School Chooser

Grindon Infant School

Primary · ages 2-7MixedCouncil163 pupilsNurserySunderland
School Chooser Score
5
Well below
similar schools
Likely range 2 to 12
Out of 100. Better than 15% of the 50 schools most like it. Slipping year on year.
#15,258 of 16,041 in England#82 in SunderlandHow it is worked out
OfstedAs expected teachingOfsted report card, January 2026
Attendance93.4%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families41%Far more than most schools
Places69 spare163 pupils, 232 places
Pupils per teacher16.5School workforce census
Pupils on roll163Census January 2026

Grindon Infant School is a council school in Sunderland for boys and girls aged 2 to 7. It has 163 pupils and room for 232. About 41 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far more than at most schools in England. We give it 5 out of 100. That puts it well below schools like it, ahead of 15% of the 50 schools most like it. Ofsted visited in January 2026 and gave it a report card, which is below.

Gleneagles Road, Sunderland, SR4 9QN0191 340 1931grindoninfantschoolsunderland.sch.ukMrs Andrea Charlton headteacherAll details

What Ofsted found

Ofsted visited on 20 January 2026. Instead of one overall word, it now gives a grade for each part of school life. Read the full report on Ofsted's website.

TeachingOfsted calls this “curriculum and teaching”
As expected
Achievement
Needs attention
Behaviour and attendanceOfsted calls this “attendance and behaviour”
As expected
Support for every childOfsted calls this “inclusion”
As expected
WellbeingOfsted calls this “personal development and wellbeing”
As expected
LeadershipOfsted calls this “leadership and governance”
As expected
Early years
As expected
SafeguardingAre pupils kept safe?
Pupils are kept safe
Met
Ofsted's scale:ExceptionalStrong standardExpected standardNeeds attentionUrgent improvement

Ofsted says these new grades can't be lined up against the old one-word grades.

Earlier inspections (1)
DateTypeOutcome
17 November 2021UngradedSchool remains Good

Results

No published results yet for this school.

Getting a place

Admissions policy not published.

Plenty of spare places121 pupils for 180 places, 2024/25
67% full

59 places were empty (33% of the total), so almost everyone who applies gets in. Pupil numbers have fallen by 23% since 2021/22, so places are getting easier to find.

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 Sunderland 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 roll163Census January 2026
Places23270% full
Pupils from low-income families33%41% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English3%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support24%39 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan1%1 pupil with a plan
Average class size18.68 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)47%£83,700 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls88 / 75
White British pupils91%

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: language and communications needs (17), Moderate learning difficulty (9), Autistic spectrum disorder (7), emotional and mental health (6), Physical disability (1).

How the mix of pupils has changed
Census202620252024202320222021
Pupils on roll163177193198205219
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals33%32%26%28%27%27%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language3%2%2%1%1%0%
Pupils getting extra supportSEN support–12%11%13%11%14%
Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans–1%2%1%1%0%

Attendance and behaviour

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 93.4% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance93.4%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school22.1%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Suspensions per 100 pupils0.02024/25, no permanent exclusions
Missed without permission2.6%of school time, 2024/25
Attendance year by year
Measure2024/252023/242022/232021/222020/212018/19England
Sessions missedOverall absence6.6%6.2%7.4%8.5%3.3%6.1%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence4.0%3.7%4.6%6.7%2.4%4.3%–
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence2.6%2.5%2.8%1.8%1.0%1.8%–
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence22.1%19.8%20.6%33.3%5.0%18.2%12.8%
SuspensionsSuspension rate0.02.10.00.00.0––
Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions00000––

Staff and money

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

Teachers8.4full-time equivalent, 9 people
Pupils per teacher16.5Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers100%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants3.1full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£57,280
Teachers who left in the year24%2024/25, for any reason including retirement
Vacancies0
Sick days per teacher5.52024/25

