Thorney Close Primary School, Sunderland
Thorney Close Primary School is a primary school for pupils aged 3 to 11 in Sunderland. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in September 2023. Its 2025 Key Stage 2 results were the 25th-highest of the 43 schools in Sunderland with published results, and 6,288th of 14,452 across England. It was 89% full in 2025.
- SATs results
- In line with England
- Ofsted
- Good (2023)
- Demand
- Every first choice offered
- Attendance
- In line with England
Reception applications for September 2027 close in 75 days
Deadline Friday 15 January 2027. Apply to Sunderland (the council where you live). Offers on 16 April.
Data last updated 1 Nov 2026
Thorney Close Primary School in detail
Results
In 2025, 80% of Year 6 pupils at Thorney Close Primary School reached the expected standard in reading and 78% in maths. At the average state primary the figures were 77% and 78% in Sunderland and 77% and 75% across England.
Results were similar in 2024 (80% in reading, 80% in maths).
Getting a place at Thorney Close Primary School
For September 2026 entry, 33 families put Thorney Close Primary School as their first choice and 47 named it as one of their preferences, for 34 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 Thorney Close Primary School
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to Thorney Close Primary School are Hasting Hill Academy (0.4 miles, Good, 77% reading, 64% maths); Farringdon Academy (0.4 miles, Good, 69% reading, 74% maths); St Cuthbert's Catholic Primary School, Sunderland (0.6 miles, 78% reading, 81% maths); and Broadway Junior School (0.8 miles, Good, 67% reading, 74% maths).
Thorney Close Primary School's 2025 results were higher than 3 of these 4 schools.
Hasting Hill AcademyFarringdon AcademySt Cuthbert's Catholic Primary School, SunderlandBroadway Junior School
Who goes there
49.1% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well above the average state school (25%), and 10% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
Thorney Close Primary School has a resourced provision for hearing impairment: 9 places, 10 pupils on roll.
Staffing
Thorney Close 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 tram or metro stop is South Hylton (Tyne and Wear Metro Station), about 1.6 miles away in a straight line.
16 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is North Moor (n-bound), 200 metres away.
The area around the school
Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood Thorney Close Primary School stands in is among the 10% most deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.
In August 2026, police recorded 239 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, criminal damage and arson and anti-social behaviour. That is well above the typical figure around schools in Sunderland (148), as is usual near a town centre.
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, Thorney Close Primary School issued 4 suspensions, 1.4 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.
Secondary schools nearby
The secondary schools closest to Thorney Close Primary School are Sandhill View Academy (0.3 miles), Farringdon Community Academy (0.7 miles), Christ's College (0.9 miles) and Academy 360 (1.2 miles).
Sandhill View AcademyFarringdon Community AcademyChrist's CollegeAcademy 360
Sources: DfE school performance data (averages: state mainstream schools); DfE school-level applications and offers; council admissions booklets; DfE appeals statistics; 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
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 · 3 years agoOverall
Quality of Education
Behaviour & Attitudes
Personal Development
Leadership & Management
Early Years
Ofsted Insights
From Ofsted's September 2023 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
Thorney Close is a welcoming community where children feel safe and happy. Teachers have high expectations for all pupils and provide excellent support, especially for those who need extra help. Parents praise the school as 'a lovely school that feels like a community', with strong relationships between staff, pupils and families.
Key Strengths
- Excellent relationships and behaviour - pupils follow school rules consistently and treat each other with respect
- Effective teaching of early reading with carefully planned phonics and well-matched books that help pupils read fluently
- Strong support for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities, including those with hearing impairments who are fully integrated
- Ambitious, well-designed curriculum with memory joggers to help pupils retain important knowledge
- Outstanding personal development including mental health support, yoga, and a wide range of enrichment activities
Areas for Improvement
- Attendance - too many pupils are absent from school on a regular basis despite some school strategies
- Early years curriculum - in some areas, what children learn in nursery does not prepare them well enough for foundation subjects in Year 1
Safeguarding
Safeguarding arrangements are effective and the school has created an open and positive culture that puts pupils' interests first.
Extracurricular Activities
Beach school, trips to local landmarks, theatre visits, London visits, yoga, extra-curricular clubs
Thorney Close Primary School is a good school where pupils thrive in a happy and safe environment with exemplary behaviour and strong relationships. The school provides high-quality education with an ambitious curriculum that meets the needs of all pupils, including those with special educational needs.
