Ryhope Junior School

Ryhope Junior School is a small junior school that serves a community with a well-above-average proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals and an above-average proportion of pupils with SEN support. This was a full inspection under the renewed framework, and the school has had significant leadership change since its last inspection, including the appointment of the deputy headteacher and SENDCO in September 2023. Overall, the school performs strongly in most areas. Safeguarding standards are met, and behaviour, inclusion, leadership and governance, and personal development and wellbeing are all strong. Pupils are happy, safe and behave excellently; relationships are positive and poor behaviour is very rare. Attendance has improved, particularly for pupils with SEND. Pupils with SEND and disadvantaged pupils are generally well supported, staff morale is high, and parents are overwhelmingly positive. However, achievement and curriculum/teaching are at the expected standard rather than strong. Most pupils achieve well from their starting points, and reading and mathematics outcomes are in line with or above national averages over time, but the gap between disadvantaged pupils and their non-disadvantaged peers is not closing swiftly enough. Assessment for some disadvantaged pupils is not accurate enough to spot misconceptions quickly, leading to repeated errors. The main improvement priority is to sharpen curricular provision and assessment so gaps in knowledge for disadvantaged pupils are precisely identified and addressed.

Strengths

• Pupils' behaviour is excellent, with discrimination and poor behaviour extremely rare.
• Highly positive relationships and strong personal development create a safe, nurturing environment.
• Attendance has improved notably over time, with persistent absence falling significantly for pupils with SEND.
• Staff identify pupils' needs quickly and accurately and remove barriers to learning and wellbeing.
• Pupils with SEND receive tailored support and achieve highly from their different starting points.
• Pupil premium funding helps disadvantaged pupils make secure progress from their starting points.
• Leaders and governors have clear ambition, monitor progress rigorously and use effective improvement strategies.
• Staff benefit from well-targeted professional development and report high morale and supportive leadership.
• Parents and carers are overwhelmingly positive about the school and the support it provides.
• The personal development programme is coherent and effective, helping pupils understand British values, health and healthy relationships.
• Pupils take on numerous responsibilities and are well prepared for life in the wider community.
• The school's focus on foundational knowledge is reflected in consistently above-national outcomes in the Year 4 multiplication check.
• Reading and mathematics outcomes are broadly in line with or above national averages over time.
• Safeguarding standards are met, with an open and positive safeguarding culture.

Areas for Improvement

• The gap in published outcomes between disadvantaged pupils and their non-disadvantaged peers varies and is not closing swiftly enough.
• Assessment for some disadvantaged pupils is not sufficiently accurate, so misconceptions are not identified swiftly.
• Some pupils make repeated errors in their work because gaps in knowledge are not addressed quickly enough.
• Curricular provision and assessment for disadvantaged pupils need to identify and address gaps in knowledge more precisely.

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 Ryhope Junior School attended 94.6% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 14.9% 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, 0.6% of pupils at Ryhope 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 Ryhope Junior School had 19.8 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 16.5% 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, 15.8% of pupils at Ryhope Junior School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 3.2% 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 Ryhope Junior School received £9,319 and spent £9,056 for each of its 158 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £349,000 (£2,211 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

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What is Ryhope Junior School's Ofsted rating?

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

When was Ryhope Junior School last inspected by Ofsted?

Ryhope Junior School was last inspected in July 2026.

How many pupils does Ryhope Junior School have?

Ryhope Junior School has 158 pupils on roll.

What age range does Ryhope Junior School cover?

Ryhope Junior School for pupils aged 7 to 11.

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

In 2025, 67% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Ryhope Junior School?

Ryhope Junior School is at Shaftesbury Avenue, Ryhope, Ryhope Junior School, Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, SR2 0RT.