South Hylton Primary Academy

About South Hylton Primary Academy

South Hylton Primary Academy holds a Good rating from Ofsted, a grade it has maintained since its most recent graded inspection in 2012 and confirmed in an ungraded visit in 2021. The most telling academic metric for this 266-pupil primary in Sunderland is the proportion of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined. At 61%, this figure sits below the local authority average of 67%, placing the school 52nd out of 73 similar schools in Sunderland and in the bottom half nationally. Individual subject results tell a more nuanced story: 71% of pupils met the expected standard in writing, and 65% did so in reading, but maths was weaker at 61%. The school’s average scaled scores — 103 in reading and 102 in maths — are close to the national benchmark of 100, suggesting that while most children achieve a solid baseline, fewer than average are stretching beyond it. Only 13% of pupils scored at the higher standard in maths, and just 3% did so in writing.

The school’s Ofsted history shows consistent leadership and management rated Good, with the previous inspection in 2007 also awarding a Good overall effectiveness grade. However, the 2007 inspection rated early years provision as Requires Improvement (a score of 2 on the old scale), which has since been resolved. The 2021 ungraded inspection confirmed the school remains Good, with no further graded inspection needed. With 36.1% of pupils eligible for free school meals — well above the national average — the school serves a community with higher-than-average disadvantage. Its Progress 8 scores are not available, so it is difficult to assess how much value the school adds relative to intake. The school’s ranking score of 61 places it in the bottom 50 tier nationally, and it sits 53rd in Sunderland’s 81-school primary landscape. For context, the nearest Outstanding-rated school is Bexhill Academy, 2.7 km away.

South Hylton Primary Academy offers a range of facilities including a library, music rooms, art studios, a sensory room and a chapel, plus playing fields for sports such as swimming, dance, cricket and netball. Clubs include drama, science club, book club, choir and film club. The school has a nursery provision for children from age three. Its SEND provisions cover autistic spectrum disorder, speech, language and communication needs, social, emotional and mental health, physical disability and specific learning difficulties like dyslexia. For the 2025/26 intake, the school was oversubscribed: 43 applications for 30 places, with 29 of 31 first-preference applicants offered a spot. This suggests strong local demand, though the oversubscription ratio of 1.43 is modest. Families considering this school should weigh its solid but not exceptional academic outcomes against its strong pastoral and SEND support, and the convenience of a local primary with nursery provision.

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