School Chooser

Ferrars Junior School

Primary · ages 7-11MixedAcademy350 pupilsLuton
School Chooser Score
15
Below
similar schools
Likely range 8 to 27
Out of 100. Better than 10% of the 50 schools most like it.
OfstedGoodConfirmed by Ofsted, November 2022
Reached the expected level at 1155%England 63%
Attendance95.6%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families23%A bit fewer than most schools
Places10 spare350 pupils, 360 places
Pupils per teacher21.0School workforce census

Ferrars Junior School is a converter academy in Luton for boys and girls aged 7 to 11. It has 350 pupils and room for 360. About 23 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, a bit fewer than at most schools. We give it 15 out of 100. That puts it below schools like it, ahead of 10% of the 50 schools most like it. Ofsted's last grade was good, back in 2022.

Lewsey Road, Luton, LU4 0ES01582 574933ferrars.org.ukMr Kevin Rae headteacherAll details

What Ofsted found

A shorter visit on 9 November 2022 found nothing to change the school's grade. Read the report on Ofsted's website.

Good overall. A shorter follow-up visit found nothing to change that. The last full inspection was before September 2019, which is as far back as Ofsted's public records go, so we can't show its date or the grades for each area.

Results

Year 6 results (SATs), summer 2025

85 children took the tests. Here is how they did against every state primary in England.

Reached the expected level at 1155%
England 63%
Official name: Expected standard in reading, writing and maths
Working above the expected level5%
England 8%
Official name: Higher standard in reading, writing and maths
Reading score103.0
England 105.6
Official name: Reading average scaled score
Maths score105.0
England 104.6
Official name: Maths average scaled score
Trend
Reached the expected level at 11
2017 to 2025
2017: 51%51%20172018: 69%69%20182019: 61%61%20192023: 58%58%20232024: 67%67%20242025: 55%55%2025
Since 2017: +4%
All Year 6 measures, year by year
Measure20252024†2023†2019†2018†2017†LutonEngland
Pupils tested859089878685
Reached the expected level at 11Expected standard in reading, writing and maths55%67%58%61%69%51%67%63%
Working above the expected levelHigher standard in reading, writing and maths5%8%6%10%8%6%7%8%
Reading scoreReading average scaled score103.0106.0104.0103.0105.0101.0105.8105.6
Maths scoreMaths average scaled score105.0106.0106.0106.0106.0103.0105.4104.6
Grammar and spelling scoreGPS average scaled score104.0106.0106.0108.0109.0106.0106.4105.2
Expected level: readingReading expected standard67%82%67%71%77%60%
Expected level: mathsMaths expected standard79%80%78%89%85%74%
Expected level: writingWriting expected standard (teacher assessed)71%71%69%71%74%65%
Reading progressReading progress score-0.9-0.1-0.6-3.1
Maths progressMaths progress score+2.1+2.2+0.9-1.0
Expected level: low-income pupilsExpected standard, disadvantaged41%52%45%52%54%38%
Expected level: other pupilsExpected standard, non-disadvantaged63%74%62%65%74%62%

There are no progress figures for 2025. That year group missed their Year 2 tests during Covid, so there was no starting point to measure from. Progress figures come back with the December 2026 results. Tests were cancelled altogether in 2020 and 2021.

† These results are for Ferrars Junior School, the school this one replaced in September 2024. Same building and the same children. It got a new registration number, usually because it joined an academy trust.

Does every child do well here?

A good school does well by every child, not just on average. Each row compares two groups of pupils here. The grey marks show the same two groups across England. 2 of the 4 gaps are smaller than the gap across England. When a group has fewer than about ten pupils, its figures jump around a lot from year to year.

At the end of primary school, 2025

Reached the expected level at 11Low-income pupils vs other pupils
41%63%
Gap 22 ptsEngland 21 pts
Reached the expected level at 11Boys vs girls
53%58%
Gap 5 ptsEngland 5 pts
Reached the expected level at 11Pupils learning English vs all pupils
49%55%
Gap 6 ptsEngland 4 pts
Reached the higher level at 11Low-income pupils vs all pupils
3%5%
Gap 2 ptsEngland 5 pts
First groupSecond groupEngland, each group

Low-income means the child has had free school meals at some point in the last six years. A group's figure isn't published when it has fewer than six pupils.

