Charlotte Nursery and Infant School, Ilkeston
Charlotte Nursery and Infant School is a primary school for pupils aged 3 to 7 in Ilkeston. It was rated Outstanding at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in February 2014. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in April 2025 did not change this grade. It was 91% full in 2025.
- Ofsted
- Outstanding (2014)
- Demand
- Every first choice offered
- Attendance
- In line with England
Reception applications for September 2027 close in 75 days
Deadline Friday 15 January 2027. Apply to Derbyshire (the council where you live). Offers on 16 April.
Data last updated 1 Nov 2026
Charlotte Nursery and Infant School in detail
Getting a place at Charlotte Nursery and Infant School
For September 2026 entry, 73 families put Charlotte Nursery and Infant School as their first choice and 116 named it as one of their preferences, for 75 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. Every family who put it first was offered a place there for 2026 entry.
Admissions history and your chances at Charlotte Nursery and Infant School
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to Charlotte Nursery and Infant School are Granby Junior School (0.1 miles, Good, 55% reading, 58% maths); Chaucer Junior School (0.6 miles, 75% reading, 78% maths); Cotmanhay Infant and Nursery School (0.7 miles, Good); and Cotmanhay Junior School (0.7 miles, Good, 56% reading, 62% maths).
Granby Junior SchoolChaucer Junior SchoolCotmanhay Infant and Nursery SchoolCotmanhay Junior School
What parents say
43 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about Charlotte Nursery and Infant School (as of September 2025): 79% would recommend the school, 86% say their child is happy there and 46% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.
The strongest agreement was that their child feels safe (88%); the weakest, that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (46%).
Who goes there
8.7% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
In 2026, 72 pupils (25%) received SEN support and 8 (2.8%) had an education, health and care plan, against 16.2% and 4.6% at the average state school. The most common need among them is speech, language and communication needs.
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Ilkeston Rail Station, about 1110 metres away (roughly a 14-minute walk).
22 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Barber Close (adjacent), 80 metres away.
The area around the school
In August 2026, police recorded 244 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, anti-social behaviour and public order offences. That is well above the typical figure around schools in Derbyshire (50), as is usual near a town centre.
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, Charlotte Nursery and Infant School issued 8 suspensions, 2.8 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and 1 permanent exclusion.
Secondary schools nearby
The secondary schools closest to Charlotte Nursery and Infant School are Ormiston Ilkeston Enterprise Academy (0.7 miles), Kirk Hallam Community Academy (1.3 miles) and Saint John Houghton Catholic Voluntary Academy (1.5 miles).
Ormiston Ilkeston Enterprise AcademyKirk Hallam Community AcademySaint John Houghton Catholic Voluntary Academy
Sources: DfE school-level applications and offers; council admissions booklets; DfE appeals statistics; Ofsted Parent View; DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); data.police.uk street-level crime; DfE exclusions statistics
Location
Every family who put it first was offered a place for 2026 entry, so distance did not limit places that year.
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 2 years agoThis judgement is from February 2014, 12 years ago, longer than Ofsted's usual 4-year cycle: the school may have changed since.
Overall
Quality of Education
Behaviour & Attitudes
Personal Development
Leadership & Management
Early Years
Ofsted Insights
From Ofsted's April 2025 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
Reading is a real strength - children start learning to read in Reception and leave Year 2 as fluent readers with access to high-quality books. The school creates a genuine sense of family and community, with pupils happy to attend and adults who care deeply about their wellbeing. Staff have strong subject knowledge and use enrichment activities like theatre trips, wildlife park visits and visiting performers to make learning exciting and memorable.
