Copley Junior School

Copley Junior School is a smaller-than-average junior school with a deeply inclusive culture. Ofsted rates the school as strong standard overall, with inclusion judged strong and achievement, attendance and behaviour, curriculum and teaching, leadership and governance, and personal development and wellbeing all at expected standard. Safeguarding standards are met. The school serves a relatively affluent catchment with low free school meals and few EHC plans, though SEN support is close to average.

Strengths

• Deeply inclusive culture where all pupils, including those with SEND and disadvantaged pupils, feel they belong.
• High-quality, inclusive teaching that is consistently adapted to pupils' needs.
• Early and accurate identification of SEND, with comprehensive support plans and meaningful stakeholder involvement.
• Effective use of pupil premium funding, with targeted support and regular review of impact.
• Pupils generally achieve well, and KS2 combined outcomes in reading, writing and mathematics are historically above national averages.
• Pupils with SEND make secure progress from their starting points.
• Pupils take pride in their work and show few errors in letter and number formation.
• Attendance is positive and improving, with low rates of persistent absence.
• Pupils' behaviour is very positive, calm and respectful, creating purposeful learning environments.
• Warm and supportive relationships help pupils with SEND regulate behaviour and access lessons.
• An ambitious, well-sequenced curriculum that is reviewed and adapted to the school context.
• Teachers use secure subject knowledge, clear explanations and engaging tasks to build knowledge.
• A clear reading culture with ambitious texts and effective vocabulary teaching.
• Leaders have a clear vision and have benefited from strategic external support that has driven improvement.
• Leaders carefully consider staff wellbeing and workload, and staff speak positively about working at the school.
• Governors bring a strong range of skills and fulfil their statutory duties effectively.
• A well-planned personal development curriculum with enrichment, careers education and a strong focus on mental health.
• Expert pastoral support and a strong safeguarding culture where pupils feel safe and know trusted adults are available.
• Pupils demonstrate impressive values around inclusion and democracy.

Areas for Improvement

• Assessment information is not always used with sufficient precision to challenge all pupils or ensure work matches their capabilities.
• Pupils' knowledge of the range of different faiths in wider British society is uneven.
• Governors' record-keeping is not rigorous enough to demonstrate detailed and insightful analysis of the school's work.
• Disadvantaged pupils' combined reading, writing and mathematics outcomes are below national averages, and the disadvantage gap is wide.
• Historical progress measures in some areas have been below national averages, though leaders are working to improve them.

Admissions: local authority offers data from the Department for Education. A school is oversubscribed when at least 5% of the families who put it first were not offered a place, and undersubscribed when everyone who put it first got in but 10% or more of its places were unfilled in the Department's school capacity survey (the latest survey is used for entry years it does not cover). Places: Department for Education, School capacity, from local authorities' annual survey as at 1 May. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024–25); the survey was not run in 2020. Places include sixth form places. Forecasts are the local authority's own for the school's planning area, an area it uses to plan places that is not the school's catchment area. The forecast starts from a head count in 2025; the dashed line is the Department's estimate of places in that area, including those the authority has firm plans for. Planned places are cumulative, and only those with firm plans are counted.

In 2024–25 pupils at Copley Junior School attended 96.6% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 4.5% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 13.0%).

Sessions missed

Pupils persistently absent

Source: Department for Education, Pupil absence in schools in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Persistent absence means missing 10% or more of sessions; severe absence means 50% or more. No figures were published for 2019/20.

In 2024–25, 0.5% of pupils at Copley Junior School were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). No pupils were permanently excluded.

Pupils suspended at least once

Source: Department for Education, Suspensions and permanent exclusions in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). A pupil can be suspended more than once, so suspensions per 100 pupils can be higher than the share of pupils suspended. Very small numbers are hidden by the DfE. Exclusion figures dropped in 2020 and 2021 because of school closures.

In 2025–26 Copley Junior School had 24.3 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 11.1% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 15.7%).

Pupils per teacher

Teachers who left the school within a year

Source: Department for Education, School workforce in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Pupils per teacher counts full-time-equivalent pupils and teachers. Turnover is the share of a year's teachers (full-time equivalent) who were not at the school the following year, whether they moved to another school or left state-funded teaching. Turnover and sickness figures run one year behind the ratios. Sick leave is the share of teachers who took at least one day in the year, so it swings widely at small schools, where a few teachers can make it 0% or 100%. The national figures are for all state schools of the same type.

In 2025–26, 12.9% of pupils at Copley Junior School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 1.5% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

Pupils by main type of need

Source: Department for Education, Special educational needs in England (the 2025–26 school census). SEN support is extra help in school without an EHC plan. National figures are for all state-funded primary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2025–26 Copley Junior School received £6,416 and spent £6,188 for each of its 194 pupils. It ended the year with a deficit of £20,000 (-£105 per pupil).

Income per pupil

Spending per pupil

Source: Department for Education, Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool. Each year is the one the financial year ends in (2024 is 2023–24).

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Doncaster · Doncaster local authority: places and applications

What is Copley Junior School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Copley Junior School is Expected standard, from an inspection in June 2026.

When was Copley Junior School last inspected by Ofsted?

Copley Junior School was last inspected in June 2026.

How many pupils does Copley Junior School have?

Copley Junior School has 194 pupils on roll.

What age range does Copley Junior School cover?

Copley Junior School for pupils aged 7 to 11.

What are Copley Junior School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 74% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Copley Junior School?

Copley Junior School is at Cadeby Road, Sprotbrough, Doncaster, South Yorkshire, DN5 7SD.