Getting a place

Admissions policy not published.

Nearly full350 pupils for 360 places, 2024/25
97% full

Fewer than one place in twenty is empty, so in most years more families apply than there are places. Living close by, or already having a child here, makes a real difference.

Each council publishes its own figures on how many families applied and how far away the last child to get a place lived. We are adding councils one at a time. If you have a link to Luton council's admissions booklet, send it to us.

Who goes here

Who a school teaches matters. That is why our score compares it with schools that take in a similar mix of children, not with every school in the country.

Pupils on roll350Census January 2026
Places36097% full
Pupils from low-income families23%23% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English70%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support13%44 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan2%7 pupils with a plan
Average class size29.29 classes, January 2026; England 25.4
Classes with more than 30 pupils0%Infant classes are capped at 30 by law; England 10%
Pupils with extra funding (pupil premium)24%£131,750 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls188 / 162
White British pupils5%

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: language and communications needs (21), Moderate learning difficulty (11), emotional and mental health (10), Autistic spectrum disorder (5), Hearing impairment (1), SEN support but no specialist assessment of type of need (1).

How the mix of pupils has changed
Census20262025
Pupils on roll350352
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals23%25%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language70%64%
Pupils getting extra supportSEN support15%
Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans2%

Attendance and behaviour

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 95.6% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance95.6%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school13.6%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Suspensions per 100 pupils0.02024/25, no permanent exclusions
Missed without permission1.0%of school time, 2024/25
Attendance year by year
Measure2024/252023/24†2022/23†2021/22†2020/21†2018/19†England
Sessions missedOverall absence4.5%4.7%5.6%5.8%4.2%3.7%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence3.5%3.2%3.6%3.9%3.0%2.7%
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence1.0%1.5%2.0%2.0%1.2%1.0%
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence13.6%12.5%13.3%16.4%8.4%6.1%12.8%
SuspensionsSuspension rate0.0
Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions0

† These attendance figures are for Ferrars Junior School, the school this one replaced in September 2024. Same building and the same children. It got a new registration number, usually because it joined an academy trust.

Staff and money

From the government's count of school staff in November 2025 and the school's published accounts.

Teachers16.7full-time equivalent, 17 people
Pupils per teacher21.0Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers82%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants11.1full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£48,767
Teachers who left in the year12%2024/25, for any reason including retirement
Vacancies0
Sick days per teacher3.62024/25

Money

From the academy accounts return, year to August 2025. The per-pupil figures are compared with other primary schools in England that report their accounts the same way.

Spend per pupil£6,486England £7,128. Total £2.3m
Income per pupil£6,466England £7,587. Total £2.3m
Spent on teachers per pupil£2,972England £3,405
Money in reserve3%Not much put by: £76k, £217 per pupil. England 9%
Money in against money out-£7,000it spent more than it took in this year
Where the money goes£6,486spent per pupil

Reserves are the money left over at the end of the year, kept back for emergencies and big projects. Being in the red year after year is a warning sign. Very large reserves can mean money sitting in the bank instead of being spent on today's pupils. Academy figures are rounded to the nearest £1,000 and include a share of any money the trust holds centrally.

The area around the school

Crimes within 500 m28912 months to June 2026, mostly violence and sexual offences
Local crime rate79 per 1,000 people14% lower than the England average
Typical house price£310,000Luton
Nearest bus stop60 mLewsey Road, 13 stops within 500 m

Crime figures come from police.uk. The police record each crime at the nearest of a fixed set of map points rather than the exact spot, so “within 500 m” is only rough. House prices are from HM Land Registry sales nearby over the last two years.

Nearby schools

The closest primary schools, nearest first. Hover over a row to see it on the map.

