Grace Cook Primary School, Stowmarket
Grace Cook Primary School is a primary school for pupils aged 2 to 11 in Stowmarket, part of Orwell Multi Academy Trust. For 2026 entry it had 1.3 first-choice applications for every place. It was 50% full in 2025.
- Demand
- Oversubscribed
- Attendance
- In line with England
Reception applications for September 2027 close in 81 days
Deadline Friday 15 January 2027. Apply to Suffolk (the council where you live). Offers on 16 April.
Data last updated 26 Oct 2026
Grace Cook Primary School in detail
Grace Cook Primary School in its own words
From the headteacher's welcome: "Hello, my name is Mrs Mayes, and I'm the Headteacher for Grace Cook Primary School and Nursery, which opened in September 2022. As the Headteacher of Grace Cook Primary School and Nursery, my commitment is to ensure that every child feels excited and inspired to come to school each day."
The school runs after-school care.
Headteacher's welcome (school website)Wraparound care (school website)
Source: The school's own website
Getting a place at Grace Cook Primary School
For September 2026 entry, 37 families put Grace Cook Primary School as their first choice and 98 named it as one of their preferences, for 29 places offered. That is 1.3 first choices for every place. 8 families who put it first were not offered a place there.
Admissions history and your chances at Grace Cook Primary School
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to Grace Cook Primary School are Wood Ley Community Primary School (0.4 miles, Good, 60% reading, 76% maths); Chilton Community Primary School (0.7 miles, 86% reading, 73% maths); Abbot's Hall Community Primary School (1.1 miles, 81% reading, 78% maths); and Cedars Park Community Primary School (1.6 miles, Good, 85% reading, 79% maths).
Wood Ley Community Primary SchoolChilton Community Primary SchoolAbbot's Hall Community Primary SchoolCedars Park Community Primary School
The trust
Grace Cook Primary School is one of 7 schools run by Orwell Multi Academy Trust, an academy trust.
Across the trust's primary schools, 59% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths in 2024/25.
What parents say
47 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about Grace Cook Primary School (as of September 2025): 83% would recommend the school, 94% say their child is happy there and 71% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.
The strongest agreement was that their child feels safe (96%); the weakest, that the school supports their child's wider development (68%).
Who goes there
9.9% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well below the average state school (25%), and 3.9% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
The largest ethnic groups are White British (80%) and Mixed (11%).
Staffing
Grace Cook Primary School had 11 teachers in 2026, one for every 10 pupils: more teachers per pupil than a typical primary school, at about one for every 20.
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Entrance2, about 1.2 miles away in a straight line.
9 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Golding Way (opposite), 120 metres away.
The area around the school
Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood Grace Cook Primary School stands in is among the 10% least deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, Grace Cook Primary School issued 12 suspensions, 6.6 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and 1 permanent exclusion.
Sources: DfE school-level applications and offers; council admissions booklets; DfE appeals statistics; DfE multi-academy trust performance data; Ofsted Parent View; DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; DfE school workforce census; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); data.police.uk street-level crime; DfE exclusions statistics
Location
Our estimate from how close the nearest similar schools are and how oversubscribed the council's schools are. It is not a published boundary.
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 2 years agoOverall
Quality of Education
Behaviour & Attitudes
Personal Development
Leadership & Management
Early Years
Ofsted Insights
From Ofsted's February 2025 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
Grace Cook Primary School excels at creating a safe, caring community where children thrive as curious learners. The early years provision is outstanding, with children receiving an excellent start through rich activities and strong focus on communication skills. Reading is taught exceptionally well by highly trained staff, and pupils with additional needs receive excellent support so they learn and achieve alongside their classmates.
Key Strengths
- Outstanding early years provision with excellent preparation for key stage 1 - children benefit from rich activities and strong focus on vocabulary and communication skills
- Excellent reading programme with well-trained staff who identify struggling readers early and provide quick support - pupils are enthusiastic and fluent readers
- Strong behaviour and attitudes - pupils model high expectations, support younger children through play leader programmes, and learn in a calm, purposeful environment
- Effective support for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities - the school has increased capacity and staff adapt learning activities well so these pupils achieve with their classmates
- High priority on attendance with improved attendance rates as pupils value their learning
Areas for Improvement
- Curriculum in some subjects lacks precise identification of knowledge pupils need to learn, meaning teachers do not consistently deliver the intended curriculum and pupils could develop gaps in knowledge
- Leaders do not consistently assess how well the curriculum is being delivered across different subject areas, so the school cannot evaluate its full impact
- Not all leaders have the understanding needed to complete rigorous and accurate checks of their areas of responsibility
Safeguarding
Safeguarding arrangements are effective, with the school creating an open and positive culture that puts pupils' interests first.
