Duston Eldean Primary School

Duston Eldean Primary School is a good primary school where pupils are exceptionally well behaved and highly positive about school life. Inspectors found an ambitious, well-sequenced curriculum, strong reading and phonics provision, and consistently high outcomes in many areas. Pupils take on leadership roles, mentor younger children, and are proud to contribute to the school and local community. Parents are overwhelmingly positive, and safeguarding arrangements are effective. The school has a clear focus on oracy and personal development, and pupils learn to discuss ideas respectfully and understand healthy relationships and safety, including online. Staff are well supported, governors know their responsibilities, and provision for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities is appropriately adapted, including bespoke support for a few pupils. The main area for improvement is consistency across a small number of subjects. In those subjects, teachers' checks do not always ensure pupils build on earlier learning, and some learning activities lack ambition. This can limit the depth of pupils' knowledge and the consistency of the quality of their work. This was the school's first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic, and no overall effectiveness grade was given under the arrangements for graded inspections from September 2024.

Strengths

• Pupils are friendly, polite and consistently well mannered.
• Behaviour and attitudes are outstanding, with pupils highly positive about learning.
• The curriculum is ambitious and well sequenced from Reception onwards.
• Phonics and early reading are taught highly effectively.
• Pupils become fluent, enthusiastic readers and enjoy the library.
• Teaching is strong, especially in mathematics, with confident recall and high attainment.
• Pupils with SEND are accurately identified and well supported.
• Personal development is well considered, including oracy, debate and safety education.
• Pupils take on meaningful leadership roles and mentor younger pupils.
• Staff feel well supported and governors have a clear vision and know their responsibilities.
• Parents and carers are overwhelmingly positive about the school.
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective.

Areas for Improvement

• In a small number of subjects, teachers' checks do not always ensure pupils build on prior learning.
• In some subjects, learning activities sometimes lack ambition and limit the depth of pupils' knowledge.
• In a small number of subjects, pupils' work is not consistently of high quality.

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 Duston Eldean Primary School attended 96.1% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 5.7% 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, 0.0% of pupils at Duston Eldean 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 Duston Eldean Primary School had 21.3 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 8.3% 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, 14.6% of pupils at Duston Eldean Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 4.5% 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 Duston Eldean Primary School received £6,777 and spent £6,502 for each of its 418 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £170,000 (£407 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 Duston Eldean Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Duston Eldean Primary School is Good, from an inspection in March 2025.

When was Duston Eldean Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Duston Eldean Primary School was last inspected in March 2025.

How many pupils does Duston Eldean Primary School have?

Duston Eldean Primary School has 418 pupils on roll.

What age range does Duston Eldean Primary School cover?

Duston Eldean Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

What are Duston Eldean Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 77% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Duston Eldean Primary School?

Duston Eldean Primary School is at Main Road, Duston, Northampton, Northamptonshire, NN5 6PP.