School Chooser

Pegswood Primary School

Primary · ages 3-11MixedCouncil133 pupilsNurseryMorpethNorthumberland
School Chooser Score
23
Below
similar schools
Likely range 10 to 48, so it could be “well below”
Out of 100. Better than 52% of the 50 schools most like it. Much the same over the last five years.
OfstedGoodConfirmed by Ofsted, June 2022
Reached the expected level at 1158%England 63%
Attendance94.0%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families37%Far more than most schools
Places77 spare133 pupils, 210 places
Pupils per teacher17.1School workforce census

Pegswood Primary School is a council school in Morpeth for boys and girls aged 3 to 11. It has 133 pupils and room for 210. About 37 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far more than at most schools in England. We give it 23 out of 100. That puts it below schools like it, ahead of 52% of the 50 schools most like it. Ofsted's last grade was good, back in 2022.

Longhirst Road, Morpeth, NE61 6XG01670 512834pegswood.northumberland.sch.ukMr Andrew Waterfield headteacherAll details

What Ofsted found

A shorter visit on 22 June 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.

This inspection is more than 4 years old. When Ofsted next visits, the school will get a report card instead of one grade.

Results

Year 6 results (SATs), summer 2025

19 children took the tests. Here is how they did against every state primary in England. With a year group this small, a couple of children can move the percentages a long way.

Reached the expected level at 1158%
England 63%
Official name: Expected standard in reading, writing and maths
Working above the expected level0%
England 8%
Official name: Higher standard in reading, writing and maths
Reading score101.0
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: 50%50%20172018: 60%60%20182019: 68%68%20192023: 38%38%20232024: 56%56%20242025: 58%58%2025
Since 2017: +8%Steady overall
All Year 6 measures, year by year
Measure202520242023201920182017NorthumberlandEngland
Pupils tested191824222018
Reached the expected level at 11Expected standard in reading, writing and maths58%56%38%68%60%50%60%63%
Working above the expected levelHigher standard in reading, writing and maths0%0%4%0%0%6%7%8%
Reading scoreReading average scaled score101.0105.0103.0102.0103.0103.0104.5105.6
Maths scoreMaths average scaled score105.0106.0103.0104.0102.0101.0103.6104.6
Grammar and spelling scoreGPS average scaled score104.0108.0103.0107.0105.0105.0103.7105.2
Expected level: readingReading expected standard63%67%75%77%65%78%
Expected level: mathsMaths expected standard74%78%71%91%70%56%
Expected level: writingWriting expected standard (teacher assessed)63%72%54%73%70%72%
Reading progressReading progress score-0.8-3.7-2.0-1.7
Maths progressMaths progress score-0.7-1.5-1.7-3.9
Expected level: low-income pupilsExpected standard, disadvantaged13%33%33%67%30%56%
Expected level: other pupilsExpected standard, non-disadvantaged91%67%39%69%90%44%

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
13%91%
Gap 78 ptsEngland 21 pts
Reached the expected level at 11Boys vs girls
67%50%
Gap 17 ptsEngland 5 pts
Reached the higher level at 11Low-income pupils vs all pupils
0%0%
No gapEngland 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.

Catchment area

Northumberland council has drawn an official catchment area for this school. You can see it on the map below; it covers about 25 square kilometres. Living inside it moves your child up the queue when there are more applicants than places. It doesn't guarantee a place: the council's admissions rules decide the order.

Set your home postcode at the top of the page to see whether you live inside it.

Plenty of spare places136 pupils for 209 places, 2024/25
65% full

73 places were empty (35% of the total), so almost everyone who applies gets in. Pupil numbers have fallen by 11% 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 Northumberland council's admissions booklet, send it to us.

What a home inside the catchment costs

Typical sale price inside the catchment£199,995half sold for £135k to £265k
Homes sold117December 2023 to December 2025, Land Registry
Compared with the district-4%a typical home in the district sells for £209,085

Every home sold inside the council's catchment area, 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 roll133Census January 2026
Places21063% full
Pupils from low-income families37%37% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English2%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support20%27 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan3%4 pupils with a plan
Average class size19.07 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)37%£75,950 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls67 / 66
White British pupils98%

Infant classes (Reception to Year 2) average 17.0 pupils (England 25.5); junior classes (Years 3 to 6) average 20.5 (England 27.3).

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: language and communications needs (12), Other difficulty or disability (7), emotional and mental health (7), Autistic spectrum disorder (3), Specific learning difficulty (2).

