Primary schools3 · best KS2 results first
Photo: Tim Heaton · CC BY-SA 2.0DSchool Grade
Schools in Whittlesey · DfE, Ofsted
Whittlesey’s state schools get lower results than 91% of towns in England
At GCSE, Whittlesey’s pupils average 38.6 on Attainment 8, below both Cambridgeshire’s towns (49.9) and towns in England (45.9). 4 state-funded schools are located in Whittlesey’s built-up area. Whittlesey grades D for schools, on Department for Education Key Stage 2 and GCSE results: #44 of 50 in Cambridgeshire. Ofsted is shown, not graded.
State schools
4
3 primary, 1 secondary
Reading, writing & maths
54%
meet the expected standard at 11 · 2023–25
England’s schools: 62%
Attainment 8
38.6
GCSE average across 8 subjects · 2025/26
England’s schools: 47.3
Grade 5+ English & maths
32%
a strong pass in both · 2025/26
England’s schools: 47%
Town figures are pupil-weighted across the schools the grade uses; England’s are the average school.
What stands out about Whittlesey’s schools
0 of 1secondary beats England’s average GCSE score; 0 of 3 primaries beat its KS2 average3 of 4mainstream schools have as many pupils as places, or more
Below England at both ages
Whittlesey’s secondary results beat 10% of English towns; its primary results beat 17%. 54% of the town’s 11-year-olds meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths, against 62% at the average school in England and 59% across Cambridgeshire. Every school’s result ↓
Popular schools are full
3 of 4 mainstream schools have at least as many pupils as their official capacity. A full school gives places by its admissions rules, usually by distance after siblings. Getting a place ↓
Written from the Department for Education and Ofsted data on this page.
School Grade
Whittlesey grades D for schools
Against every town in England with results; Wales publishes none.
Primary: reading, writing and maths at 11 (54% meet the standard)Better than 17% of towns in England
Secondary: Attainment 8 and grade 5+ English and maths (38.6 and 32%)Better than 10% of towns in England
Each of Whittlesey’s 3 primaries: % meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (2023–25)
England’s average schoolCambridgeshire’s average school
The primary figure: 3 primaries in the town, 547 pupils in results over three years. Whittlesey has 1 secondary of its own with GCSE results, too few to judge on, so the secondary figure uses the 1 graded secondary in and within 3 km of the town (185 pupils in results). Mainstream state schools only (grammar schools included); special schools, alternative provision, nurseries and 16–19 colleges are listed below but not graded. Each school’s results are compared with every school in England, then weighted by its pupils.
Map
Where Whittlesey’s 4 state schools are
Each school at its address, coloured by its own letter and sized by pupils. Open a school for its own page. The dashed shape is Whittlesey’s built-up area.
© OpenStreetMap contributors
PrimarySecondary (named)Special, nursery, 16–19Size: pupilsABCDNo letter
Most schools give places by distance once siblings are in, so the schools nearest a home matter more than any league table.
Results and intake
Which schools do better than their intake suggests
Schools with more pupils on free school meals tend to get lower results. The dashed line is the typical school in England for each level of free school meals; the band holds the middle two-thirds. A dot above the band is doing better than schools like it.
Primaries: KS2 reading, writing and maths against free school meals
The share of pupils on free school meals runs from 15% at Park Lane Primary & Nursery School to 33% at New Road Primary & Nursery School. 0 of 3 primaries are above the line.
Show as a table
| School | Free school meals | Result | Typical for that intake | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alderman Jacobs SchoolKS2 % | 25% | 60% | 62% | −2 |
| Park Lane Primary & Nursery SchoolKS2 % | 15% | 56% | 65% | −9 |
| New Road Primary & Nursery SchoolKS2 % | 33% | 32% | 59% | −27 |
Free school meals: pupils eligible now, DfE January 2026 census. The typical-school line is a straight-line fit across every graded school in England. It describes; it doesn’t grade: the School Grade uses results alone.
Getting a place
How school places work in Whittlesey
Cambridgeshire County Council handles applications for every state school in Whittlesey, academies included. You apply to the council where you live, even for a school in another area.
Secondary (starting at 11)Apply by 31 October of Year 6. Offers on 1 March.
