School Chooser

Newnham Croft Primary School

Primary · ages 4-11MixedCouncil221 pupilsCambridgeCambridgeshire
School Chooser Score
92
Well above
similar schools
Likely range 82 to 96
Out of 100. Better than 64% of the 50 schools most like it. Much the same over the last five years.
OfstedGoodConfirmed by Ofsted, June 2024
Reached the expected level at 1181%England 63%
Attendance95.5%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families7%Far fewer than most schools
Places1 spare221 pupils, 222 places
Pupils per teacher23.4School workforce census

Newnham Croft Primary School is a council school in Cambridge for boys and girls aged 4 to 11. It has 221 pupils and room for 222. About 7 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far fewer than at most schools in England. We give it 92 out of 100. That puts it well above schools like it, ahead of 64% of the 50 schools most like it. Ofsted's last grade was good, back in 2024.

Chedworth Street, Cambridge, CB3 9JF01223 508737newnhamcroft.cambs.sch.ukMr Edward Ferguson headteacherAll details

What Ofsted found

A shorter visit on 19 June 2024 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

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

Reached the expected level at 1181%
England 63%
Official name: Expected standard in reading, writing and maths
Working above the expected level19%
England 8%
Official name: Higher standard in reading, writing and maths
Reading score111.0
England 105.6
Official name: Reading average scaled score
Maths score108.0
England 104.6
Official name: Maths average scaled score
Trend
Reached the expected level at 11
2017 to 2025
2017: 59%59%20172018: 80%80%20182019: 78%78%20192023: 74%74%20232024: 71%71%20242025: 81%81%2025
Since 2017: +22%Steady overall
All Year 6 measures, year by year
Measure202520242023201920182017CambridgeshireEngland
Pupils tested313434323029
Reached the expected level at 11Expected standard in reading, writing and maths81%71%74%78%80%59%60%63%
Working above the expected levelHigher standard in reading, writing and maths19%24%9%28%17%28%8%8%
Reading scoreReading average scaled score111.0111.0109.0110.0111.0107.0106.0105.6
Maths scoreMaths average scaled score108.0107.0107.0109.0105.0106.0104.6104.6
Grammar and spelling scoreGPS average scaled score110.0110.0108.0110.0112.0107.0105.2105.2
Expected level: readingReading expected standard97%88%91%91%93%83%
Expected level: mathsMaths expected standard94%79%94%91%80%79%
Expected level: writingWriting expected standard (teacher assessed)81%74%74%81%90%76%
Reading progressReading progress score+4.2+3.0+4.3+0.8
Maths progressMaths progress score+2.9+1.4-1.8-1.5

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. None of the 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 11Boys vs girls
87%75%
Gap 12 ptsEngland 5 pts
Reached the expected level at 11Pupils learning English vs all pupils
70%81%
Gap 11 ptsEngland 4 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 full227 pupils for 238 places, 2024/25
95% 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. Pupil numbers have stayed about the same since 2021/22.

Will my child get a place?

The last child to get a place lived 0.8 miles away in 2026, 3.4 miles away in 2025, 1.7 miles away in 2024. Children in care, brothers and sisters of current pupils, faith and other priority groups are placed first. After that, the closer you live, the better your chances. Type in your postcode to see how far away you are.

We measure in a straight line from the middle of your postcode to the school. The council measures its own way, and the cut-off changes every year. Use this as a rough guide, and read the council's admissions booklet before you apply.

How places were given out for September 2026. More children applied than there were places. The last place went to a child living 0.8 miles from the school. Living closer than that didn't guarantee a place, but living much further away meant missing out that year.

EntryPlacesGot a placeHow far the last child livedSource
2026 Primary30300.8 milesLA
2025 Primary30303.4 milesLA
2024 Primary30301.7 milesLA
2023 Primary30301.2 milesLA
2022 Primary34341.4 miles (distance, outside the catchment area)LA
2020 Primary3434880 mLA
2019 Primary34341.1 milesLA

The distances are the council's own, usually measured in a straight line from home to the school gate. If the distance is getting shorter each year, the school is getting harder to get into. See which councils we have this data for.

What a home within 1.2 miles of the school costs

Typical sale price within 1.2 miles of the school£587,500half sold for £408k to £1.0m
Homes sold416December 2023 to December 2025, Land Registry
Compared with the district+19%a typical home in the district sells for £495,000

Every home sold within that distance of the school (the typical cut-off over the last three years), of any type, from HM Land Registry records. If homes here cost more than the district average, that is the price people pay to live close enough to get in.

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 roll221Census January 2026
Places222100% full
Pupils from low-income families7%7% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English20%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support10%23 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan1%2 pupils with a plan
Average class size31.56 classes, January 2026; England 25.4
Classes with more than 30 pupils50%Infant classes are capped at 30 by law; England 10%
Pupils with extra funding (pupil premium)7%£24,800 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls98 / 123
White British pupils33%

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: Specific learning difficulty (9), emotional and mental health (6), Moderate learning difficulty (4), Autistic spectrum disorder (2), language and communications needs (2), Other difficulty or disability (1).

