Higham Ferrers Nursery and Infant School
Higham Ferrers Nursery and Infant School is an academy converter in Rushden for pupils aged 3 to 7. It has 255 pupils on roll. The latest Ofsted rating for Higham Ferrers Nursery and Infant School is Good, from an inspection in February 2020 of its predecessor, Higham Ferrers Nursery and Infant School.
Ofsted inspection: November 2024.
| Type | Primary / Academy converter |
| Age Range | 3-7 |
| Religion | Does not apply |
| Address | Wharf Road Higham Ferrers Rushden Northamptonshire NN10 8BQ |
| Reference Number | 151246 |
General Makeup
| Number of pupils | 255 |
| Boy/Girl ratio |
Boys: 43.53%
Girls: 56.47% |
| Percentage of students eligible for free school meals | 15.8% |
| Percentage of students where English is not their first language | 5.1% |
Class Sizes
| Average size of one teacher classes | 27.2 |
| Average size of Key Stage 1 classes taught by one teacher | 27.4 |
Year Groups
| Year | Boys | Girls | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 32 | 38 | 70 |
| 2 | 25 | 49 | 74 |
Ethnicities
| Ethnicity | Percentage |
|---|---|
| White, British | 87.1% |
| White, Other | 3.1% |
| African | 2.4% |
| White & Black (Caribbean) | 1.6% |
| Mixed, Other | 1.6% |
| White & Asian | 1.2% |
| White & Black (African) | 1.2% |
| Indian | 0.8% |
| Unclassified | 0.4% |
| Irish | 0.4% |
This school has not been graded since it changed URN, usually on converting to an academy. The rating shown is from its predecessor, Higham Ferrers Nursery and Infant School, inspected in February 2020.
| Overall Ofsted Rating | Good |
| Last Report Date | This school has not had an inspection yet. |
| Date | Report |
|---|---|
| 07 Nov 2024 | Academy conversion letter |
Reception admissions, 2026 entry
Locked: unlock for £9.99, one-off payment
| Number of Applications | Number of Offers | |
| First Preference | Locked: unlock for £9.99, one-off payment | Locked: unlock for £9.99, one-off payment |
| Second Preference | 31 | 1 |
| Third Preference | 20 | 0 |
| From another Local Authority | 0 | 0 |
Previous years
Sample
UnlockPlaces and pupil numbers
In 2024–25 Higham Ferrers Nursery and Infant School had 215 pupils for 270 places. 55 places (20.4%) were unfilled.
Reception intake in the “ferrers_rushden Primary” planning area
North Northamptonshire counted 387 Reception pupils in this area in 2024–25 and forecasts 363 in 2029–30, down 6%.
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 Higham Ferrers Nursery and Infant School attended 95.2% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 11.0% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 13.0%).
Sessions missed
Pupils persistently absent
| 2025 | |
|---|---|
| Authorised absence | 3.9% |
| Unauthorised absence | 0.9% |
| Severely absent pupils | 1.4% |
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 Higham Ferrers Nursery and Infant School were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). One pupil was permanently excluded.
Pupils suspended at least once
| 2025 | |
|---|---|
| Suspensions per 100 pupils | 5.0 |
| Permanent exclusions | 1 |
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 Higham Ferrers Nursery and Infant School had 23.5 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 4.7% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 15.7%).
Pupils per teacher
Teachers who left the school within a year
| 2025 | 2026 | |
|---|---|---|
| Pupils per adult | 11.2 | 12.4 |
| Teachers who left state teaching | 0.0% | – |
| Teachers who took any sick leave | 78.6% | – |
| Sick days per teacher | 4.6 | – |
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, 8.2% of pupils at Higham Ferrers Nursery and Infant School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 2.4% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).
Pupils by main type of need
| SEN support | EHC plan | |
|---|---|---|
| No specialist assessment of need | 13 | 0 |
| Social, emotional and mental health | 2 | 3 |
| Speech, language and communication needs | 4 | 1 |
| Specific learning difficulty | 1 | 1 |
| Severe learning difficulty | 0 | 1 |
| Vision impairment | 1 | 0 |
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.