Well aboveAboveIn lineBelowWell belowNot scored
SchoolTypeDistancePupilsOfstedScore
The Ferrars AcademyAcademy70 m310Good 202261Compare
St Martin De Porres Catholic Primary SchoolAcademy630 m377Good 202470Compare
Leagrave Primary SchoolFoundation640 m457Not inspected98Compare
Southfield Primary AcademyAcademy940 m405Good 202372Compare
Chantry Primary AcademyAcademy0.7 miles631Good 202383Compare
St Christophers AcademyAcademy0.7 miles388No overall grade 202522Compare
Pirton Hill Primary SchoolCouncil0.8 miles392Report card 202613Compare
Beechwood Primary SchoolCouncil1.0 miles873Good 201924Compare

Compared with schools like it

Our score compares Ferrars Junior School with the 49 schools in England whose pupils are most like its own. We match on family income, how many children are learning English, special needs, the neighbourhood, the size of the school and how it admits pupils. Those 49 schools are dotted all over the country, so we don't list them. What matters is where this school sits among them.

Beats10%of schools with a similar mix of pupils
In the bottom quarter of its group. Its score of 15 is 34 points below the typical school in the group.
0Lowest of the group 3 · middle 49 · highest 90100

Nearby schools with a similar mix of pupils that score higher

Of those 49 schools, these are within 25 km and score at least five points more than Ferrars Junior School, nearest first. A school with the same kind of pupils and a higher score is the fairest sign that it gets more out of them.

SchoolTypeDistancePupilsOfstedScore
Warden Hill Junior SchoolCouncil2.5 miles418No overall grade 202545Compare

How the score was worked out

The score is out of 100. A 15 means that once everything below is added up, this school comes out ahead of 15% of primary schools in England. Results bounce around from year to year, especially in small schools, so we also show a likely range: 8 to 27. Every part is judged against schools with a similar mix of pupils. For small schools we pull each part towards the group average, so one unusual year can't swing the score too far.

What we looked atHow much it countsAgainst schools like itEffect on the scoreBased on
Results over three years25%below
-0.10
2025 results; 85 pupils
Ofsted inspection18% (normally 20%, cut because the inspection is old)in line
+0.01
Ofsted grade, 3.8 years old
Progress pupils make20%well below
-0.31
Contextualised attainment (no DfE progress measure available); 85 pupils
Direction of travel over five years0%no data
Attendance and behaviour10%in line
+0.02
2024/25; 389 pupils
Results, allowing for the mix of pupils10%well below
-0.15
Attainment relative to schools with a similar intake; 85 pupils
What parents say0%no data

Worked out on 13 September 2026 (method v1). Read how the score works, including every weight and the checks we run. Think a number is wrong? Tell us.

Questions parents ask

Is Ferrars Junior School a good school?

The figures are weak. Ferrars Junior School scores 15 out of 100. That is below schools that take in a similar mix of pupils, and ahead of 10% of the 50 schools most like it in England. The score could fairly be anywhere from 8 to 27, so a few points either way between schools doesn't mean much.

What is Ferrars Junior School's Ofsted rating?

Ofsted rated Ferrars Junior School good at its last full inspection on 9 November 2022.

How good are Ferrars Junior School's SATs results?

In summer 2025, 55% of Year 6 children reached the expected level in reading, writing and maths. Across England it was 63%. 5% went further and reached the higher level.

How many pupils does Ferrars Junior School have?

350 pupils aged 7 to 11 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 360 places, so it is 97% full.

Is Ferrars Junior School oversubscribed?

Often. Fewer than one place in twenty was empty in 2024/25, so popular year groups fill up.

What is attendance like at Ferrars Junior School?

Pupils were in school 95.6% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 14% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

How big are the classes at Ferrars Junior School?

The average class had 29.2 pupils in January 2026. Across England it was 25.4. No class had more than 30 pupils.

These answers come straight from the figures on this page and update when new data comes out.

Contact and details

Address
Lewsey Road, Luton, LU4 0ES
Telephone
01582 574933
Website
www.ferrars.org.uk
Headteacher
Mr Kevin Rae
Type of school
Converter academy (Academy converter, academies)
Phase
Primary school, ages 7-11
Gender
Mixed
Multi-academy trust
Pioneer Learning Trust (7 schools)
Local authority
Luton
Ward
Poets
Constituency
Luton North
Setting
Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
Opened
1 September 2024 (academy converter)
URN
151041 · LAESTAB 8212231 · UKPRN 10095712
Formerly
Ferrars Junior School

Where these figures come from