Primary (starting in Reception)Apply by 15 January before the September your child starts. Offers on 16 April.
Moving mid-yearApply to the council for an in-year place; it tells you which schools have room.
When a school is full
Every school publishes its admissions rules. Children in care come first, then, at most schools, brothers and sisters of current pupils, then those who live nearest. Infant classes are limited to 30 by law. If you’re refused a place, you can appeal to an independent panel.
Useful: Apply for a primary place (GOV.UK) · Apply for a secondary place (GOV.UK) · How admissions criteria work
How full each school is
Pupils on roll as a share of the school’s official capacity. The black tick is 100%; 3 schools are at or over it.
New Road incl. nursery119%
Alderman Jacobs incl. nursery107%
Park Lane incl. nursery105%
Sir Harry Smith Community College90%
DfE register of schools (GIAS), January 2026 census. Capacity often excludes a nursery class, so a school with a nursery can show over 100%.
The schools
4 state schools in Whittlesey
Each school’s own letter compares its results with every state school in England of the same phase: Key Stage 2 for primaries, GCSEs for secondaries. Open a school for its results, how its letter is worked out, Ofsted and a map.
Letters of Whittlesey’s schoolsA 0B 0C 3D 1
Secondary schools1 · best GCSE results first
Key result: Attainment 8 and grade 5+ English and maths (GCSEs, 2025/26 provisional) for secondaries; the share meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (KS2, DfE’s three-year average) for primaries. Pupils: the January 2026 school census. No letter: an infant or first school (no KS2 tests), a new school, a small cohort DfE suppresses, or a special school, nursery or college. Independent schools aren’t included.
Ofsted
Ofsted report cards
Each school’s latest inspection; report cards replace one-word judgements as schools are re-inspected.
Report card 1Ungraded inspection only 3
Ofsted stopped giving one-word judgements in 2024. Until a school is re-inspected, its last overall judgement is its most recent single grade; a school judged years ago may have changed a lot since.
Since November 2025 Ofsted gives each area of a school one of five grades (exceptional, strong standard, expected standard, needs attention, urgent improvement) and says whether safeguarding is met, instead of one overall word. 1 of Whittlesey’s 4 state schools have a report card so far; the others show their last inspection under the old framework. Ofsted is never part of the School Grade.
| School | Safeguarding | Achievement | Curriculum and teaching | Inclusion | Attendance and behaviour | Personal development and well-being | Leadership and governance | Early years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Road Primary & Nursery SchoolApril 2026 | Met | Needs attention | Expected standard | Expected standard | Expected standard | Expected standard | Expected standard | Strong standard |
Who runs them
2 academy trusts
Academies are state schools run by a trust rather than the council: the trust employs the staff and can set its own curriculum and term dates. Admissions still go through the council.
| Run by | Schools | Pupils | Their letters |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aspire Learning Trust (Whittlesey)Sir Harry Smith Community College, Park Lane, New Road | 3 | 1,835 | C−CD− |
| Soke Education TrustAlderman Jacobs | 1 | 671 | C+ |
After 16
Where Whittlesey’s teenagers go at 16
In England young people stay in education or training until 18: a sixth form, a college, or an apprenticeship.
The state secondary in Whittlesey has its own sixth form. The nearest college is Inspire Education Group, a further-education college 4.7 miles away.
Secondaries with a sixth form
1 of 1
state schools in Whittlesey
Colleges within 12 miles
1
nearest: Inspire Education Group
Grammar schools in Cambridgeshire
0
no selective state secondaries
Towns its size
313th of 325 English towns of 10,000 to 19,000
Ranked by School Grade, best first: the towns either side of Whittlesey, and the top and bottom of the group.