How the mix of pupils has changed
Census202620252024202320222021
Pupils on roll133137148158147157
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals37%36%35%33%27%29%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language2%2%1%1%1%1%
Pupils getting extra supportSEN support12%16%20%19%15%
Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans2%3%1%2%3%

Attendance and behaviour

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 94.0% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance94.0%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school15.9%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Suspensions per 100 pupils1.52024/25, no permanent exclusions
Missed without permission3.5%of school time, 2024/25
Attendance year by year
Measure2024/252023/242022/232021/222020/212018/19England
Sessions missedOverall absence6.0%6.1%6.6%8.2%2.5%4.2%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence2.5%2.8%4.2%6.4%2.1%2.9%
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence3.5%3.3%2.3%1.8%0.4%1.3%
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence15.9%16.9%23.3%30.0%4.2%8.4%12.8%
SuspensionsSuspension rate1.51.40.00.00.0
Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions00000

Staff and money

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

Teachers7.8full-time equivalent, 9 people
Pupils per teacher17.1Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers100%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants6.8full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£52,610
Teachers who left in the year19%2024/25, for any reason including retirement
Vacancies0
Sick days per teacher2.82024/25

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£8,140England £7,738. Total £1.1m
Income per pupil£8,631England £7,697. Total £1.2m
Spent on teachers per pupil£4,188England £3,480
Money in reserve11%A healthy amount put by: £129k, £945 per pupil. England 6%
Money in against money out+£67kit took in more than it spent this year
Where the money goes£8,140spent 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 m11912 months to June 2026, mostly violence and sexual offences
Local crime rate117 per 1,000 people28% higher than the England average
Typical house price£207,950Northumberland
Nearest bus stop30 mFirst School, 6 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
Morpeth Stobhillgate First SchoolAcademy2.0 miles165No overall grade 202490Compare
St Roberts Catholic First School, MorpethAcademy2.2 miles177Not inspectedCompare
Ringway Primary SchoolCouncil2.3 miles189Good 202466Compare
Bothal AcademyAcademy2.3 milesOutstanding 2023Compare
Morpeth Chantry Middle SchoolAcademy2.3 miles525Report card 202656Compare
Morpeth Newminster Middle SchoolAcademy2.4 miles521Report card 202648Compare
Mowbray Primary SchoolCouncil2.4 miles238No overall grade 202528Compare
Abbeyfields First SchoolAcademy2.5 miles324No overall grade 202484Compare

Compared with schools like it

Our score compares Pegswood Primary School with the 48 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 48 schools are dotted all over the country, so we don't list them. What matters is where this school sits among them.

Beats52%of schools with a similar mix of pupils
In the upper half of its group. Its score of 23 is about the same as the typical school in the group.
0Lowest of the group 0 · middle 22 · highest 78100

Nearby schools with a similar mix of pupils that score higher

Of those 48 schools, these are within 25 km and score at least five points more than Pegswood 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
Red Row Primary SchoolCouncil7.3 miles131Good 202341Compare

How the score was worked out

The score is out of 100. A 23 means that once everything below is added up, this school comes out ahead of 23% of primary schools in England. Results bounce around from year to year, especially in small schools, so we also show a likely range: 10 to 48. That range is wide enough that the school could sit in the next band, so take the band as a rough guide rather than a verdict. 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
-0.18
2025, 2024 and 2023 results; 19 pupils
Ofsted inspection17% (normally 20%, cut because the inspection is old)in line
+0.01
Ofsted grade, 4.2 years old
Progress pupils make20%below
-0.16
DfE progress measure; 19 pupils
Direction of travel over five years10%in line
+0.03
results and attendance rising year on year
Attendance and behaviour10%below
-0.05
2024/25; 126 pupils
Results, allowing for the mix of pupils10%in line
-0.02
Attainment relative to schools with a similar intake; 19 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 Pegswood Primary School a good school?

The figures are weak. Pegswood Primary School scores 23 out of 100. That is below schools that take in a similar mix of pupils, and ahead of 52% of the 50 schools most like it in England. The score could fairly be anywhere from 10 to 48, so a few points either way between schools doesn't mean much.

What is Pegswood Primary School's Ofsted rating?

Ofsted rated Pegswood Primary School good at its last full inspection on 22 June 2022. That was more than four years ago. When Ofsted next visits, the school will get a report card instead of a single grade.

How good are Pegswood Primary School's SATs results?

In summer 2025, 58% of Year 6 children reached the expected level in reading, writing and maths. Across England it was 63%. 0% went further and reached the higher level. The year group was small, so the percentages jump around a lot from year to year.

How many pupils does Pegswood Primary School have?

133 pupils aged 3 to 11 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 210 places, so it is 63% full.

Is Pegswood Primary School oversubscribed?

Probably not. 73 places were empty in 2024/25 (35% of the total), so most families who apply get a place.

What is attendance like at Pegswood Primary School?

Pupils were in school 94.0% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 16% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

How big are the classes at Pegswood Primary School?

The average class had 19.0 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
Longhirst Road, Morpeth, NE61 6XG
Telephone
01670 512834
Website
www.pegswood.northumberland.sch.uk
Headteacher
Mr Andrew Waterfield
Type of school
Council school (Community school, local authority maintained schools)
Phase
Primary school, ages 3-11, with nursery
Gender
Mixed
Local authority
Northumberland
Ward
Pegswood
Constituency
North Northumberland
Setting
Larger rural: Nearer to a major town or city
URN
122216 · LAESTAB 9292212 · UKPRN 10072493

Where these figures come from