Scarborough, Northstead Community Primary School

About Scarborough, Northstead Community Primary School

When you compare Scarborough, Northstead Community Primary School against the local authority average for Key Stage 2 outcomes, the picture is notably weaker. The school's proportion of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined sits at 42%, a full 18 percentage points below the North Yorkshire average of 60%. That gap is significant and places the school in the bottom half of primary schools in the authority, ranked 198th out of 292. The school also ranks in the bottom 50% nationally for this metric. On the positive side, average scaled scores in reading (103) and maths (102) are both above the national baseline of 100, suggesting that while fewer children are hitting the combined benchmark, those who do are performing solidly. The proportion achieving the higher standard in reading, writing and maths combined is 11%, which is modest but not negligible. The school's most recent Ofsted inspection, in 2024, rated overall effectiveness as Requires Improvement, though inspectors did note that early years provision, personal development, and behaviour and attitudes are all Good.

Looking more closely at the academic breakdown, the school's performance is uneven across subjects. In reading, 66% of pupils met the expected standard and 16% reached the higher standard, while in maths the figures were 62% and 20% respectively. Writing is a weaker area, with only 52% meeting the expected standard and 13% reaching the higher level. The school has no published progress scores for reading, writing or maths, so it is difficult to assess how much value it adds relative to pupils' starting points. The Ofsted report from February 2024 rated quality of education and leadership and management as Requires Improvement, which aligns with the mixed academic picture. However, inspectors judged behaviour and attitudes and personal development as Good, and early years provision also earned a Good rating. Parent feedback from the Parent View survey, covering September 2024 to September 2025, shows that 90% of respondents would recommend the school, and 86% agreed or strongly agreed that their child is happy there.

The school is oversubscribed for the 2025/26 academic year, with 139 applications for 69 places and 62 first-preference offers, giving an oversubscription ratio of 2.01. This suggests strong local demand despite the Requires Improvement rating. Facilities include playing fields, a library, ICT suite, dining hall, sports hall, art studios, music rooms and a chapel. The school offers a range of clubs including art, film, coding, drama and choir, and sports include football, rounders, cricket and netball. SEND provision is broad, covering specific learning difficulties like dyslexia, moderate learning difficulty, social emotional and mental health needs, speech language and communication needs, visual impairment, physical disability, autistic spectrum disorder and other difficulties. With 33.7% of pupils eligible for free school meals, the school serves a community with above-average disadvantage. This is a school that parents clearly want to send their children to, but the academic outcomes and Ofsted rating mean it is one to investigate carefully, particularly around how the school plans to improve its core results.

Key Details

Frequently Asked Questions About Scarborough, Northstead Community Primary School

Helpful Guides for Parents