| # | Town | Schools | KS2 | Attainment 8 | Grade 5+ E&M |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Amersham Buckinghamshire | A+ | 79% | 64.3 | 83% |
| … | |||||
| 309 | Earl Shilton Leicestershire | D | 50% | 41.8 | 38% |
| 310 | Dawlish Devon | D | 55% | 40.5 | 31% |
| 311 | North Walsham Norfolk | D | 46% | 44.1 | 36% |
| 312 | Sheerness Kent | D | 57% | 33.2 | 16% |
| 313 | Whittlesey Cambridgeshire | D | 54% | 38.6 | 32% |
| 314 | Oswestry Shropshire | D | 55% | 38.1 | 27% |
| 315 | Amesbury Wiltshire | D | 55% | 38.2 | 28% |
| 316 | Thorne South Yorkshire | D | 49% | 41.1 | 36% |
| 317 | Peacehaven East Sussex | D | 51% | 40.3 | 35% |
| … | |||||
| 325 | Sandown Isle of Wight | D− | 52% | 32 | 16% |
Neighbours
Whittlesey and the places around it
Coloured by School Grade.
Coates and EastreaEyeThorneyFarcetPeterboroughBenwickYaxleyWhittlesey
| Town | Schools | KS2 | Att. 8 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whittlesey 4 schools | D | 54% | 38.6 |
| Coates and Eastrea 1 school · uses schools within 3 km · 2 mi | D | 54% | 38.6 |
| Eye 1 school · uses schools within 3 km · 4.4 mi | D | 52% | 40.9 |
| Thorney 1 school · uses schools within 3 km · 4.4 mi | A+ | 74% | — |
| Farcet 1 school · uses schools within 3 km · 4.5 mi | B− | 59% | 47.5 |
| Peterborough 71 schools · 5.7 mi | C | 57% | 44.5 |
| Benwick 1 school · uses schools within 3 km · 6.1 mi | D− | 49% | — |
| Yaxley 3 schools · uses schools within 3 km · 6.2 mi | C | 54% | 47.5 |
Thorney has the best-graded schools nearby (A+). Small places often use the schools within 3 km, so neighbours can share schools.
How to read these numbers
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Expected standard at Key Stage 2. The share of 11-year-olds who reach the expected standard in reading, writing and maths together, in tests and teacher assessment at the end of primary school. We use DfE’s three-year average (2023–2025) to steady small schools.
- Higher standard. The share working at greater depth in all three. In Whittlesey: 4% (England’s average school: 8%).
- Attainment 8. A pupil’s GCSE grades across eight subjects, with English and maths counted twice, added up. 50 is roughly a grade 5 in every subject.
- Grade 5+ in English and maths. A strong pass in both. Grade 4 is a standard pass.
- Provisional. 2025/26 GCSE figures are DfE’s first release; revised figures follow in February, usually within a point.
- Progress 8. Not shown: there is none for 2025/26, because these pupils sat no KS2 tests in 2020 (Covid).
- Free school meals. Pupils eligible for free school meals now, from the January census: the usual measure of how many pupils come from low-income homes.
- Independent schools. Not included: they publish no results comparable with state schools’.
Questions about schools in Whittlesey
Are schools in Whittlesey good?
Whittlesey’s state schools earn a D against schools across England: primary results beat 17% of towns in England; secondary results beat 10% of towns in England, on Department for Education Key Stage 2 and GCSE results. School places are handled by Cambridgeshire council.
What is the best primary school in Whittlesey?
On Key Stage 2 results over 2023–25, Alderman Jacobs School: 60% of pupils meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths, against 62% at the average school in England.
Do Whittlesey secondary schools have sixth forms?
Yes, it has one.
How do I apply for a school place in Whittlesey?
Through Cambridgeshire County Council, for every state school including academies. Secondary applications close on 31 October (offers 1 March); primary on 15 January (offers 16 April).
How many schools in Whittlesey are full?
3 of 4 mainstream schools have at least as many pupils as places, on DfE’s January 2026 census. A full school still admits by its rules, usually distance after siblings.
How many state schools are in Whittlesey?
4 open state-funded schools are located in Whittlesey’s built-up area: 3 primary, 1 secondary and 0 other (special schools, alternative provision, nurseries and 16–19). Independent schools aren’t included.
Sources: DfE Get Information about Schools (16 October 2026), Key Stage 2 performance tables (2023–2025, three-year average) and Key Stage 4 (2025/26, provisional); Ofsted state-funded school inspections as at 30 September 2026 · DfE Get Information about Schools (16 October 2026), further-education and sixth-form colleges · TownRatings grades: our own summary of the data, ranked against UK towns only. All under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.