Green Top

Green Top is a larger-than-average primary school in a deprived area and part of the XP trust. Safeguarding standards are met. Inspectors found strong practice in attendance and behaviour, early years, and personal development and wellbeing. Children get off to a flying start, pupils behave exceptionally well, attendance has improved notably, and the school provides a rich personal development and enrichment offer. Inclusion and leadership and governance meet the expected standard, with effective support for pupils with SEND and disadvantaged pupils and staff who feel well supported. Curriculum and teaching also meet the expected standard, though there is variation in task quality and assessment use. The main concern is achievement, which needs attention. Outcomes in reading and writing in national tests have been below national averages, and older pupils have gaps in reading fluency and comprehension. Some older pupils also lack sufficient practice to secure basic writing skills. Disadvantaged pupils' outcomes, especially in combined reading, writing and mathematics, are below national and the disadvantage gap remains large, although mathematics is in line with national averages and younger pupils are secure in phonics and early mathematics. Leaders know the school well and have begun positive work to improve reading and writing, but the next steps are to implement revised strategies more effectively and ensure teachers use assessment consistently to address gaps and plan from pupils' starting points. The report notes that the below-average English outcomes are partly explained by a higher-than-average proportion of pupils with SEND, many with lower starting points.

Strengths

• Safeguarding standards are met and pupils feel safe.
• Attendance systems are clear and effective, with notable reductions in persistent absence.
• Behaviour is excellent, routines are consistent, and bullying is rare.
• Leaders and staff create a culture of high expectations across the school.
• Early years provision is strong, with children settling quickly and making rapid progress.
• The early years curriculum is detailed, precise, and responsive to children's needs.
• Communication and language are prioritised in the early years.
• Personal development and wellbeing provision is extensive and high quality.
• Pupils develop character, respect, compassion, and leadership skills.
• The enrichment offer is rich and wide ranging, and pupils use it well.
• Inclusion is effective, with appropriate support for pupils with SEND and disadvantaged pupils.
• Leaders use pupil premium funding effectively and have improved disadvantaged pupils' attendance.
• Leadership and governance are well informed and committed to school improvement.
• Professional learning is a strength and staff are overwhelmingly positive about support.
• Parents and carers value the school's role in the community.
• Younger pupils are secure in phonics and early mathematics.
• Mathematics outcomes are in line with national averages.

Areas for Improvement

• Achievement requires attention, with reading and writing outcomes below national averages.
• Older pupils have gaps in reading fluency and comprehension.
• Older pupils are not always given sufficient practice to secure basic writing skills.
• Disadvantaged pupils' combined reading, writing and mathematics outcomes are well below national averages.
• The disadvantage gap for disadvantaged pupils remains large, especially in reading and writing.
• Curriculum and teaching meet the expected standard; some tasks do not help pupils learn as well as they could.
• Teachers do not always use pupils' starting points or assessment consistently to plan appropriate next steps.
• In some subjects, curriculum refinement is ongoing and pupils are not yet developing skills and knowledge securely by the end of each phase.
• Revised reading and writing strategies are not yet implemented effectively enough to improve outcomes.
• National test outcomes in reading and writing have been below national averages in recent years.

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 Green Top attended 95.4% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 10.0% 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, 1.6% of pupils at Green Top 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 Green Top had 21.3 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, 23.9% of pupils at Green Top were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 2.6% 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 2024–25 Green Top received £6,158 and spent £6,533 for each of its 440 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £355,000 (£808 per pupil).

Across all 8 schools of Xp School Trust Limited, income was £7,611 and spending £7,203 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). Academy figures include a share of the trust's central services, shared out by pupil numbers, and are rounded to the nearest £1,000. Premises costs were defined differently from 2024, so compare them across that gap with care.

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

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

Green Top is part of Xp School Trust Limited, which runs 8 schools. The nearest others:

• Plover Primary School Doncaster
• Norton Junior School Doncaster
• Norton Infant School Doncaster
• Carcroft Primary School Doncaster
• XP East Doncaster
• XP School Doncaster
• XP Gateshead Felling

What is Green Top's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Green Top is Needs attention, from an inspection in July 2026.

When was Green Top last inspected by Ofsted?

Green Top was last inspected in July 2026.

How many pupils does Green Top have?

Green Top has 426 pupils on roll.

What age range does Green Top cover?

Green Top for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are Green Top's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 53% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Green Top?

Green Top is at Middlebrook Lane, Thorne, Doncaster, South Yorkshire, DN8 5LB.