How the mix of pupils has changed
Census202620252024202320222021
Pupils on roll221222229230229219
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals7%7%9%10%6%6%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language20%23%23%27%29%27%
Pupils getting extra supportSEN support9%7%4%4%6%
Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans1%2%1%1%1%

Attendance and behaviour

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 95.5% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance95.5%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school9.4%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Suspensions per 100 pupils1.42024/25, 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 absence4.5%5.3%5.6%5.5%3.3%3.9%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence3.5%4.4%4.6%4.5%2.0%3.3%
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence1.1%0.9%1.0%1.0%1.4%0.6%
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence9.4%15.1%12.3%15.9%6.4%6.0%12.8%
SuspensionsSuspension rate1.40.40.40.00.0
Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions00000

Staff and money

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

Teachers9.5full-time equivalent, 11 people
Pupils per teacher23.4Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers91%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants7.4full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£51,359
Teachers who left in the year4%2024/25, for any reason including retirement
Vacancies0
Sick days per teacher1.62024/25

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£6,213England £7,738. Total £1.4m
Income per pupil£6,283England £7,697. Total £1.4m
Spent on teachers per pupil£2,988England £3,480
Money in reserve4%Not much put by: £60k, £269 per pupil. England 6%
Money in against money out+£16kit took in more than it spent this year
Where the money goes£6,213spent 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 m12312 months to June 2026, mostly violence and sexual offences
Local crime rate235 per 1,000 people158% higher than the England average
Typical house price£495,000Cambridge

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
St Pauls CofE VA Primary SchoolChurch of England0.7 miles152Report card 202617Compare
St Alban's Catholic Primary SchoolAcademy0.7 miles205No overall grade 202596Compare
Park Street CofE Primary SchoolChurch of England1.1 miles116Good 202387Compare
St Matthew's Primary SchoolCouncil1.2 miles628Good 202079Compare
Fawcett Primary SchoolFoundation1.3 miles356Report card 202632Compare
Morley Memorial Primary SchoolCouncil1.5 miles371Good 202460Compare
St Luke's CofE Primary SchoolAcademy1.6 miles59Requires improvement 202331Compare
University of Cambridge Primary SchoolFree school1.7 miles660Not inspected92Compare

Compared with schools like it

Our score compares Newnham Croft Primary 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.

Beats64%of schools with a similar mix of pupils
In the upper half of its group. Its score of 92 is 6 points above the typical school in the group.
0Lowest of the group 3 · middle 86 · highest 100100

How the score was worked out

The score is out of 100. A 92 means that once everything below is added up, this school comes out ahead of 92% of primary schools in England. Results bounce around from year to year, especially in small schools, so we also show a likely range: 82 to 96. 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%well above
+0.29
2025, 2024 and 2023 results; 31 pupils
Ofsted inspection20%in line
+0.01
Ofsted grade, 2.2 years old
Progress pupils make20%above
+0.19
DfE progress measure; 31 pupils
Direction of travel over five years10%above
+0.08
results and attendance rising year on year
Attendance and behaviour10%above
+0.05
2024/25; 212 pupils
Results, allowing for the mix of pupils10%well above
+0.12
Attainment relative to schools with a similar intake; 31 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 Newnham Croft Primary School a good school?

Yes, going by the figures. Newnham Croft Primary School scores 92 out of 100. That is well above 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 82 to 96, so a few points either way between schools doesn't mean much.

What is Newnham Croft Primary School's Ofsted rating?

Ofsted rated Newnham Croft Primary School good at its last full inspection on 19 June 2024.

How good are Newnham Croft Primary School's SATs results?

In summer 2025, 81% of Year 6 children reached the expected level in reading, writing and maths. Across England it was 63%. 19% went further and reached the higher level.

How many pupils does Newnham Croft Primary School have?

221 pupils aged 4 to 11 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 222 places, so it is 100% full.

Is Newnham Croft Primary School oversubscribed, and how far away can you live?

Yes. For September 2026 the last place went to a child living 0.8 miles away. Children in care, brothers and sisters of current pupils and other priority groups come before distance, so the cut-off moves every year.

What is attendance like at Newnham Croft Primary School?

Pupils were in school 95.5% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 9% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

How big are the classes at Newnham Croft Primary School?

The average class had 31.5 pupils in January 2026. Across England it was 25.4. 50% 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
Chedworth Street, Cambridge, CB3 9JF
Telephone
01223 508737
Website
www.newnhamcroft.cambs.sch.uk
Headteacher
Mr Edward Ferguson
Type of school
Council school (Community school, local authority maintained schools)
Phase
Primary school, ages 4-11
Gender
Mixed
Local authority
Cambridgeshire
Ward
Newnham
Constituency
Cambridge
Setting
Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
URN
110658 · LAESTAB 8732109 · UKPRN 10074535

Where these figures come from