Howletch Lane Primary School

  • Primary
  • Local authority maintained
  • Ages 2 to 11
Ofsted judgements: Requires improvement to good

Pennine Drive, County Durham, Peterlee, SR8 2NQOpen in maps (opens in a new tab)

Howletch Lane Primary School is a primary school in Peterlee for ages 2 to 11. It is one of the 271 schools in County Durham. It ranks 8th of 10 primary schools in Peterlee. Its latest Ofsted inspection, in September 2024, graded each key judgement and gave no overall Ofsted rating.

Ofsted inspection

Inspected 24 September 2024, report published 16 October 2024

This inspection graded each key judgement and gave no overall effectiveness grade.

Quality of education
Requires improvement
Behaviour and attitudes
Good
Personal development
Good
Leadership and management
Good
Early years provision
Good
Safeguarding
Met

What Ofsted said

From the inspection on 24 September 2024

Pupils at Howletch Lane strive to embody the school's vision of 'creating futures together'. Pupils are happy and safe. They enjoy very positive relationships with adults. These high- quality relationships ensure that the classroom environment is productive and purposeful. Pupils show respect to adults and to each other. Pupils enjoy a high level of pastoral support. This allows them to thrive. The school has high expectations for all pupils. Pupils are starting to benefit from a wide range of improvements to the curriculum. However, many pupils still do not achieve all that they should. This impairs their readiness for the next stage of learning. Pupils understand the new behaviour system. They told inspectors that this has made behaviour much better in the school. When bullying does occur, staff deal with it quickly. Parents speak positively about the way that the school engages with them. They are now more involved in the life of the school. One parent summed up the comments of others by saying, 'It is so nice to come into school and join in with the activities my children are learning about.'

What the school should improve

  • The support and provision for some pupils with SEND do not meet their needs. This means that these pupils do not progress through the curriculum as well as they should. The school should ensure the support and provision for these pupils more closely match their specific needs.
  • Over time, there has been a decline in pupil's achievement. This means that many pupils are not fully prepared for the next stage of their education. The school should monitor the recent improvements made to the curriculum carefully to ensure more pupils achieve in line with expectations and are ready for the next stage of education. This includes children in the early years.
  • Assessment in some foundation subjects is not used with sufficient precision to identify and address gaps in learning. This means that misconceptions are not addressed fully and pupils' development of knowledge and skills is not secure. The school must ensure that the new assessment system is used effectively in the foundation curriculum subjects to ensure that teachers can identify and address gaps in pupils' knowledge and that pupils' retention of key knowledge is secure.

Exam results

SATs results (key stage 2), 2024/25

52 pupils took the tests

Expected standard in reading, writing and maths44%

44%, 18 percentage points below the England average of 62%.

Higher standard in reading, writing and maths10%

10%, 2 percentage points above the England average of 8%.

Reading, average scaled score102

102, 4 below the England average of 106.

Maths, average scaled score100

100, 5 below the England average of 105.

Grammar, punctuation and spelling, average scaled score101

101, 4 below the England average of 105.

Pupil numbers and mix

382 pupils on roll, with places for 399

Eligible for free school meals32.5%

32.5%, 6 percentage points above the England average of 26.5%.

English as an additional language3.7%

3.7%, 17.9 percentage points below the England average of 21.6%.

Special educational needs support30.1%

30.1%, 15.3 percentage points above the England average of 14.8%.

Education, health and care plan5.2%

5.2%, 0.8 percentage points below the England average of 6%.

Schools near Howletch Lane Primary School

SchoolDistanceOfstedResults
Our Lady of the Rosary Catholic Primary School0.4 milesOfsted: Good74% met the expected standard
Acre Rigg Infant School0.6 milesReport card: Expected standard to strong standardNot published
Acre Rigg Academy0.6 milesOfsted: Good47% met the expected standard
Shotton Hall Primary School0.6 milesOfsted: Good64% met the expected standard
Seascape Primary School1 mileReport card: Urgent improvement to needs attention7% met the expected standard

School details

School type
Community school
Sector
Local authority maintained
Age range
2 to 11
Gender
Mixed
Nursery classes
Yes
Headteacher
Mrs Helen Beattie
Address
Pennine Drive, County Durham, Peterlee, SR8 2NQ
Local authority
County Durham
URN
114198

School details from Get Information about Schools, 17 September 2026. Ofsted outcomes published to 31 August 2026. Exam results for 2024/25 from the Department for Education. Pupil mix from the school census, 2025/26.