Willows Academy, Grimsby
Willows Academy is a primary school for pupils aged 3 to 11 in Grimsby, part of Delta Academies Trust. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in March 2015. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in November 2024 did not change this grade. Its 2025 Key Stage 2 results were the 20th-highest of the 34 schools in Grimsby with published results, and 7,614th of 14,452 across England. It was 80% full in 2025.
- SATs results
- In line with England
- Ofsted
- Good (2015)
- Demand
- Every first choice offered
- Attendance
- In line with England
Reception applications for September 2027 close in 81 days
Deadline Friday 15 January 2027. Apply to North East Lincolnshire (the council where you live). Offers on 16 April.
Data last updated 26 Oct 2026
Willows Academy in detail
Results
In 2025, 71% of Year 6 pupils at Willows Academy reached the expected standard in reading and 82% in maths. At the average state primary the figures were 75% and 77% in North East Lincolnshire and 77% and 75% across England.
Results rose from 69% in reading and 69% in maths in 2024.
With small year groups, a few pupils can move these figures by several points.
Getting a place at Willows Academy
For September 2026 entry, 20 families put Willows Academy as their first choice and 35 named it as one of their preferences, for 20 places offered. That is one first choice for every place. Every family who put it first was offered a place there for 2026 entry.
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to Willows Academy are Great Coates Primary School (0.4 miles, Good, 90% reading, 80% maths); Wybers Wood Academy (0.5 miles, Good, 91% reading, 91% maths); Yarborough Academy (0.5 miles, Good, 72% reading, 67% maths); and Grange Primary School (0.8 miles, Good, 48% reading, 69% maths).
Willows Academy's 2025 results were higher than 2 of these 4 schools.
Great Coates Primary SchoolWybers Wood AcademyYarborough AcademyGrange Primary School
The trust
Willows Academy is one of 64 schools run by Delta Academies Trust, an academy trust.
Across the trust's primary schools, 73% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths in 2024/25.
What parents say
28 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about Willows Academy (as of September 2025): 82% would recommend the school, 93% say their child is happy there and 29% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.
The strongest agreement was that their child is happy at the school (93%); the weakest, that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (29%).
Who goes there
9.2% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
In 2026, 28 pupils (15.2%) received SEN support and 14 (7.6%) 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 speech, language and communication needs.
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Great Coates Rail Station, about 910 metres away (roughly a 11-minute walk).
9 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is The Willows (adjacent), 230 metres away.
The area around the school
Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood Willows Academy stands in is among the 20% most deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, Willows Academy issued 1 suspension, 0.5 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.
Secondary schools nearby
The secondary schools closest to Willows Academy are John Whitgift Academy (0.4 miles) and Healing Academy (1.7 miles).
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 March 2015, 11 years ago, longer than Ofsted's usual 4-year cycle: the school may have changed since.
Overall
Latest (ungraded) inspection: Standards have been maintained.
Ofsted Insights
From Ofsted's November 2024 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
Willows Academy creates a safe, caring environment where all pupils are valued and supported. The school excels at teaching reading and has expertly trained staff who ensure pupils quickly develop strong reading skills. Leadership is ambitious for all pupils, particularly those with additional needs, and the school successfully maintains excellent attendance and positive behaviour through high expectations and strong relationships with families.
Key Strengths
- Exceptional reading achievement - pupils read with accuracy and fluency, with expertly trained staff delivering daily phonics lessons
- Strong pastoral care and behaviour - pupils are kind and considerate, bullying is rare, and attendance is consistently above national levels
- Excellent support for pupils with SEND - needs are identified quickly and staff receive targeted training
- Well-designed curriculum that builds knowledge logically and helps pupils retain learning securely
- Highly effective programme for wider personal development, preparing pupils well for life in modern Britain
Areas for Improvement
- Early writing curriculum needs improvement - pupils do not get sufficient practice in letter formation, spelling, and basic sentence construction before attempting complex writing tasks
- Key Stage 1 pupils making consistent errors with letter formation and spelling due to limited practice opportunities
Safeguarding
Safeguarding arrangements are effective, with strong relationships between staff and pupils ensuring they feel supported and know adults will listen to their concerns.
