Kirkby Avenue Primary School

Kirkby Avenue Primary School is a nurturing and supportive school where pupils feel safe, enjoy attending and speak positively about the help and care they receive from staff. Inspectors found the school good across all judged areas: quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and early years provision. This was the school's first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic, and it has not been inspected under section 5 since May 2015 because it was previously exempt as an outstanding school. Since September 2024, schools no longer receive an overall effectiveness grade. The school has high expectations and an ambitious curriculum that meets the breadth of the national curriculum. In key stages 1 and 2, the curriculum is well sequenced, teachers have strong subject knowledge and reading is a clear priority. Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities are quickly identified and well supported, behaviour is good, attendance is improving, and personal development is well provided for. Safeguarding arrangements are effective, and governors provide effective support and challenge. The main areas for improvement are in the early years, where some areas of the curriculum do not follow a logical order, meaning some children struggle to connect current and prior learning and do not build knowledge as well as they could. The school also needs to strengthen support for pupils' writing, including basic handwriting skills, so that pupils can write fluently and accurately.

Strengths

• Nurturing and supportive culture with positive relationships
• High expectations for all pupils and an ambitious curriculum
• Well-sequenced curriculum in key stages 1 and 2
• Strong subject knowledge and engaging teaching
• Reading is a priority with effective phonics and catch-up support
• Pupils with SEND are quickly identified and well supported
• Pupils behave well and classrooms are calm and purposeful
• Attendance is improving through prompt support for families
• Strong personal development, including safety, cultures and leadership opportunities
• Effective governors and consideration for staff workload
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective

Areas for Improvement

• Early years curriculum is not consistently sequenced logically in some areas
• Some children struggle to connect current and prior learning and build knowledge
• Writing support, including basic handwriting, is inconsistent
• Some pupils' writing skills are not as strong as they could be

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 Kirkby Avenue Primary School attended 94.7% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 14.7% 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, 0.8% of pupils at Kirkby Avenue 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 Kirkby Avenue Primary School had 21.2 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 0.0% 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, 21.6% of pupils at Kirkby Avenue Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 1.4% 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 Kirkby Avenue Primary School received £7,423 and spent £7,459 for each of its 337 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £15,000 (£44 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 Kirkby Avenue Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Kirkby Avenue Primary School is Good, from an inspection in July 2025.

When was Kirkby Avenue Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Kirkby Avenue Primary School was last inspected in July 2025.

How many pupils does Kirkby Avenue Primary School have?

Kirkby Avenue Primary School has 347 pupils on roll.

What age range does Kirkby Avenue Primary School cover?

Kirkby Avenue Primary School for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are Kirkby Avenue Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 61% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Kirkby Avenue Primary School?

Kirkby Avenue Primary School is at Kirkby Avenue, Bentley, Doncaster, South Yorkshire, DN5 9TF.