William Gilbert Endowed Church of England Primary School

About William Gilbert Endowed Church of England Primary School

William Gilbert Endowed Church of England Primary School sits in the Amber Valley borough of Derbyshire, a state primary that consistently punches above its weight locally. Among the 353 primary schools in the local authority, it ranks 31st overall, placing it comfortably in the top 10% of Derbyshire primaries. Its closest peers at the very top of the local rankings are Wessington Primary School, Redhill Primary School, and Longford CofE Primary School, all of which share a perfect ranking score of 100. William Gilbert’s own score of 79 is strong enough to land it in the top 25% of schools nationally, and within Amber Valley it sits 6th out of 43 primaries. The school is a Church of England foundation, led by headteacher Helen Britten, and its most recent Ofsted inspection in 2023 awarded it Outstanding across every single category — quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and early years provision. That’s a clean sweep, and a notable upgrade from its previous Outstanding rating in 2008, showing sustained excellence over fifteen years.

Academically, the school’s Key Stage 2 results from the 2023/24 academic year tell a similarly impressive story. 79% of pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, well above the Derbyshire local authority average of 59%. In reading, 85% hit the expected standard and 53% reached the higher standard; in maths, 88% met the expected level and 41% achieved the higher standard. The average scaled scores for both reading and maths sit at 108, comfortably above the national benchmark of 100. Writing is also strong, with 88% at expected and 35% at the higher level. The school’s Progress 8 scores are not available in the data, but the raw attainment figures are clearly ahead of the local curve. With 247 pupils on roll against a capacity of 245, the school is effectively full, and its oversubscription ratio of 1.94 for the 2025/26 intake — 66 applications for 34 places, with all 33 first-preference applicants offered a spot — confirms its popularity among local families.

The school offers a nursery provision for children aged three and above, and its facilities include a sensory room, an ICT suite, a sports hall, music rooms, a chapel, and an outdoor playground. Sports on offer range from netball and cricket to cross country, football, rounders, tennis and athletics, while after-school clubs include coding, book club, film club, art club and chess. For families with children who have additional needs, the school’s SEND provisions cover a wide spectrum: specific learning difficulties like dyslexia, speech, language and communication needs, social, emotional and mental health support, hearing and visual impairments, physical disabilities, and autistic spectrum disorder. With 9.1% of pupils eligible for free school meals — below the national average — the school serves a relatively less deprived catchment. This is a church school with strong academic outcomes, a full roll, and a clear local reputation; it will particularly suit families who value a faith-based primary with proven results and a broad extracurricular offer.

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