Best Schools in Sudbury

How many schools are there in Sudbury?

Sudbury has 23 open schools: 17 state primary, 3 state secondary or all-through and 3 special.

Source: DfE Get Information About Schools

Which schools in Sudbury are rated Outstanding?

2 schools in Sudbury were rated Outstanding at their most recent graded Ofsted inspection: Hillside Special School and Boxford Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School. Counting Good as well, 95% of the 19 graded schools here are rated Good or better. Ofsted stopped giving single-word overall grades in September 2024, so these are the grades from each school's last full inspection.

Hillside Special SchoolBoxford Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School

Source: Ofsted

Which secondary schools in Sudbury get the best GCSE results?

Of the 3 schools in Sudbury with 2026 GCSE results, the highest Attainment 8 scores - the average grade across a pupil's best eight GCSEs - were at Thomas Gainsborough School, with an Attainment 8 score of 46.7 and 44% passing English and maths at grade 5 or above; Stour Valley Community School, with an Attainment 8 score of 44.5 and 43% passing English and maths at grade 5 or above; and Ormiston Sudbury Academy, with an Attainment 8 score of 43.2 and 34% passing English and maths at grade 5 or above. Progress 8, the DfE's value-added measure, was not published for 2026.

Thomas Gainsborough SchoolStour Valley Community SchoolOrmiston Sudbury Academy

Source: DfE school performance data

Which primary schools in Sudbury have the best SATs results?

Of the 14 primary schools in Sudbury with 2025 Key Stage 2 results, the highest shares of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading and maths were at Boxford Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School (95% in reading, 100% in maths); Glemsford Primary Academy (90% in reading, 97% in maths); and Lavenham Community Primary School (88% in reading, 83% in maths). Small schools can swing a long way from one year to the next, because each pupil is a large share of the result.

Boxford Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary SchoolGlemsford Primary AcademyLavenham Community Primary School

Source: DfE school performance data

Are there grammar schools in Sudbury?

No. None of the state secondary schools in Sudbury selects pupils by ability, so every state secondary here is comprehensive.

Source: DfE Get Information About Schools

Do schools in Sudbury have catchment areas?

Most state schools in Sudbury have no fixed catchment boundary. When a school is oversubscribed, the council allocates places on its published criteria - usually looked-after children first, then siblings, then home-to-school distance - so the practical cut-off moves each year. Each school's page here shows an estimate of its catchment radius.

How do I apply for a school place in Sudbury?

Apply to your council - Suffolk or Essex, depending on your address - through its coordinated admissions process, even for academies and faith schools. In England the closing date is 31 October for secondary places and 15 January for primary places, in the year before your child starts.