School Chooser

Grange Primary School

Primary · ages 4-11MixedCouncil311 pupilsWickfordEssex
School Chooser Score
52
In line with
similar schools
Likely range 31 to 72
Out of 100. Better than 64% of the 50 schools most like it. Slipping year on year.
OfstedGoodLast Ofsted inspection, March 2023
Reached the expected level at 1159%England 63%
Attendance95.3%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families17%Far fewer than most schools
Places4 spare311 pupils, 315 places
Pupils per teacher22.5School workforce census

Grange Primary School is a council school in Wickford for boys and girls aged 4 to 11. It has 311 pupils and room for 315. About 17 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far fewer than at most schools in England. We give it 52 out of 100. That puts it in line with schools like it, ahead of 64% of the 50 schools most like it. Ofsted's last grade was good, back in 2023.

Elder Avenue, Wickford, SS12 0LR01268 734420grange-primary.co.ukMrs Maggie Elfenich headteacherAll details

What Ofsted found

Ofsted's last full inspection was on 28 March 2023, back when it gave schools one overall grade. Read the report on Ofsted's website.

Good overall.

TeachingOfsted calls this “quality of education”
Good
BehaviourOfsted calls this “behaviour and attitudes”
Good
WellbeingOfsted calls this “personal development”
Good
LeadershipOfsted calls this “leadership and management”
Good
Early years
Good
Safeguarding
Effective
Yes

Results

Year 6 results (SATs), summer 2025

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

Reached the expected level at 1159%
England 63%
Official name: Expected standard in reading, writing and maths
Working above the expected level7%
England 8%
Official name: Higher standard in reading, writing and maths
Reading score107.0
England 105.6
Official name: Reading average scaled score
Maths score106.0
England 104.6
Official name: Maths average scaled score
Trend
Reached the expected level at 11
2017 to 2025
2017: 56%56%20172018: 52%52%20182019: 40%40%20192023: 84%84%20232024: 61%61%20242025: 59%59%2025
Since 2017: +3%Declining overall
All Year 6 measures, year by year
Measure202520242023201920182017EssexEngland
Pupils tested444643464445
Reached the expected level at 11Expected standard in reading, writing and maths59%61%84%40%52%56%64%63%
Working above the expected levelHigher standard in reading, writing and maths7%9%21%4%7%4%10%8%
Reading scoreReading average scaled score107.0105.0107.0101.0103.0101.0105.9105.6
Maths scoreMaths average scaled score106.0105.0108.0100.0102.0101.0104.8104.6
Grammar and spelling scoreGPS average scaled score108.0103.0107.0102.0103.0103.0105.3105.2
Expected level: readingReading expected standard73%67%91%59%64%60%
Expected level: mathsMaths expected standard75%80%93%54%70%60%
Expected level: writingWriting expected standard (teacher assessed)75%83%84%87%84%87%
Reading progressReading progress score+1.1-3.1-2.4-3.1
Maths progressMaths progress score+2.8-4.0-1.5-2.8
Expected level: low-income pupilsExpected standard, disadvantaged50%38%57%50%44%
Expected level: other pupilsExpected standard, non-disadvantaged61%66%37%53%58%

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.

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. 1 of the 3 gaps is 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
50%61%
Gap 11 ptsEngland 21 pts
Reached the expected level at 11Boys vs girls
54%65%
Gap 11 ptsEngland 5 pts
Reached the higher level at 11Low-income pupils vs all pupils
0%7%
Gap 7 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.

A few spare places298 pupils for 315 places, 2024/25
95% full

About 17 places were empty, so most families who apply get in, though a popular year group can still fill up. Pupil numbers have stayed about the same since 2021/22.

How places were given out for September 2026. The last place was given under this rule: Criterion 4.

EntryPlacesApplied at allHow far the last child livedSource
2026 Primary45113LA

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 roll311Census January 2026
Places31599% full
Pupils from low-income families17%17% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English4%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support12%38 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan1%4 pupils with a plan
Average class size27.89 classes, January 2026; England 25.4
Classes with more than 30 pupils22%Infant classes are capped at 30 by law; England 10%
Pupils with extra funding (pupil premium)16%£74,400 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls151 / 160
White British pupils86%

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: language and communications needs (13), emotional and mental health (11), Autistic spectrum disorder (9), Moderate learning difficulty (7), SEN support but no specialist assessment of type of need (1), Specific learning difficulty (1).