Key Strengths
- Strong focus on reading with consistent teaching approach and high-quality texts that help pupils read fluently by Year 2
- Ambitious curriculum with clear identification of key knowledge, particularly strong in key stage 1
- Excellent behaviour supported by clear school values (THRIVE), with pupils calm, polite and engaged
- High-quality pastoral support and personal development opportunities including clubs and enrichment visits
- Effective provision for pupils with SEND through specially resourced pathways
Areas for Improvement
- Lack of clear links between early years curriculum and key stage 1, creating gaps in foundational knowledge
- Inconsistent approaches across subjects for checking what pupils know and remember, making it hard to spot learning gaps
- Some pupils with SEND not receiving well-adapted teaching to help them access the curriculum effectively
- Early years curriculum lacks precision and clarity for securing key foundational knowledge
- Not all subject leaders have the expertise needed to monitor and evaluate their subjects consistently
Safeguarding
Safeguarding arrangements are effective.
Extracurricular Activities
Clubs, theatre trips, wildlife park visits, bakery visits, African drummers, science visitors with creatures, Charlotte beach experience
Charlotte Nursery and Infant School is a happy, warm and welcoming school where pupils enjoy strong community bonds and excellent behaviour. However, the quality of education requires improvement, particularly in curriculum consistency between early years and key stage 1.
At a Glance
27.4%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
Yes
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
43 responsesSource: Ofsted Parent View, responses as at September 2025 - % who strongly agree or agree
Class Sizes
26.6
Avg class size
26.6
Infant (KS1)
8
Total classes
1 class with more than 30 pupils
2025/26 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby primary schools
Keep up with Charlotte Nursery and Infant School
Before and after school care
Clubs on Ofsted's childcare register at or near Charlotte Nursery and Infant School.
- JPAC Ltd at Charlotte Nursery and Infant SchoolAt the school · Not yet graded
Nurseries
The nearest nurseries and pre-schools to Charlotte Nursery and Infant School, with their latest published grades:
- The Rocking Horse Nursery - Day nursery, 0.1 miles
- Cherubs Ilkeston - Day nursery, 0.3 milesOfsted, 20 June 2025: Good overall; safeguarding is effective
- Little Plums Nursery Ilkeston - Day nursery, 0.5 milesOfsted report card, 14 May 2026: Strong standard in 2 areas, Expected standard in 4 areas; safeguarding standards met
- Twinkle Stars Daycare Ltd - Day nursery, 0.7 milesOfsted report card, 24 June 2026: Expected standard in 6 areas; safeguarding standards met
- Cantelupe Pre-School Playgroup - Day nursery, 0.8 milesOfsted, 6 July 2022: Good overall; safeguarding is effective
Term dates
Charlotte Nursery and Infant School is a community school, so its term dates are set by Derbyshire. Training (INSET) days, when pupils are not in school, vary by school: check the school's own calendar.
2026 to 2027
- Autumn term: Friday 4 September to Friday 18 December 2026 (half term Monday 26 October to Friday 30 October 2026)
- Spring term: Monday 4 January to Thursday 25 March 2027 (half term Monday 15 February to Friday 19 February 2027)
- Summer term: Monday 12 April to Monday 26 July 2027 (half term Monday 31 May to Friday 4 June 2027)
2027 to 2028
- Autumn term: Monday 6 September to Wednesday 22 December 2027 (half term Monday 25 October to Friday 29 October 2027)
- Spring term: Thursday 6 January to Friday 7 April 2028 (half term Monday 21 February to Friday 25 February 2028)
- Summer term: Monday 24 April to Monday 24 July 2028 (half term Monday 29 May to Friday 2 June 2028)
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Charlotte Nursery and Infant School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Charlotte Nursery and Infant School is in Derbyshire; for families living there:
- Derbyshire's school travel policy: Home to school transport policy 2026 to 2027 - 465KB
- How to apply: Apply for home to school transport assistance
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 27
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 4
- Children hurt
- 8
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 27 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 4 serious and 23 slight.
8 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 5 on foot, 1 on a bicycle and 2 in a vehicle or otherwise.
7 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included.
The typical figure for schools in Derbyshire is 6 (the median across 454 schools, same distance and years).
Serious and slight are DfT estimates (severity adjustment). Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19), Open Government Licence v3.0.
