Downside Primary School
Chaul End Lane, Luton, LU4 8EZ
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Community school
- Ages
- 4 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Headteacher
- Miss K Hooker
- SEN provision
- ASD - Autistic Spectrum Disorder
- Constituency
- Luton North
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,050
- Pupils on roll
- 1,015
- URN
- 109567
- Local authority
- Luton
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01582587160
About this school
Downside Primary School is a community primary school in Luton. It teaches children aged 4 to 11 and has 1,015 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Downside Primary School, and its latest judgement is set out below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Numbers and a report only go so far, so visit in person before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 6 November 2024, where inspectors found the school has improved significantly. The school's last full inspection took place before September 2019, so its area grades are not part of Ofsted's current published data. Older reports are on the school's Ofsted page.
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 146 | 138 | 145 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 65% | 66% | 79% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 7% | 12% | 14% |
| Expected standard in reading | 71% | 73% | 89% |
| Expected standard in maths | 92% | 86% | 90% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 85% | 80% | 90% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 104.0 | 105.0 | 108.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 106.0 | 106.0 | 108.0 |
| Reading progress | -0.50 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +1.10 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +2.40 | - | - |
Progress measures ended nationally after the 2022/23 school year, when the key stage 1 assessments they were based on were stopped. Blank progress figures in later years are not missing school data.
Trends over time
How Downside Primary School has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Luton average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 65% | 58% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 66% | 59.3% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 79% | 62.9% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 7.4% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 5.4% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5.6% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,019 |
| 2023/24 | 1,038 |
| 2024/25 | 1,031 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Downside Primary School compares
Downside Primary School ranked 6th of 37 primary schools in Luton for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 86% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 45% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 79% | 5.6% | 21.7% | 1,015 | — |
| Foxdell Primary School | 66% | 4.6% | 25.7% | 517 | 0.7 miles |
| Beechwood Primary School | 46% | 6.4% | 22.8% | 873 | 0.7 miles |
| Maidenhall Primary School | 67% | 6.9% | 24% | 628 | 0.7 miles |
| Norton Road Primary School | 43% | 6.8% | 34.8% | 347 | 0.9 miles |
| St Joseph's Catholic Primary School | — | — | — | — | 0.9 miles |
Results reflect each school's cohort as much as its teaching, and free school meals share is context, not a judgement. Small gaps between neighbouring schools are rarely meaningful on their own.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 21.73%
- English as an additional language
- 37.8%
- Overall absence
- 5.64%
- Persistent absence
- 12.42%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Foxdell Primary School0.7 miles
Primary · Luton
-
Beechwood Primary School0.7 miles
Primary · Luton
-
Maidenhall Primary School0.7 miles
Primary · Luton
-
Norton Road Primary School0.9 miles
Primary · Luton
-
St Joseph's Catholic Primary School0.9 miles
Primary · Luton
Other schools in Luton
Downside Primary School ranks 6th of the 41 ranked primary schools in Luton.
- Beech Hill Community Primary School Primary
- Beechwood Primary School Primary
- Bramingham Primary School Primary
- Bushmead Primary & Nursery School Primary
- Caddington Village School Primary
- Chalton Lower School Primary
- Chantry Primary Academy Primary
- Cockernhoe Endowed CofE Primary School Primary
- Crawley Green Infant School Primary
- Cutenhoe Hill Primary School ( Formerly Surrey Street) Primary
- Dallow Primary School Primary
- Denbigh Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Downside Primary School teach?
- Downside Primary School teaches children aged 4 to 11. It is a primary school in Luton.
- Who is the headteacher of Downside Primary School?
- The headteacher of Downside Primary School is Miss K Hooker, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Downside Primary School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Downside Primary School, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How many pupils are at Downside Primary School?
- Downside Primary School has 1,015 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 11.
- Is Downside Primary School full?
- Downside Primary School has capacity for 1,050 pupils and 1,015 on roll (97%), so it is close to full. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Downside Primary School a faith school?
- No. Downside Primary School has no designated religious character.
- Does Downside Primary School have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records Downside Primary School as having no nursery classes.
- What SEN provision does Downside Primary School have?
- The schools register lists Downside Primary School's special educational needs provision as: ASD - Autistic Spectrum Disorder. Contact the school to discuss how it would support a particular child.
- How have Downside Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 65% in 2022/23 and 79% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Downside Primary School compare with other schools in Luton?
- Downside Primary School ranked 6th of 37 primary schools in Luton for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 86% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 45% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Downside Primary School's absence rate?
- Downside Primary School's overall absence rate is 5.6% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Downside Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Downside Primary School's key stage results are shown in the results section on this page, with the last three years so you can see the trend rather than a single year.
School details come from the Department for Education's Get Information About Schools register. Inspection outcomes come from Ofsted, and exam results from the Department for Education's school performance service. This page was last updated on 7 July 2026.