How the mix of pupils has changed
Census202620252024202320222021
Pupils on roll311301307298299305
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals17%15%15%12%11%10%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language4%4%5%3%3%2%
Pupils getting extra supportSEN support6%8%13%15%13%
Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans2%3%2%2%2%

Attendance and behaviour

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 95.3% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance95.3%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school10.8%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Suspensions per 100 pupils3.32024/25, no permanent exclusions
Missed without permission1.1%of school time, 2024/25
Attendance year by year
Measure2024/252023/242022/232021/222020/212018/19England
Sessions missedOverall absence4.7%5.1%5.6%4.8%2.6%5.0%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence3.6%3.3%4.2%3.6%2.2%3.5%
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence1.1%1.9%1.4%1.2%0.5%1.5%
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence10.8%14.4%15.9%11.2%7.7%12.0%12.8%
SuspensionsSuspension rate3.33.32.41.30.0
Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions00000

Staff and money

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

Teachers13.8full-time equivalent, 15 people
Pupils per teacher22.5Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers93%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants0.8full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£50,846
Teachers who left in the year14%2024/25, for any reason including retirement
Vacancies0
Sick days per teacher13.32024/25

Money

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

Spend per pupil£6,070England £7,738. Total £1.8m
Income per pupil£5,968England £7,697. Total £1.8m
Spent on teachers per pupil£3,365England £3,480
Money in reserve5%Not much put by: £92k, £304 per pupil. England 6%
Money in against money out-£31kit spent more than it took in this year
Where the money goes£6,070spent 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 m8312 months to June 2026, mostly violence and sexual offences
Local crime rate48 per 1,000 people47% lower than the England average
Typical house price£360,000Basildon
Nearest bus stop560 mCastledon Road, 0 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
North Crescent Primary SchoolAcademy980 m216Good 202431Compare
Wickford Primary SchoolCouncil0.6 miles472Good 202325Compare
Oakfield Primary SchoolCouncil0.8 miles391Good 202449Compare
Crays Hill Primary SchoolAcademy1.2 miles82Good 20222Compare
The Wickford Church of England SchoolAcademy1.2 miles135Outstanding 202397Compare
Abacus Primary SchoolCouncil1.3 miles413Good 202371Compare
Runwell Community Primary SchoolAcademy1.3 miles362No overall grade 202420Compare
Hilltop Infant SchoolAcademy1.5 miles237No overall grade 202497Compare

Compared with schools like it

Our score compares Grange Primary School with the 45 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 45 schools are dotted all over the country, so we don't list them. What matters is where this school sits among them.

Beats64%of schools with a similar mix of pupils
In the upper half of its group. Its score of 52 is 19 points above the typical school in the group.
0Lowest of the group 4 · middle 33 · highest 86100

Nearby schools with a similar mix of pupils that score higher

Of those 45 schools, these are within 25 km and score at least five points more than Grange Primary 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
The Robert Drake Primary SchoolAcademy3.5 miles313Good 202486Compare

How the score was worked out

The score is out of 100. A 52 means that once everything below is added up, this school comes out ahead of 52% of primary schools in England. Results bounce around from year to year, especially in small schools, so we also show a likely range: 31 to 72. 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%in line
+0.03
2025, 2024 and 2023 results; 44 pupils
Ofsted inspection19% (normally 20%, cut because the inspection is old)in line
+0.01
Ofsted grade, 3.5 years old
Progress pupils make20%above
+0.11
DfE progress measure; 44 pupils
Direction of travel over five years10%well below
-0.19
results and attendance falling year on year
Attendance and behaviour10%above
+0.04
2024/25; 269 pupils
Results, allowing for the mix of pupils10%in line
+0.02
Attainment relative to schools with a similar intake; 44 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 Grange Primary School a good school?

It is about average. Grange Primary School scores 52 out of 100. That is in line with schools that take in a similar mix of pupils, and ahead of 64% of the 50 schools most like it in England. The score could fairly be anywhere from 31 to 72, so a few points either way between schools doesn't mean much. Its results have been slipping over the last five years.

What is Grange Primary School's Ofsted rating?

Ofsted rated Grange Primary School good at its last full inspection on 28 March 2023.

How good are Grange Primary School's SATs results?

In summer 2025, 59% of Year 6 children reached the expected level in reading, writing and maths. Across England it was 63%. 7% went further and reached the higher level.

How many pupils does Grange Primary School have?

311 pupils aged 4 to 11 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 315 places, so it is 99% full.

Is Grange Primary School oversubscribed?

Probably not. 17 places were empty in 2024/25 (5% of the total), so most families who apply get a place.

What is attendance like at Grange Primary School?

Pupils were in school 95.3% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 11% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

How big are the classes at Grange Primary School?

The average class had 27.8 pupils in January 2026. Across England it was 25.4. 22% of classes 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
Elder Avenue, Wickford, SS12 0LR
Telephone
01268 734420
Website
www.grange-primary.co.uk
Headteacher
Mrs Maggie Elfenich
Type of school
Council school (Community school, local authority maintained schools)
Phase
Primary school, ages 4-11
Gender
Mixed
Local authority
Essex
Ward
Castledon & Crouch
Constituency
Rayleigh and Wickford
Setting
Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
Opened
1 September 1998
URN
131579 · LAESTAB 8812005 · UKPRN 10075538
Formerly
Grange County Junior School, Grange County Infant School

Where these figures come from