Extracurricular Activities
Reading ambassadors, well-being warriors, Delta Stars programme, variety of clubs and enrichment activities
Willows Academy is a safe and caring primary school where pupils achieve well across most subjects, with particularly strong performance in reading. The school has maintained its good standards and continues to provide an inclusive, ambitious curriculum for all pupils.
At a Glance
32.1%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
Yes
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
28 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 remained stable at around 71% (2024 to 2025). Maths has improved from 69% to 82% (2024 to 2025). Writing has declined from 85% to 79% (2024 to 2025).
Class Sizes
23.0
Avg class size
22.0
Infant (KS1)
25.8
KS2
8
Total classes
2025/26 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby primary schools
Keep up with Willows Academy
Before and after school care
Willows Academy is on the Department for Education's free breakfast clubs programme (list updated July 2026), which pays for a free breakfast club for pupils before school. Source: Free breakfast clubs: schools on the programme, Department for Education Free breakfast clubs in North East Lincolnshire
Term dates
Willows Academy is an academy, so it sets its own term dates: check the school's website. As a guide, see North East Lincolnshire's term dates for its community schools.
Getting There
Train Stations
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Willows Academy from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Willows Academy is in North East Lincolnshire; for families living there:
- North East Lincolnshire's school travel policy: Home-to-School Transport Policy 2027 -2028
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 12
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 5
- Children hurt
- 5
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 12 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 5 serious and 7 slight.
5 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 2 on foot and 3 on a bicycle.
2 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 North East Lincolnshire is 19 (the median across 73 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 Willows Academy
Will you get a place at Willows Academy? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against Willows Academy's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for Willows Academy:
- The straight-line distance from your home to Willows Academy.
- We hold no last distance offered figures from North East Lincolnshire, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at Willows Academy for 2014 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in North East Lincolnshire 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
80%
Available places
167 pupils
210 places
43 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Grimsby
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Grimsby
Across North East Lincolnshire council
Places available
2,175
Applications
1,358
Got 1st preference
97.4%
Got preferred school
99.6%
All primary applications across North East Lincolnshire council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Every first choice offered
Inspection History(3)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
28
SEN Support
14
EHC Plans
22.8%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
184
Total Pupils
90
Boys
94
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
9
Teachers
20.4:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£45,153
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£6,237
Per pupil
£1199k
Total funding
£92k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
5.0%
Overall absence
12.9%
Persistent absence
155
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
Willows Academy
Questions parents ask about Willows Academy
What are SATs results like at Willows Academy?
Of the pupils at Willows Academy who took the 2025 Key Stage 2 assessments, 71% reached the expected standard in reading and 82% did so in maths.
What is Willows Academy's Ofsted rating?
Willows Academy's most recent Ofsted inspection, in November 2024, was ungraded, so it gave no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in March 2015, it was rated Good.
What is the catchment area for Willows Academy?
No fixed boundary. When Willows Academy is oversubscribed, North East Lincolnshire allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at Willows Academy?
Willows Academy was not full in 2025: it ran at 80% of its 210 places.
How big are the classes at Willows Academy?
Classes at Willows Academy average 23 pupils (2025/26).
How many pupils go to Willows Academy?
Willows Academy has around 184 pupils on roll. 32% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at Willows Academy?
5% of sessions were missed at Willows Academy in 2024/25. 12.9% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Willows Academy?
Apply through North East Lincolnshire's coordinated admissions process, naming Willows 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 Willows Academy have a breakfast club or after-school club?
Willows Academy is on the Department for Education's free breakfast clubs programme (list updated July 2026), which pays for a free breakfast club for pupils before school.
How many road collisions happen near Willows Academy?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 12 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 5 serious and 7 slight. 5 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 2 on foot and 3 on a bicycle. 2 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 North East Lincolnshire is 19 (the median across 73 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Willows Academy?
Willows Academy is at Queensway, Grimsby, Lincolnshire, DN37 9AT.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)