Primary schools3 · best KS2 results first
Photo: Tom Courtney · CC BY-SA 2.0A−School Grade
Schools in Rainworth · DfE, Ofsted
primary results put Rainworth’s state schools ahead of 89% of towns in England; secondary results, of 52%
70% of Rainworth’s primary pupils reached the expected standard in reading, writing and maths, above both Nottinghamshire’s towns (62%) and towns in England (62%). 4 state-funded schools are located in Rainworth’s built-up area. Rainworth grades A− for schools, on Department for Education Key Stage 2 and GCSE results: #14 of 49 in Nottinghamshire. Ofsted is shown, not graded.
State schools
4
3 primary, 1 secondary
Reading, writing & maths
70%
meet the expected standard at 11 · 2023–25
England’s schools: 62%
Attainment 8
45.9
GCSE average across 8 subjects · 2025/26
England’s schools: 47.3
Grade 5+ English & maths
46%
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 Rainworth’s schools
0 of 1secondary beats England’s average GCSE score; 2 of 3 primaries beat its KS2 average81%meet the KS2 standard at The Python Hill, with 33% on free school meals
Strong primaries, weaker secondaries
Rainworth’s secondary results beat 52% of English towns; its primary results beat 89%. 70% 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 62% across Nottinghamshire. Every school’s result ↓
The Python Hill beats its intake
Schools with more pupils on free school meals usually get lower results. At The Python Hill Academy, 33% of pupils are on free school meals and 81% meet the expected standard; a typical school in England with that intake reaches 60%. Results and intake ↓
Written from the Department for Education and Ofsted data on this page.
School Grade
Rainworth grades A− for schools
Against every town in England with results; Wales publishes none.
Primary: reading, writing and maths at 11 (70% meet the standard)Better than 89% of towns in England
Secondary: Attainment 8 and grade 5+ English and maths (45.9 and 46%)Better than 52% of towns in England
The primary figure lifts Rainworth; the secondary figure holds it back.
Each of Rainworth’s 3 primaries: % meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (2023–25)
England’s average schoolNottinghamshire’s average school
The primary figure: 3 primaries in the town, 278 pupils in results over three years. Rainworth has 1 secondary of its own with GCSE results, too few to judge on, so the secondary figure uses the 2 graded secondaries in and within 3 km of the town (408 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 Rainworth’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 Rainworth’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 21% at Heathlands Primary School to 33% at The Python Hill Academy. Against schools with the same intake, The Python Hill Academy does best: 81% with 33% on free school meals, where a typical school would reach 60%. 2 of 3 primaries are above the line.
Show as a table
| School | Free school meals | Result | Typical for that intake | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Python Hill AcademyKS2 % | 33% | 81% | 60% | +21 |
| Lake View Primary and Nursery SchoolKS2 % | 28% | 63% | 61% | +2 |
| Heathlands Primary SchoolKS2 % | 21% | 59% | 63% | −4 |
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 Rainworth
Nottinghamshire County Council handles applications for every state school in Rainworth, 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%; 2 schools are at or over it.
The Joseph Whitaker109%
Lake View incl. nursery102%
Heathlands incl. nursery97%
The Python Hill88%
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 Rainworth
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 Rainworth’s schoolsA 1B 2C 1D 0
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.
Good 1Report card 1Ungraded inspection only 1No published grade 1
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 Rainworth’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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heathlands Primary SchoolDecember 2025 | Met | Expected standard | Expected standard | Expected standard | Expected standard | Expected standard | Expected standard | Expected 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| East Midlands Education TrustThe Joseph Whitaker, Lake View, Heathlands | 3 | 1,759 | B−B−C+ |
| Forge TrustThe Python Hill | 1 | 307 | A |
After 16
Where Rainworth’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 Rainworth has its own sixth form. The nearest college is West Nottinghamshire College, a further-education college 3.3 miles away.
Secondaries with a sixth form
1 of 1
state schools in Rainworth
Colleges within 12 miles
2
nearest: West Nottinghamshire College
Grammar schools in Nottinghamshire
0
no selective state secondaries
| College | Distance |
|---|---|
| West Nottinghamshire CollegeFurther-education college · NG18 5BH | 3.3 mi |
| Nottingham CollegeFurther-education college · NG1 1NG | 11.5 mi |
Towns its size
79th of 384 English towns of 6,000 to 11,000
Ranked by School Grade, best first: the towns either side of Rainworth, and the top and bottom of the group.
| # | Town | Schools | KS2 | Attainment 8 | Grade 5+ E&M |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bowdon Greater Manchester | A+ | 83% | 78.4 | 99% |
| … | |||||
| 75 | Brandon County Durham | A− | 62% | 54.5 | 60% |
| 76 | Tiptree Essex | A− | 67% | 46.5 | 52% |
| 77 | Paulton Somerset | A− | 65% | 49.4 | 50% |
| 78 | Knottingley West Yorkshire | A− | 73% | 44.6 | 47% |
| 79 | Rainworth Nottinghamshire | A− | 70% | 45.9 | 46% |
| 80 | Hawkinge Kent | A− | 69% | 46.5 | 46% |
| 81 | Harworth and Bircotes Nottinghamshire | B+ | 64% | 48.7 | 58% |
| 82 | Sawbridgeworth Hertfordshire | B+ | 74% | 44.7 | 45% |
| 83 | Ledbury Herefordshire | B+ | 68% | 47 | 46% |
| … | |||||
| 384 | Freshwater and Totland Isle of Wight | D− | 39% | — | — |
Neighbours
Rainworth and the places around it
Coloured by School Grade.
BlidworthRavensheadForest TownFarnsfieldBilsthorpeMansfieldMansfield WoodhouseRainworth
| Town | Schools | KS2 | Att. 8 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rainworth 4 schools | A− | 70% | 45.9 |
| Blidworth 1 school · uses schools within 3 km · 1.3 mi | B | 65% | 45.7 |
| Ravenshead 2 schools · uses schools within 3 km · 2.9 mi | B | 66% | 45.7 |
| Forest Town 8 schools · uses schools within 3 km · 3.2 mi | C+ | 63% | 43 |
| Farnsfield 1 school · uses schools within 3 km · 3.6 mi | B− | 61% | — |
| Bilsthorpe 1 school · uses schools within 3 km · 3.7 mi | B | 63% | — |
| Mansfield 23 schools · 3.8 mi | C− | 59% | 42.1 |
| Mansfield Woodhouse 8 schools · uses schools within 3 km · 4.6 mi | C− | 53% | 43 |
Rainworth’s schools are graded at least as well as any neighbour’s. 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 Rainworth: 9% (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 Rainworth
Are schools in Rainworth good?
Rainworth’s state schools earn an A− against schools across England: primary results beat 89% of towns in England; secondary results beat 52% of towns in England, on Department for Education Key Stage 2 and GCSE results. School places are handled by Nottinghamshire council.
What is the best primary school in Rainworth?
On Key Stage 2 results over 2023–25, The Python Hill Academy: 81% of pupils meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths, against 62% at the average school in England.
Do Rainworth secondary schools have sixth forms?
Yes, it has one.
How do I apply for a school place in Rainworth?
Through Nottinghamshire 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 Rainworth are full?
2 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 Rainworth?
4 open state-funded schools are located in Rainworth’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.