| Name | Distance |
|
Higham Ferrers Junior School
Saffron Road, Higham Ferrers, Rushden, Northamptonshire, NN10 8ED |
0.06 miles |
|
Henry Chichele Primary School
School Lane, Higham Ferrers, Northamptonshire, NN10 8NQ |
0.45 miles |
|
Denfield Park Primary School
Victoria Road, Rushden, Northamptonshire, NN10 0DA |
0.86 miles |
|
Alfred Lord Tennyson School
Alfred Street, Rushden, Northamptonshire, NN10 9YS |
1.1 miles |
|
Newton Road School
Newton Road, Rushden, Northamptonshire, NN10 0HH |
1.21 miles |
|
Irthlingborough Nursery and Infant School
Scarborough Street, Irthlingborough, Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, NN9 5TT |
1.57 miles |
|
Irthlingborough Junior School
College Street, Irthlingborough, Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, NN9 5TX |
1.6 miles |
|
Whitefriars Primary School
Boughton Drive, Rushden, Northamptonshire, NN10 9HX |
1.62 miles |
|
South End Infant School
Wymington Road, Rushden, Northamptonshire, NN10 9JU |
1.68 miles |
|
South End Junior School
Wymington Road, Rushden, Northamptonshire, NN10 9JU |
1.84 miles |
|
Rushden Primary Academy
Goulsbra Road, Rushden, Northamptonshire, NN10 0YX |
1.88 miles |
|
Stanwick Primary School
Church Street, Stanwick, Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, NN9 6PS |
2.29 miles |
|
St Lawrence Church of England Primary School
Manor Lane, Wymington, Rushden, Northamptonshire, NN10 9LL |
2.56 miles |
|
Irchester Community Primary School
School Lane, Irchester, Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, NN29 7AZ |
2.69 miles |
|
Stanton Cross Primary School
Waverley Drive, Stanton Cross, Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, NN8 1GN |
2.76 miles |
|
Finedon Mulso Church of England Junior School
Wellingborough Road, Finedon, Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, NN9 5JT |
3.19 miles |
|
Finedon Nursery and Infant School
Orchard Road, Finedon, Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, NN9 5JG |
3.3 miles |
|
Windmill Primary School
Windmill Lane, Raunds, Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, NN9 6LA |
3.6 miles |
|
Raunds Park Infant School
Park Street, Raunds, Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, NN9 6NB |
3.7 miles |
|
Rowan Gate Primary School - Four Sites
Rowan Gate Primary School, Finedon Road, Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, NN8 4NS |
3.72 miles |
| Name | Distance |
|
The Ferrers School
Queensway, Higham Ferrers, Rushden, Northamptonshire, NN10 8LF |
0.42 miles |
|
Chelveston Road School
Chelveston Road, Higham Ferrers, Northamptonshire, NN10 8HN |
0.58 miles |
|
Rushden Academy
Hayway, Rushden, Northamptonshire, NN10 6AG |
0.68 miles |
|
Huxlow Academy
Finedon Road, Irthlingborough, Northamptonshire, NN9 5TY |
1.89 miles |
|
Manor School
Mountbatten Way, Raunds, Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, NN9 6PA |
3.74 miles |
|
Wellingborough School
London Road, Wellingborough, NN8 2BX |
3.9 miles |
|
Wrenn School
London Road, Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, NN8 2DQ |
3.97 miles |
|
Sir Christopher Hatton Academy
The Pyghtle, Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, NN8 4RP |
4.14 miles |
|
Friars Academy
Friars Close, Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, NN8 2LA |
4.19 miles |
|
Wollaston School
Irchester Road, Wollaston, Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, NN29 7PH |
4.43 miles |
|
Weavers Academy
Brickhill Road, Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, NN8 3JH |
4.94 miles |
All schools in Rushden · North Northamptonshire local authority: places and applications
Higham Ferrers Nursery and Infant School is part of Learning for Life Education Trust, which runs 6 schools. The nearest others:
- Higham Ferrers Junior School Rushden
- Irthlingborough Nursery and Infant School Wellingborough
- Irthlingborough Junior School Wellingborough
- Finedon Mulso Church of England Junior School Wellingborough
- Finedon Nursery and Infant School Wellingborough
What is Higham Ferrers Nursery and Infant School's Ofsted rating?
The latest Ofsted rating for Higham Ferrers Nursery and Infant School is Good, from an inspection in February 2020 of its predecessor, Higham Ferrers Nursery and Infant School.
When was Higham Ferrers Nursery and Infant School last inspected by Ofsted?
Higham Ferrers Nursery and Infant School was last inspected in November 2024.
How many pupils does Higham Ferrers Nursery and Infant School have?
Higham Ferrers Nursery and Infant School has 255 pupils on roll.
What age range does Higham Ferrers Nursery and Infant School cover?
Higham Ferrers Nursery and Infant School for pupils aged 3 to 7.
Where is Higham Ferrers Nursery and Infant School?
Higham Ferrers Nursery and Infant School is at Wharf Road, Higham Ferrers, Rushden, Northamptonshire, NN10 8BQ.