Commute and house prices
Your chances of a place at Charlotte Nursery and Infant School
Will you get a place at Charlotte Nursery and Infant School?
For 2026 entry it had 73 first choices for 75 places. The report sets your home postcode against these figures.
£9.99 once (inc. VAT; £19.99 for up to three schools), or Pro £9 a month, every report included, cancel any time. What's in the report
Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
91%
Near capacity
247 pupils
270 places
23 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Across Derbyshire council
Places available
9,875
Applications
7,189
Got 1st preference
94.5%
Got preferred school
99.2%
All primary applications across Derbyshire council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Every first choice offered
Future places in the local planning area
DfE estimates the Ilkeston Primary planning area (Derbyshire) will have 349 spare primary places in 2027/28.
Source: Department for Education, School capacity: Academic year 2024/25 (published 19 March 2026), estimates of future school place demand by planning area. Council pupil forecasts against reported places, counting places councils and DfE plan to add or remove; rounded to whole places. Explore Education Statistics
Inspection History(7)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
72
SEN Support
8
EHC Plans
27.8%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
288
Total Pupils
133
Boys
155
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
15
Teachers
19.2:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£54,099
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£5,813
Per pupil
£1619k
Total funding
£111k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
5.4%
Overall absence
15.1%
Persistent absence
172
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
Secondary Schools Nearby
Secondary schools pupils are likely to move to
Charlotte Nursery and Infant School
Questions parents ask about Charlotte Nursery and Infant School
What is Charlotte Nursery and Infant School's Ofsted rating?
Charlotte Nursery and Infant School's most recent Ofsted inspection, in April 2025, was ungraded. At its last graded inspection, in February 2014, it was rated Outstanding.
Is it hard to get a place at Charlotte Nursery and Infant School?
Charlotte Nursery and Infant School was not full in 2025: it ran at 91% of its 270 places.
How big are the classes at Charlotte Nursery and Infant School?
Classes at Charlotte Nursery and Infant School average 26.6 pupils (2025/26). 1 class has more than 30 pupils.
How many pupils go to Charlotte Nursery and Infant School?
Charlotte Nursery and Infant School has around 288 pupils on roll. 27% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at Charlotte Nursery and Infant School?
5.4% of sessions were missed at Charlotte Nursery and Infant School in 2024/25. 15.1% of pupils were persistently absent.
Does Charlotte Nursery and Infant School have a breakfast club or after-school club?
Ofsted's childcare register lists an out-of-school club at the school: JPAC Ltd at Charlotte Nursery and Infant School (registered, not yet graded).
What are Charlotte Nursery and Infant School's term dates?
Charlotte Nursery and Infant School is a community school, so its term dates are set by Derbyshire. In 2026 to 2027: Autumn term: Friday 4 September to Friday 18 December 2026 (half term Monday 26 October to Friday 30 October 2026); Spring term: Monday 4 January to Thursday 25 March 2027 (half term Monday 15 February to Friday 19 February 2027); Summer term: Monday 12 April to Monday 26 July 2027 (half term Monday 31 May to Friday 4 June 2027). In 2027 to 2028: Autumn term: Monday 6 September to Wednesday 22 December 2027 (half term Monday 25 October to Friday 29 October 2027); Spring term: Thursday 6 January to Friday 7 April 2028 (half term Monday 21 February to Friday 25 February 2028); Summer term: Monday 24 April to Monday 24 July 2028 (half term Monday 29 May to Friday 2 June 2028).
How many road collisions happen near Charlotte Nursery and Infant School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 27 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 4 serious and 23 slight. 8 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 5 on foot, 1 on a bicycle and 2 in a vehicle or otherwise. 7 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included. The typical figure for schools in Derbyshire is 6 (the median across 454 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Charlotte Nursery and Infant School?
Charlotte Nursery and Infant School is at Trinity Close, Ilkeston, Derbyshire, DE7 8LQ.
Sources: Derbyshire term dates; Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)