Richard Whittington Primary School, Bishop's Stortford
Richard Whittington Primary School is a primary school for pupils aged 3 to 11 in Bishop's Stortford, part of Ivy Learning Trust. Its 2025 Key Stage 2 results were the 5th-highest of the 22 schools in Bishop's Stortford with published results, and 1,291st of 14,452 across England. For 2026 entry it had 1.5 first-choice applications for every place. It was 97% full in 2025.
- SATs results
- Above England average
- Demand
- 1.5 first choices per place
- Attendance
- In line with England
Reception applications for September 2027 close in 81 days
Deadline Friday 15 January 2027. Apply to Hertfordshire (the council where you live). Offers on 16 April.
Data last updated 26 Oct 2026
Richard Whittington Primary School in detail
Results
In 2025, 89% of Year 6 pupils at Richard Whittington Primary School reached the expected standard in reading and 93% in maths. At the average state primary the figures were 79% and 76% in Hertfordshire and 77% and 75% across England.
Getting a place at Richard Whittington Primary School
For September 2026 entry, 46 families put Richard Whittington Primary School as their first choice and 133 named it as one of their preferences, for 30 places offered. That is 1.5 first choices for every place. 16 families who put it first were not offered a place there.
Admissions history and your chances at Richard Whittington Primary School
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to Richard Whittington Primary School are Thorley Hill Primary School (0.3 miles, Good, 97% reading, 90% maths); Manor Fields Primary School (0.6 miles, Good, 93% reading, 90% maths); St Joseph's Catholic Primary School B/S (0.8 miles, Good, 92% reading, 92% maths); and St Michael's Church of England Primary School (0.8 miles, Good, 77% reading, 74% maths).
Richard Whittington Primary School's 2025 results were higher than 1 of these 4 schools.
Thorley Hill Primary SchoolManor Fields Primary SchoolSt Joseph's Catholic Primary School B/SSt Michael's Church of England Primary School
The trust
Richard Whittington Primary School is one of 17 schools run by Ivy Learning Trust, an academy trust.
Across the trust's primary schools, 74% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths in 2024/25.
Who goes there
14.7% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well below the average state school (25%), and 12.1% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
The largest ethnic groups are White British (74%) and Mixed (11%).
In 2026, 26 pupils (9.5%) received SEN support and 14 (5.1%) 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 social, emotional and mental health needs.
Staffing
Richard Whittington Primary School had 18 teachers in 2026, one for every 14 pupils: more teachers per pupil than a typical primary school, at about one for every 20.
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Bishop's Stortford Rail Station, about 0.9 miles away in a straight line.
7 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is The Colts (adjacent), 210 metres away.
The area around the school
Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood Richard Whittington 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, Richard Whittington Primary School issued 5 suspensions, 1.7 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.
Secondary schools nearby
The secondary schools closest to Richard Whittington Primary School are The Bishop's Stortford High School (0.5 miles), TLC Live Online School (0.7 miles), St Mary's Catholic School (1 mile) and The Hertfordshire & Essex High School and Science College (1.1 miles).
The Bishop's Stortford High SchoolTLC Live Online SchoolSt Mary's Catholic SchoolThe Hertfordshire & Essex High School and Science College
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; 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
Richard Whittington Primary School has not been inspected by Ofsted since it took its current form in September 2024. Before that, as Richard Whittington Primary School (URN 117346), it was rated Good in March 2016.
At a Glance
14.7%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
Yes
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
Primary Performance (KS2)
Academic year 2024/25KS2 Results (% meeting expected standard)
2024/25 academic year
Class Sizes
29.3
Avg class size
30.0
Infant (KS1)
30.2
KS2
8
Total classes
2 classes with more than 30 pupils
2025/26 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby primary schools
Keep up with Richard Whittington Primary School
Before and after school care
Clubs on Ofsted's childcare register at or near Richard Whittington Primary School.
- Happy Hippos Out of School ClubAt the school · Not yet graded
- Funzone Out of School & Holiday Club980m away · Not yet graded
Term dates
Richard Whittington Primary School is an academy, so it sets its own term dates: check the school's website. As a guide, see Hertfordshire's term dates for its community schools.
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Richard Whittington Primary School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Richard Whittington Primary School is in Hertfordshire; for families living there:
- Hertfordshire's school travel policy: Read the home to school transport policy
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 2
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 0
- Children hurt
- 0
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.
No children aged 0 to 15 were among the people hurt.
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 Hertfordshire is 9 (the median across 590 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 Richard Whittington Primary School
Will you get a place at Richard Whittington Primary School? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against Richard Whittington Primary School's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for Richard Whittington Primary School:
- The straight-line distance from your home to Richard Whittington Primary School.
- We hold no last distance offered figures from Hertfordshire, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at Richard Whittington Primary School for 2025 and 2026 entry.
- How many families in Hertfordshire 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
97%
Near capacity
253 pupils
262 places
9 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Bishop's Stortford
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Bishop's Stortford
Across Hertfordshire council
Places available
14,776
Applications
12,543
Got 1st preference
89.1%
Got preferred school
98.4%
All primary applications across Hertfordshire council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: 1.5 first choices per place
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
26
SEN Support
14
EHC Plans
14.7%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
273
Total Pupils
150
Boys
123
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
18
Teachers
15.2:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£49,196
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£5,383
Per pupil
£1509k
Total funding
£62k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
5.0%
Overall absence
11.7%
Persistent absence
230
Enrolments
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
Secondary Schools Nearby
Secondary schools pupils are likely to move to
Questions parents ask about Richard Whittington Primary School
What are SATs results like at Richard Whittington Primary School?
Of the pupils at Richard Whittington Primary School who took the 2025 Key Stage 2 assessments, 89% reached the expected standard in reading and 93% did so in maths.
What is Richard Whittington Primary School's Ofsted rating?
Richard Whittington Primary School has not been inspected by Ofsted since it took its current form in September 2024. Before that, as Richard Whittington Primary School (URN 117346), it was rated Good in March 2016.
What is the catchment area for Richard Whittington Primary School?
No fixed boundary. When Richard Whittington Primary School is oversubscribed, Hertfordshire allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at Richard Whittington Primary School?
Richard Whittington Primary School was close to full in 2025, at 97% of its capacity.
How big are the classes at Richard Whittington Primary School?
Classes at Richard Whittington Primary School average 29.3 pupils (2025/26). 2 classes have more than 30 pupils - infant classes are capped at 30 by law, with limited exceptions.
How many pupils go to Richard Whittington Primary School?
Richard Whittington Primary School has around 273 pupils on roll. 15% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at Richard Whittington Primary School?
5% of sessions were missed at Richard Whittington Primary School in 2024/25. 11.7% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Richard Whittington Primary School?
Apply through Hertfordshire's coordinated admissions process, naming Richard Whittington 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 Richard Whittington Primary School have a breakfast club or after-school club?
Ofsted's childcare register lists an out-of-school club at the school: Happy Hippos Out of School Club (registered, not yet graded). There is another within a kilometre. The school may also run its own clubs, which don't have to register with Ofsted.
How many road collisions happen near Richard Whittington 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. No children aged 0 to 15 were among the people hurt. 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 Hertfordshire is 9 (the median across 590 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Richard Whittington Primary School?
Richard Whittington Primary School is at Thornbera Gardens, Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire, CM23 3NP.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)