Discovery Primary Academy

Discovery Primary Academy has been inspected for the first time since opening in 2018 and has received a 'Good' rating across all domains. The school offers a supportive environment where pupils feel cared for and enjoy their learning. They benefit from a well-structured curriculum that promotes academic growth, particularly in reading and early years education. However, there are some areas for improvement, particularly in developing writing skills and ensuring all pupils access the full curriculum, especially those with special educational needs.

Strengths

• Pupils feel cared for and supported throughout their learning journey.
• The curriculum is ambitious and well-adapted to meet the needs of all pupils.
• Effective support for reading, helping struggling readers to catch up quickly.
• Children in early years are well-prepared for Year 1.
• Pupils demonstrate good behavior and respect for each other.

Areas for Improvement

• Some pupils are not writing with enough independence yet.
• Not all pupils can recall knowledge securely in updated foundation subjects.
• Some pupils with SEND are not accessing the full foundation curriculum.

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 Discovery Primary Academy attended 95.0% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 15.2% 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, 1.5% of pupils at Discovery Primary Academy 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 Discovery Primary Academy had 19.0 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 25.1% 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 Discovery Primary Academy were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 4.3% 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 Discovery Primary Academy received £7,756 and spent £7,827 for each of its 456 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £1,359,000 (£2,981 per pupil).

Across all 7 schools of Four Cs Mat, income was £7,701 and spending £7,827 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 Peterborough · Peterborough local authority: places and applications

Discovery Primary Academy is part of Four Cs Mat, which runs 7 schools. The nearest others:

• Fulbridge Academy Peterborough
• Ken Stimpson Academy Peterborough
• Manor Drive Primary Academy Peterborough
• Manor Drive Secondary Academy Peterborough
• Arthur Mellows Village College Peterborough
• Hampton Vale Primary Academy Peterborough

What is Discovery Primary Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Discovery Primary Academy is Good, from an inspection in April 2023.

When was Discovery Primary Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Discovery Primary Academy was last inspected in April 2023.

How many pupils does Discovery Primary Academy have?

Discovery Primary Academy has 419 pupils on roll.

What age range does Discovery Primary Academy cover?

Discovery Primary Academy for pupils aged 4 to 11.

What are Discovery Primary Academy's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 63% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Discovery Primary Academy?

Discovery Primary Academy is at Mountsteven Avenue, Walton, Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, PE4 6HX.