Parents of children as young as three will be starting to consider which local primary school will be the best fit for their child.
Applications for a place at a state-funded primary school for the 2026/27 academic year are open now. Across North Yorkshire, families have until January 15 to get these in to the council for young children set to enter Reception classes next year. Offers will then be sent out a few months later, on April 16.
Starting school is a gargantuan task for parents, who will not only need to make sure their child is mentally, socially and emotionally ready, but will have to scout out open days and pick out their preferred schools. Each will have its own unique strengths, but to help out, we’ve taken a look at the top-performing state primary schools across the Scarborough and Whitby parliamentary constituency area using our own special metric.
The key figure it uses is the proportion of each school’s pupils that completed Year 6 in the most recently-available school year (currently 2023/24), and met the Government’s expected standards in three essential skills; reading, writing and maths.
We’ve only included schools above the North Yorkshire Council area’s average, and it’s worth noting that the data for the area’s smallest primary schools is suppressed by the Department for Education to protect the individual privacy of pupils. Where several had the same percentage of young learners reach this target, they have been ordered alphabetically.
But performance isn’t the only measure of a great school environment, so we’ve also limited the list to schools with a positive rating in their most recent Ofsted inspection. These will be changing soon, but for now, schools must have either a ‘good’ or ‘outstanding’ overall grade under the previous system, or positive ratings across all categories under the more recent one. This means that quality of education, student behaviour and attitudes, school leadership and management, and safeguarding practices all met or exceeded official standards.
Here were the 10 local schools which made the list.
1. Castleton Primary School
At the top of the list is this primary academy in the village of Castleton, west of Whitby. It has a roll size of about 52, and in a recent Ofsted inspection, was found to be ‘outstanding’ in all categories. In the 2023/24 school year, 78% of its pupils met the Government’s expected standards in reading, writing, and maths – compared to averages of 58% locally and 61% nationally. | Google
2. St Peter's Catholic Primary School
Next up is St Peter’s, a Catholic primary academy in Scarborough’s Barrowcliff area. It has a roll size of about 207, and was most recently rated ‘good’ overall by Ofsted. In the 2023/24 school year, 73% of its pupils met the Government’s expected standards in reading, writing, and maths – compared to averages of 58% locally and 61% nationally. | Google
3. Cayton Community Primary School
This is a local authority-maintained primary school in Cayton, just south of Scarborough. It has a roll size of about 204, and was most recently rated ‘good’ overall by Ofsted. In the 2023/24 school year, 72% of its pupils met the Government’s expected standards in reading, writing, and maths – compared to averages of 58% locally and 61% nationally. | Google
4. Fylingdales Church of England Primary School
This is a maintained Anglican primary school in Fylingthorpe, southeast of Whitby. A smaller school, it has a roll size of about 69, and was most recently rated ‘good’ overall by Ofsted. In the 2023/24 school year, 71% of its pupils met the Government’s expected standards in reading, writing, and maths – compared to averages of 58% locally and 61% nationally. | Google