Extracurricular Activities
Play leader programme, educational visits to food museum and Colchester Zoo
Grace Cook Primary School is a new academy that opened in September 2022 and has developed a strong culture with high aspirations for its pupils. The school provides a safe, caring community where pupils are encouraged to be curious learners and achieve well.
At a Glance
9.9%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
Yes
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
47 responsesSource: Ofsted Parent View, responses as at September 2025 - % who strongly agree or agree
Class Sizes
24.7
Avg class size
30.0
Infant (KS1)
16.7
KS2
7
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 Grace Cook Primary School
Before and after school care
Clubs on Ofsted's childcare register at or near Grace Cook Primary School.
- Kicks and Tricks at Grace CookAt the school · Not yet graded
Term dates
Grace Cook Primary School is a free school, so it sets its own term dates: check the school's website. As a guide, see Suffolk's term dates for its community schools.
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Grace Cook Primary School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Grace Cook Primary School is in Suffolk; for families living there:
Apply to Suffolk for free school transport. Its policy is on the council's website.
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 2
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 0
- Children hurt
- 1
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 2 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 0 serious and 2 slight.
1 child aged 0 to 15 was hurt: 1 on a bicycle.
0 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 Suffolk is 4 (the median across 365 schools, same distance and years).
Serious and slight counts use the Department for Transport's severity adjustment, which allows for changes in how police forces record injuries; they are estimates, rounded to whole numbers. Distances are in a straight line. Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19), Open Government Licence v3.0.
Commute and house prices
Your chances of a place at Grace Cook Primary School
Will you get a place at Grace Cook Primary School? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against Grace Cook Primary School's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for Grace Cook Primary School:
- The straight-line distance from your home to Grace Cook Primary School.
- We hold no last distance offered figures from Suffolk, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at Grace Cook Primary School for 2023 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in Suffolk got their first choice, and how often appeals there succeed.
- The nearest state schools to your home, with Ofsted rating, demand and last distance offered where published.
- Key dates for September 2027 entry and how to apply.
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Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
50%
Available places
106 pupils
210 places
104 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Stowmarket
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Stowmarket
Across Suffolk council
Places available
8,806
Applications
6,492
Got 1st preference
94.9%
Got preferred school
99.1%
All primary applications across Suffolk council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Oversubscribed
Inspection History
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
29
SEN Support
8
EHC Plans
18.2%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
203
Total Pupils
111
Boys
92
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
11
Teachers
18.5:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£46,863
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£5,835
Per pupil
£839k
Total funding
£14k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
4.9%
Overall absence
12.5%
Persistent absence
80
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
Grace Cook Primary School
Questions parents ask about Grace Cook Primary School
What is the catchment area for Grace Cook Primary School?
No fixed boundary. When Grace Cook Primary School is oversubscribed, Suffolk allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at Grace Cook Primary School?
Grace Cook Primary School was not full in 2025: it ran at 50% of its 210 places.
How big are the classes at Grace Cook Primary School?
Classes at Grace Cook Primary School average 24.7 pupils (2025/26). 1 class has more than 30 pupils - infant classes are capped at 30 by law, with limited exceptions.
How many pupils go to Grace Cook Primary School?
Grace Cook Primary School has around 203 pupils on roll. 10% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at Grace Cook Primary School?
4.9% of sessions were missed at Grace Cook Primary School in 2024/25. 12.5% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Grace Cook Primary School?
Apply through Suffolk's coordinated admissions process, naming Grace Cook Primary School on your application. Applications for Reception places starting in September 2027 close on Friday 15 January 2027, and offers are made on Friday 16 April 2027.
Does Grace Cook Primary School have a breakfast club or after-school club?
Ofsted's childcare register lists an out-of-school club at the school: Kicks and Tricks at Grace Cook (registered, not yet graded). The school may also run its own clubs, which don't have to register with Ofsted.
How many road collisions happen near Grace Cook Primary School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 2 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 0 serious and 2 slight. 1 child aged 0 to 15 was hurt: 1 on a bicycle. 0 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 Suffolk is 4 (the median across 365 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Grace Cook Primary School?
Grace Cook Primary School is at Fuller Way, Stowmarket, Suffolk, IP14 1GG.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)