school is clearly popular locally too: for the 2025/26 intake, it received 66 applications for just 45 places, an oversubscription ratio of 1.47. All 38 first-preference applicants were offered a place, which suggests that if you live close enough to put it top of your list, you stand a very good chance. The school is a Roman Catholic primary in Penshaw, part of the Sunderland local authority, and is led by headteacher Claire Garbutt.

Academically, the school is performing well. In the 2023/24 Key Stage 2 assessments, 69% of pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, which is slightly above the Sunderland local authority average of 67%. The school's score of 69 on this metric places it 30th out of 73 primary schools in the area, putting it in the top half locally. Individual subject results were strong: 88% of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, with an average scaled score of 106, while 73% did so in maths (average score 105) and 75% in writing. The school's most recent Ofsted inspection, in April 2025, awarded a Good rating across all areas including behaviour and attitudes, personal development, and leadership. This is a notable improvement from the previous inspection in 2022, when the school was rated Requires Improvement.

The school has a range of facilities including a library, ICT suite, sports hall, music rooms, art studios, a chapel and playing fields. Clubs on offer include gardening, drama, science club, choir and film club, and sports provision covers football, dance, athletics and tennis. The school has a nursery provision for children from age three. For families with children who have special educational needs, the school lists provisions for autistic spectrum disorder, speech and language communication needs, social and emotional mental health difficulties, and specific learning difficulties such as dyslexia. With 12% of pupils eligible for free school meals, the school serves a mixed catchment. It's a good fit for Catholic families in the Penshaw area who want a school that has improved its Ofsted rating, is oversubscribed but accessible to first-preference applicants, and where the vast majority of parents report their children are happy and safe.

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