St Peter's Church of England (VC) Junior School
Boarstone Lane, Fairfield, Buxton, SK17 7NA
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Voluntary controlled school
- Ages
- 7 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Headteacher
- Mrs Jayne Mercer
- Diocese
- Diocese of Derby
- Constituency
- High Peak
- Setting
- Urban: Further from a major town or city
- Capacity
- 240
- Pupils on roll
- 165
- URN
- 112806
- Local authority
- Derbyshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 0129822551
About this school
St Peter's Church of England (VC) Junior School is a Church of England voluntary controlled primary school in Buxton. It teaches children aged 7 to 11 and has 165 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected St Peter's Church of England (VC) Junior School, and its latest judgement is set out below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Seeing a school for yourself shows what no page can, so arrange a visit before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Confirmed by a short inspection, not a full one
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 4 July 2024, where inspectors confirmed the school remains Good. 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 | 50 | 59 | 36 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 50% | 54% | 53% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 4% | 3% | 6% |
| Expected standard in reading | 64% | 76% | 72% |
| Expected standard in maths | 64% | 58% | 64% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 56% | 64% | 58% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 103.0 | 103.0 | 103.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 104.0 | 100.0 | 102.0 |
| Reading progress | -2.80 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +0.30 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -0.90 | - | - |
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 St Peter's Church of England (VC) Junior 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 | Derbyshire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 50% | 58.1% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 54% | 56.8% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 53% | 57.9% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 6% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 6.1% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5.1% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 199 |
| 2023/24 | 199 |
| 2024/25 | 173 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How St Peter's Church of England (VC) Junior School compares
St Peter's Church of England (VC) Junior School ranked 169th of 246 primary schools in Derbyshire for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 26% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 59% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 53% | 5.1% | 56.7% | 165 | — |
| Fairfield Infant and Nursery School | — | — | — | — | 0.2 miles |
| Buxton Infant School | — | — | — | — | 0.7 miles |
| St Anne's Catholic Voluntary Academy | 53% | 6.2% | 27.2% | 252 | 0.7 miles |
| Buxton Junior School | — | — | — | — | 1.0 miles |
| Harpur Hill Primary School | — | — | — | — | 1.2 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)
- 56.65%
- English as an additional language
- 6.9%
- Overall absence
- 5.05%
- Persistent absence
- 11.6%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Fairfield Infant and Nursery School0.2 miles
Primary · Buxton
-
Buxton Infant School0.7 miles
Primary · Buxton
-
St Anne's Catholic Voluntary Academy0.7 miles
Primary · Buxton
-
Buxton Junior School1.0 miles
Primary · Buxton
-
Harpur Hill Primary School1.2 miles
Primary · Buxton
Other schools in Buxton
St Peter's Church of England (VC) Junior School ranks 4th of the 6 ranked primary schools in Buxton.
- