St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton, Leek
St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton is a primary school for pupils aged 3 to 9 in Leek, part of Staffordshire University Academies Trust. It has a Church of England religious character. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in September 2013. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in January 2025 did not change this grade. It was 67% full in 2025.
- Ofsted
- Good (2013)
- Demand
- Every first choice offered
- Attendance
- Better than England average
Reception applications for September 2027 close in 80 days
Deadline Friday 15 January 2027. Apply to Staffordshire (the council where you live). Offers on 16 April.
Data last updated 27 Oct 2026
St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton in detail
St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton in its own words
In its own words: "At St. Edward’s CE Academy, we are determined to create an inclusive culture of learning where all children will be challenged in their thinking whilst still following our church school vision which is - We will teach wisdom, model and expect respect for all."
Clubs and activities named on the school's website include Lego and art.
The school runs after-school care.
Vision and values (school website)Clubs (school website)Wraparound care (school website)
Source: The school's own website
Getting a place at St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton
For September 2026 entry, 27 families put St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton as their first choice and 39 named it as one of their preferences, for 27 places offered. That is one first choice for every place. Every family who put it first was offered a place there for 2026 entry.
Admissions history and your chances at St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton are St John's CofE Primary School (1.8 miles, Good, 72% reading, 80% maths); Woodcroft Academy (2.2 miles, Good); All Saints CofE First School (2.4 miles, Good); and St Mary's Catholic Academy (2.6 miles, Good, 93% reading, 100% maths).
St John's CofE Primary SchoolWoodcroft AcademyAll Saints CofE First SchoolSt Mary's Catholic Academy
The trust
St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton is one of 21 schools run by Staffordshire University Academies Trust, an academy trust.
Across the trust's primary schools, 68% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths in 2024/25.
What parents say
88 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton (as of September 2025): 96% would recommend the school, 98% say their child is happy there and 75% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.
The strongest agreement was that their child feels safe (98%); the weakest, that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (75%).
Who goes there
3% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well below the average state school (25%), and 0% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
In 2026, 21 pupils (10.5%) received SEN support and 2 (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.
Getting there
The nearest tram or metro stop is Cheddleton (Churnet Valley Railway), about 0.8 miles away in a straight line.
4 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Ox Pasture (opposite), 270 metres away.
The area around the school
In August 2026, police recorded 15 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, anti-social behaviour and drug offences. That is well below the typical figure around schools in Staffordshire (86).
Suspensions and exclusions
St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton recorded no suspensions or permanent exclusions in 2024/25.
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; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); data.police.uk street-level crime; DfE exclusions statistics
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 2 years agoThis judgement is from September 2013, 13 years ago, longer than Ofsted's usual 4-year cycle: the school may have changed since.
Overall
Latest (ungraded) inspection: The school has improved significantly.
Ofsted Insights
From Ofsted's January 2025 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
St Edward's excels at creating a nurturing environment where staff know pupils exceptionally well both academically and personally. The school delivers a rich, well-structured curriculum with precision, ensuring pupils develop deep knowledge across all subjects. Pupils thrive thanks to the school's strong values, excellent behaviour support, and carefully planned personal development opportunities that prepare them well for later life.
Key Strengths
- Exceptionally well-designed curriculum with clear focus on important knowledge and vocabulary that pupils build progressively
- Outstanding phonics outcomes with pupils becoming fluent readers who love reading
- Inclusive approach that supports pupils with SEND to achieve well alongside their peers
- Strong values-based culture where pupils are attentive in class and cooperative outside
- Personal development opportunities carefully threaded through curriculum including clubs and enrichment activities
Safeguarding
Safeguarding arrangements are effective with leaders creating an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils' interests first.
Extracurricular Activities
Photography, gardening, songbirds, forestry, pupil council, subject ambassadors, school library visits, city visits, charitable acts, interviews, before and after-school club
St Edward's is a school where everyone is 'learning and caring together' with staff, pupils, parents and carers all committed to this motto. Evidence suggests the school's work may have improved significantly across all areas since the previous inspection.
At a Glance
3.0%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
Yes
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
88 responsesSource: Ofsted Parent View, responses as at September 2025 - % who strongly agree or agree
Class Sizes
25.0
Avg class size
22.2
Infant (KS1)
34.5
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 St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton
Term dates
St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton is an academy, so it sets its own term dates: check the school's website. As a guide, see Staffordshire's term dates for its community schools.
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton is in Staffordshire; for families living there:
Apply to Staffordshire for free school transport. Its policy is on the council's website.
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 3
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 0
- Children hurt
- 0
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 3 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 0 serious and 3 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 Staffordshire is 5 (the median across 457 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 St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton
Will you get a place at St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton:
- The straight-line distance from your home to St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton.
- Staffordshire publishes last distance offered figures, but none for St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton that we hold, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton for 2017 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in Staffordshire 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
67%
Available places
167 pupils
250 places
83 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Leek
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Leek
Across Staffordshire council
Places available
10,768
Applications
8,344
Got 1st preference
95.1%
Got preferred school
99.1%
All primary applications across Staffordshire council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Every first choice offered
Inspection History(3)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
21
SEN Support
2
EHC Plans
11.5%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
200
Total Pupils
110
Boys
90
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
10
Teachers
20.0:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£48,404
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£4,989
Per pupil
£915k
Total funding
£9k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
3.2%
Overall absence
6.3%
Persistent absence
127
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
Questions parents ask about St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton
What is St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton's Ofsted rating?
St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton's most recent Ofsted inspection, in January 2025, was ungraded, so it gave no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in September 2013, it was rated Good.
What is the catchment area for St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton?
No fixed boundary. When St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton is oversubscribed, Staffordshire allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton?
St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton was not full in 2025: it ran at 67% of its 250 places.
How big are the classes at St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton?
Classes at St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton average 25 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 St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton?
St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton has around 200 pupils on roll. 3% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton?
3.2% of sessions were missed at St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton in 2024/25. 6.3% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton?
Apply through Staffordshire's coordinated admissions process, naming St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton 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.
How many road collisions happen near St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 3 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 0 serious and 3 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 Staffordshire is 5 (the median across 457 schools, same distance and years).
Where is St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton?
St Edward's CofE Academy Cheddleton is at Hollow Lane, Cheddleton, Leek, Staffordshire, ST13 7HP.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)