Denby Free CofE VA Primary School, Ripley
Data last updated 11 Sept 2026
Location
Estimated admission likelihood based on school density and oversubscription data
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Overall
Ofsted Insights
What This School Does Well
Denby Free CofE VA Primary School provides a warm, welcoming environment where your child will feel happy, safe and included. New leadership has brought positive direction and stability, with particularly strong early years provision and reading teaching. The school places great emphasis on your child's wellbeing and personal development, providing enriching opportunities and targeted support to help every child thrive.
Key Strengths
- Strong safeguarding culture with robust systems and clear responsibility
- Excellent early years provision with effective phonics and mathematics teaching
- Highly inclusive school that goes above and beyond to support vulnerable and disadvantaged pupils
- Effective pastoral support and enriching personal development programme
- Consistent strength in reading achievement with fluent, confident readers
Areas for Improvement
- Mathematics curriculum lacks coherence and does not build effectively on early foundations
- Teaching quality is variable and inconsistencies exist in checking pupils' understanding, particularly in handwriting, spelling and number knowledge
- Support strategies for pupils with emotional barriers are not consistently applied by all staff
- Systems for supporting pupils with SEND are new and not yet fully embedded across the school
Safeguarding
Safeguarding standards are met effectively with leaders fulfilling their responsibilities, establishing an open culture where safeguarding is everyone's responsibility, and pupils are made safer and feel safe.
Extracurricular Activities
Clubs, sporting competitions, trips to places of interest
Denby Free CofE VA Primary School has settled under new leadership following previous turbulence and is making improvements in key areas. The school provides a warm, inclusive environment where pupils are happy and safe, though some inconsistencies in teaching and curriculum delivery are hindering achievement.
At a Glance
9.7%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
Primary Performance (KS2)
Academic year 2025/26KS2 Results (% meeting expected standard)
Reading has remained stable at around 85%. Maths has declined from 85% to 80%. Writing has improved from 77% to 90%.
Class Sizes
23.0
Avg class size
19.0
Infant (KS1)
25.7
KS2
5
Total classes
2024/25 academic year
Getting There
Bus Stops
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Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
81%
Available places
113 pupils
140 capacity
27 spare places available
Area Demand Pressure - Ripley
Based on MHCLG housing supply data for Ripley
Admissions Demand - Derbyshire
Places available
9,886
Applications
7,225
Got 1st preference
96.4%
Got preferred school
99.2%
Primary admissions across Derbyshire (2025/26)
Inspection History(107)
House Prices
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SEN Provision
How many pupils have special educational needs, what types of support the school provides, and how it compares to similar schools.
Pupil Demographics
The school's pupil mix - ethnicity breakdown, free school meals eligibility, and English as an additional language. Useful context when evaluating school fit.
Teachers & Staff
Teacher qualification rates, pupil-to-teacher ratio, staff turnover, and salary data. Shows how well-resourced and stable the school's workforce is.
School Funding
Annual funding per pupil, total budget, pupil premium grants, and how the school's resources compare to similar schools nationally.
Pupil Absence2024/25
4.55813%
Overall absence
5.76923%
Persistent absence
104
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
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Secondary Schools Nearby
Secondary schools pupils are likely to move to
Denby Free CofE VA Primary School
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