Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy, Newmarket
Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy is a primary school for pupils aged 4 to 11 in Newmarket, part of Unity Schools Partnership. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in November 2019. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in January 2025 did not change this grade. Its 2025 Key Stage 2 results were the 12th-highest of the 12 schools in Newmarket with published results, and 10,716th of 14,452 across England. It was 81% full in 2025.
- SATs results
- Below England average
- Ofsted
- Good (2019)
- Demand
- Every first choice offered
- Attendance
- In line with England
Reception applications for September 2027 close in 80 days
Deadline Friday 15 January 2027. Apply to Suffolk (the council where you live). Offers on 16 April.
Data last updated 27 Oct 2026
Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy in detail
Results
In 2025, 67% of Year 6 pupils at Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy reached the expected standard in reading and 71% in maths. At the average state primary the figures were 75% and 72% in Suffolk and 77% and 75% across England.
Results fell from 79% in reading and 84% in maths in 2024.
Getting a place at Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy
For September 2026 entry, 43 families put Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy as their first choice and 68 named it as one of their preferences, for 47 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 Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy are Paddocks Primary School (0.5 miles, Good, 71% reading, 82% maths); St Louis Catholic Academy (0.6 miles, Good, 83% reading, 69% maths); All Saints Church of England Primary School, Newmarket (0.6 miles, Good, 67% reading, 78% maths); and Ditton Lodge Primary School (0.8 miles, Good, 96% reading, 100% maths).
Each of them had higher 2025 results than Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy.
Paddocks Primary SchoolSt Louis Catholic AcademyAll Saints Church of England Primary School, NewmarketDitton Lodge Primary School
The trust
Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy is one of 40 schools run by Unity Schools Partnership, an academy trust.
Across the trust's primary schools, 70% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths in 2024/25.
What parents say
60 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy (as of September 2025): 92% would recommend the school, 95% say their child is happy there and 73% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.
The strongest agreement was that their child feels safe (97%); the weakest, that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (73%).
Who goes there
31.9% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
The largest ethnic groups are White British (58%), Asian (12%) and Mixed (11%).
Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy has a SEN unit for specific learning difficulties such as dyslexia and speech, language and communication needs: 18 places, 18 pupils on roll.
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Newmarket Rail Station, about 1010 metres away (roughly a 13-minute walk).
6 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is School (adjacent), 70 metres away.
The area around the school
In August 2026, police recorded 107 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, public order offences and shoplifting. That is well above the typical figure around schools in Suffolk (32), as is usual near a town centre.
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy issued 9 suspensions, 2.7 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.
Sources: DfE school performance data (averages: state mainstream schools); 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; 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 November 2019, 6 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
Latest (ungraded) inspection: The school has improved significantly.
Ofsted Insights
From Ofsted's January 2025 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
Your child will thrive in a caring school where teachers have very high expectations and provide personalised support tailored to their needs. Pupils enjoy excellent teaching, love coming to school, and achieve very well academically. The school also offers extensive enrichment activities to broaden interests and develop confidence, while maintaining exemplary behaviour through relentlessly positive encouragement.
Key Strengths
- Excellent quality of teaching with personalised support helps all pupils, including those joining after Reception, achieve very well
- Ambitious, broad curriculum is precisely designed to help pupils build and remember important knowledge over time
- Pupils with SEND receive exceptional support and successfully access the curriculum equally as their peers
- Staff are relentlessly positive in encouraging good behaviour, resulting in exemplary pupil conduct
- Extensive enrichment sessions each week broaden pupils' interests, from gymnastics to origami and podcast-making
Safeguarding
Safeguarding arrangements are effective, with leaders creating an open and positive culture that puts pupils' interests first.
Extracurricular Activities
Gymnastics, origami, podcast-making, dressing up events (such as ancient Egyptians theme), before and after-school provision
Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy is a primary school in Suffolk where pupils flourish and love learning. Evidence suggests the school's work has improved significantly across all areas since the previous inspection in 2019.
At a Glance
25.3%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
SEN unit: SpLD, Speech and language
SEN Provision
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
60 responsesSource: Ofsted Parent View, responses as at September 2025 - % who strongly agree or agree
Primary Performance (KS2)
Academic year 2024/25KS2 Results (% meeting expected standard)
Reading has declined from 79% to 67% (2024 to 2025). Maths has declined from 84% to 71% (2024 to 2025). Writing has declined from 84% to 67% (2024 to 2025).
Class Sizes
24.3
Avg class size
23.0
Infant (KS1)
25.4
KS2
13
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 Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy
Before and after school care
Clubs on Ofsted's childcare register at or near Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy.
- Premier Wraparound Care at St Louis Catholic Academy960m away · Not yet graded
Term dates
Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy is an academy, 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
Train Stations
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy 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
- 18
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 2
- Children hurt
- 2
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 18 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 2 serious and 16 slight.
2 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt.
4 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 Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy
Will you get a place at Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy:
- The straight-line distance from your home to Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy.
- We hold no last distance offered figures from Suffolk, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy for 2017 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
81%
Available places
339 pupils
420 places
81 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Newmarket
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Newmarket
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: Every first choice offered
Inspection History(2)
Ungraded inspection: The school has improved significantly.
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
47
SEN Support
19
EHC Plans
19.9%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy has a SEN unit for specific learning difficulties such as dyslexia and speech, language and communication needs: 18 places, 18 pupils on roll.
Source: GIAS, Department for Education.
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
332
Total Pupils
180
Boys
152
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
20
Teachers
16.6:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£49,631
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£5,218
Per pupil
£2068k
Total funding
£147k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
4.6%
Overall absence
10.9%
Persistent absence
321
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
Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy
Questions parents ask about Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy
What are SATs results like at Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy?
Of the pupils at Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy who took the 2025 Key Stage 2 assessments, 67% reached the expected standard in reading and 71% did so in maths.
What is Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy's Ofsted rating?
Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy's most recent Ofsted inspection, in January 2025, was ungraded, so it gave no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in November 2019, it was rated Good.
What is the catchment area for Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy?
No fixed boundary. When Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy is oversubscribed, Suffolk allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy?
Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy was not full in 2025: it ran at 81% of its 420 places.
How big are the classes at Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy?
Classes at Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy average 24.3 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 Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy?
Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy has around 332 pupils on roll. 25% are eligible for free school meals.
Does Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy have specialist SEN provision?
Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy has a SEN unit for specific learning difficulties such as dyslexia and speech, language and communication needs: 18 places, 18 pupils on roll.
What is attendance like at Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy?
4.6% of sessions were missed at Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy in 2024/25. 10.9% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy?
Apply through Suffolk's coordinated admissions process, naming Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy 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 Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy have a breakfast club or after-school club?
Ofsted's childcare register lists an out-of-school club within a kilometre of Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy: Premier Wraparound Care at St Louis Catholic Academy (960m away, 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 Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 18 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 2 serious and 16 slight. 2 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt. 4 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 Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy?
Houldsworth Valley Primary Academy is at Rowley Drive, Newmarket, Suffolk, CB8 0PU.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)