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£9,014England £7,738. Total £1.4m
Income per pupil£8,688England £7,697. Total £1.3m
Spent on teachers per pupil£4,114England £3,480
Money in reserve11%A healthy amount put by: £148k, £986 per pupil. England 6%
Money in against money out-£49kit spent more than it took in this year
Where the money goes£9,014spent 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 m28312 months to June 2026, mostly violence and sexual offences
Local crime rate89 per 1,000 peopleabout the England average
Typical house price£154,972Sunderland
Nearest bus stop130 mGleneagles Road, 24 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
Academy 360Academy0.7 miles854Good 20225Compare
St Cuthbert's Catholic Primary School, SunderlandAcademy0.7 miles240No overall grade 202470Compare
Christ's CollegeFree school0.7 miles796Good 202334Compare
Hasting Hill AcademyAcademy0.7 miles238Good 202325Compare
Broadway Junior SchoolCouncil0.9 miles227Good 202332Compare
Thorney Close Primary SchoolCouncil0.9 miles289Good 202356Compare
St Anne's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary SchoolRoman Catholic0.9 miles238Good 202285Compare
South Hylton Primary AcademyAcademy1.1 miles252Report card 202530Compare
Primary schools in SunderlandBest primary schools in England

Compared with schools like it

Our score compares Grindon Infant School with the 47 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 47 schools are dotted all over the country, so we don't list them. What matters is where this school sits among them.

Beats15%of schools with a similar mix of pupils
In the bottom quarter of its group. Its score of 5 is 15 points below the typical school in the group.
0Lowest of the group 0 · middle 20 · highest 83100

Nearby schools with a similar mix of pupils that score higher

Of those 47 schools, these are within 25 km and score at least five points more than Grindon Infant 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
Plains Farm AcademyAcademy1.5 miles164Not inspected25Compare
St Oswald's Catholic Primary School, South ShieldsAcademy5.2 miles226Not inspected49Compare
South Hetton PrimaryAcademy6.3 miles202Good 202329Compare
St Oswald's CofE Aided Primary SchoolChurch of England6.7 miles181No overall grade 202450Compare
Christ Church CofE Primary SchoolChurch of England8.6 miles169Good 202230Compare
Our Lady of the Rosary Catholic Primary SchoolAcademy9.9 miles191Good 202377Compare
Yohden Primary SchoolCouncil10.4 miles182Good 202320Compare
Silver Tree Primary School and NurseryCouncil10.9 miles201Good 202317Compare

How the score was worked out

The score is out of 100. A 5 means that once everything below is added up, this school comes out ahead of 5% of primary schools in England. Results bounce around from year to year, especially in small schools, so we also show a likely range: 2 to 12. 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 years0%no data
–
Ofsted inspection20%well below
-0.53
Ofsted report card, 0.6 years old
Progress pupils make0%no data
–
Direction of travel over five years10%below
-0.19
results and attendance falling year on year
Attendance and behaviour10%well below
-0.25
2024/25; 95 pupils
Results, allowing for the mix of pupils0%no data
–
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 Grindon Infant School a good school?

The figures are weak. Grindon Infant School scores 5 out of 100. That is well below schools that take in a similar mix of pupils, and ahead of 15% of the 50 schools most like it in England. The score could fairly be anywhere from 2 to 12, so a few points either way between schools doesn't mean much. Its results have been slipping over the last five years.

What is Grindon Infant School's Ofsted rating?

Ofsted no longer gives schools one overall grade. When it visited on 20 January 2026 it rated teaching as as expected, achievement as needs attention, behaviour and attendance as as expected, leadership as as expected.

How many pupils does Grindon Infant School have?

163 pupils aged 2 to 7 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 232 places, so it is 70% full.

Is Grindon Infant School oversubscribed?

Probably not. 59 places were empty in 2024/25 (33% of the total), so most families who apply get a place.

What is attendance like at Grindon Infant School?

Pupils were in school 93.4% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 22% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

How big are the classes at Grindon Infant School?

The average class had 18.6 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
Gleneagles Road, Sunderland, SR4 9QN
Telephone
0191 340 1931
Website
www.grindoninfantschoolsunderland.sch.uk
Headteacher
Mrs Andrea Charlton
Type of school
Council school (Community school, local authority maintained schools)
Phase
Primary school, ages 2-7, with nursery
Gender
Mixed
Local authority
Sunderland
Ward
Sandhill
Constituency
Houghton and Sunderland South
Setting
Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
URN
108766 · LAESTAB 3942026 · UKPRN 10069769
Official recordOfsted reportsGovernment performance tablesDownload this school's data (CSV)

Where these figures come from