Howletch Lane Primary School

Howletch Lane Primary is a happy, inclusive school where pupils feel safe and benefit from strong pastoral support and positive relationships with staff. Behaviour and personal development are good, safeguarding is effective, and leaders have responded quickly to priorities since the previous inspection. The curriculum is well designed, early reading and phonics have a clear focus, and the specially resourced provision for pupils with autism is a notable strength. However, the quality of education requires improvement because many pupils do not achieve as well as they should and are not consistently ready for the next stage of learning.

Strengths

• Pupils are happy, safe and build very positive relationships with adults
• High-quality relationships create productive and purposeful classrooms
• Pupils show respect to adults and to each other
• Strong pastoral support helps pupils thrive
• The curriculum is well designed to meet pupils' needs, including those with SEND
• Early reading and phonics have a clear focus, helping pupils develop confidence and fluency
• Older pupils benefit from a more focused approach to advanced reading skills
• The specially resourced provision supports pupils with autism well through tailored provision
• Communication and language are prioritised effectively in the early years
• Leaders have identified key priorities and taken effective action to address them
• Governors are committed, diligent and provide appropriate challenge and support
• Staff feel well supported around workload and well-being
• Lessons proceed without disruption and pupils engage well with learning
• The school takes effective action to improve attendance for persistently and severely absent pupils
• Pupils enjoy educational visits and the 'Howletch 100' experiences
• Pupils demonstrate respectful attitudes to people of different ethnicities, faiths and religions
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective

Areas for Improvement

• The quality of education requires improvement
• Many pupils do not achieve all that they should and are not fully prepared for the next stage of education
• Published phonics and reading outcomes for 2023 were below national figures
• Published outcomes in writing and mathematics are below national figures
• Pupils' recall of prior learning varies across subjects
• Assessment in some foundation subjects is not precise enough to identify and address gaps in learning
• Support plans for some pupils with SEND in the wider school are too broad and not closely linked to their specific needs
• Some pupils with SEND do not make the progress of which they are capable
• Some children in the early years are not well prepared for the next stage of their education by the time they leave Reception
• Recent curriculum improvements are still in their infancy

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 Howletch Lane Primary School attended 92.5% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 21.3% 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, 2.1% of pupils at Howletch Lane Primary 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 Howletch Lane Primary School had 21.5 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 6.4% 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, 30.1% of pupils at Howletch Lane Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 5.2% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

The school has resourced provision with 9 pupils.

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 Howletch Lane Primary School received £8,754 and spent £8,417 for each of its 358 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £455,000 (£1,273 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 Peterlee · County Durham local authority: places and applications

What is Howletch Lane Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Howletch Lane Primary School is Requires Improvement, from an inspection in October 2024.

When was Howletch Lane Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Howletch Lane Primary School was last inspected in October 2024.

How many pupils does Howletch Lane Primary School have?

Howletch Lane Primary School has 382 pupils on roll.

What age range does Howletch Lane Primary School cover?

Howletch Lane Primary School for pupils aged 2 to 11.

What are Howletch Lane Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 44% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Howletch Lane Primary School?

Howletch Lane Primary School is at Pennine Drive, County Durham, Peterlee, County Durham, SR8 2NQ.