Ysgol Penyffordd, Near Chester

Ysgol Penyffordd is an English-medium school in Wales. Welsh schools are inspected by Estyn rather than Ofsted, and its latest report is published on Estyn's website.

It had 346 pupils in the 2025/26 school census.

4% of pupils are eligible for free school meals (three-year average).

Of its pupils, 5% have additional learning needs (25% in 2020/21); and 5% are from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds.

Year groups range from 38 pupils (Year 1) to 50 (Year 5).

Its delegated budget for 2026-27 works out at £4,773 per pupil, against £3,870 in 2021-22. It carried forward £182k of reserves at the end of 2024-25.

Estyn's report on its June 2023 inspection summarises Ysgol Penyffordd like this:

"Nearly all pupils at Ysgol Penyffordd behave well, enjoy learning and feel proud of their school. Pupils feel safe and happy and develop strong working relationships with staff. Most pupils have positive attitudes and engage well in their learning. Most speak confidently and read for pleasure. Pupils approach challenging tasks confidently and use a range of strategies to help them learn. As a result, most pupils make good progress during their time at Ysgol Penyffordd."

"Staff work collaboratively to establish a calm and nurturing environment where they care about the wellbeing and the educational progress of all pupils. Teachers design a rich and varied curriculum. Pupils speak positively about having an influence over what they learn because teachers ask them to contribute when they plan topics. Staff make good use of the school environment to support pupils’ learning. The use of the outdoor learning areas is particularly strong across all classes and encourages pupils to be active learners. Teachers provide worthwhile opportunities for pupils to practise their literacy, numeracy and digital skills and apply these in rich and authentic tasks across the curriculum."

"However, teachers do not always plan enough opportunities for pupils to choose how to apply their writing skills independently. The headteacher provides clear strategic leadership. The school’s vision, mission and values are evident in the work of senior leaders, staff and governors. The headteacher has developed a strong team ethos where all staff feel valued and are passionate about providing a quality education for all pupils. Governors work well alongside senior leaders to carry out their statutory duties. However, governors do not have a secure enough understanding of pupils’ progress and standards."

Estyn made 2 recommendations: (1) Provide opportunities for pupils to decide how they respond to learning tasks, including how they organise and present their work; (2) Enable governors to develop their skills and knowledge to undertake their role as a critical friend.

The nearest other state primary schools to Ysgol Penyffordd are St Johns the Baptist V.A. Primary School (0.4 miles), Drury C.P. School (1.3 miles), Ysgol Derwen (1.8 miles) and Mountain Lane C.P. School (1.8 miles).

The nearest railway station is Penyffordd Rail Station, about 0.9 miles away in a straight line.

4 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Old Horse and Jockey (near), 280 metres away.