The Mallard Academy

About The Mallard Academy

The Mallard Academy in Doncaster received an Inadequate rating from Ofsted following its graded inspection in October 2024, a significant downgrade from its previous Requires Improvement judgement in 2022. The inspection report, published in November 2024, rated the quality of education, early years provision, and leadership and management all as Inadequate, while personal development and behaviour and attitudes were judged as Requires Improvement. This places the school in a challenging position within the local authority, where only four out of 98 primary schools currently hold an Outstanding rating. The most informative exam metric available is the local authority average for Key Stage 2 attainment, which stands at 61 percent. Without the school's own KS2 data in this snapshot, it is not possible to compare its academic outcomes directly against that benchmark, but the Ofsted judgement signals serious concerns about the standard of education pupils are receiving.

The school's academic trajectory is under close scrutiny following the 2024 inspection. The previous inspection in March 2022 had rated the school as Requires Improvement across all areas except personal development, which was Good. The decline to Inadequate in multiple categories, including the core quality of education, suggests that the issues identified previously have not been resolved and may have worsened. The school has a nursery provision for children aged three and above, and serves a mixed-gender primary population of 360 pupils, against a capacity of 420. With 42.9 percent of pupils eligible for free school meals, the school serves a community with above-average economic disadvantage. The headteacher, David Richardson, now faces the task of addressing the weaknesses highlighted by inspectors, particularly in leadership, curriculum delivery, and early years practice.

The Mallard Academy offers a range of facilities including music rooms, art studios, a sports hall, gymnasium, ICT suite, and a chapel, alongside sports such as athletics, swimming, football, and dance. Clubs include science, gardening, drama, and coding. The school provides SEND support for specific learning difficulties including dyslexia, moderate learning difficulty, social, emotional and mental health needs, speech, language and communication needs, and autistic spectrum disorder. For families considering this school, the Inadequate rating means it is under enhanced monitoring by Ofsted and the local authority, and parents may want to engage closely with the school's improvement plan. The nearest Outstanding-rated alternative is Hill Top Academy, 3.2 kilometres away. The school is not oversubscribed based on its current roll of 360 against a 420 capacity, which may offer some flexibility for admissions.

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