At a Glance
49.1%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
Yes
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
Resourced provision: Hearing
SEN Provision
No
Special Measures
Primary Performance (KS2)
Academic year 2024/25KS2 Results (% meeting expected standard)
Reading has remained stable at around 80% (2024 to 2025). Maths has remained stable at around 78% (2024 to 2025). Writing has remained stable at around 73% (2024 to 2025).
Class Sizes
19.1
Avg class size
26.0
Infant (KS1)
21.0
KS2
9
Total classes
2025/26 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby primary schools
Keep up with Thorney Close Primary School
Nurseries
The nearest nurseries and pre-schools to Thorney Close Primary School, with their latest published grades:
- Little Angels Nursery - Day nursery, 0.3 milesOfsted, 4 December 2023: Good overall; safeguarding is effective
- Playdays 4 Kidz C.I.C - Day nursery, 0.7 milesOfsted, 16 November 2022: Good overall; safeguarding is effective
- Kids Planet Ettrick Grove - Day nursery, 0.8 milesOfsted report card, 18 August 2026: Strong standard in 6 areas; safeguarding standards met
- Helping Hands Childcare - Day nursery, 1.1 milesOfsted report card, 21 July 2026: Strong standard in 1 area, Expected standard in 5 areas; safeguarding standards met
- Helpinghands Childcare - Day nursery, 1.2 milesOfsted, 8 November 2024: Good overall; safeguarding is effective
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Thorney Close Primary School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Thorney Close Primary School is in Sunderland; for families living there:
Apply to Sunderland for free school transport. Its policy is on the council's website.
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 33
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 8
- Children hurt
- 7
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 33 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 8 serious and 25 slight.
7 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 3 on foot and 4 in a vehicle or otherwise.
7 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 Sunderland is 13 (the median across 125 schools, same distance and years).
Serious and slight are DfT estimates (severity adjustment). Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19), Open Government Licence v3.0.
Commute and house prices
Your chances of a place at Thorney Close Primary School
Will you get a place at Thorney Close Primary School?
For 2026 entry it had 33 first choices for 34 places. The report sets your home postcode against these figures.
£9.99 once (inc. VAT; £19.99 for up to three schools), or Pro £9 a month, every report included, cancel any time. What's in the report
Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
89%
Available places
248 pupils
280 places
32 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Across Sunderland council
Places available
3,430
Applications
2,737
Got 1st preference
95.0%
Got preferred school
98.2%
All primary applications across Sunderland council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Every first choice offered
Future places in the local planning area
DfE estimates the Primary Planning Area 9 planning area (Sunderland) will have 712 spare primary places in 2027/28.
Source: Department for Education, School capacity: Academic year 2024/25 (published 19 March 2026), estimates of future school place demand by planning area. Council pupil forecasts against reported places, counting places councils and DfE plan to add or remove; rounded to whole places. Explore Education Statistics
Inspection History(7)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
57
SEN Support
14
EHC Plans
24.6%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Thorney Close Primary School has a resourced provision for hearing impairment: 9 places, 10 pupils on roll.
Source: GIAS, Department for Education.
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
289
Total Pupils
161
Boys
128
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
18
Teachers
16.1:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£49,154
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£6,213
Per pupil
£1830k
Total funding
£200k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
6.0%
Overall absence
21.6%
Persistent absence
231
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
Thorney Close Primary School
Questions parents ask about Thorney Close Primary School
What are SATs results like at Thorney Close Primary School?
Of the pupils at Thorney Close Primary School who took the 2025 Key Stage 2 assessments, 80% reached the expected standard in reading and 78% did so in maths.
What is Thorney Close Primary School's Ofsted rating?
Thorney Close Primary School was rated Good at its most recent Ofsted inspection in September 2023.
Is it hard to get a place at Thorney Close Primary School?
Thorney Close Primary School was not full in 2025: it ran at 89% of its 280 places.
How big are the classes at Thorney Close Primary School?
Classes at Thorney Close Primary School average 19.1 pupils (2025/26).
How many pupils go to Thorney Close Primary School?
Thorney Close Primary School has around 289 pupils on roll. 49% are eligible for free school meals.
Does Thorney Close Primary School have specialist SEN provision?
Thorney Close Primary School has a resourced provision for hearing impairment: 9 places, 10 pupils on roll.
What is attendance like at Thorney Close Primary School?
6% of sessions were missed at Thorney Close Primary School in 2024/25. 21.6% of pupils were persistently absent.
How many road collisions happen near Thorney Close Primary School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 33 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 8 serious and 25 slight. 7 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 3 on foot and 4 in a vehicle or otherwise. 7 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 Sunderland is 13 (the median across 125 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Thorney Close Primary School?
Thorney Close Primary School is at Torquay Road, Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, SR3 4BB.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)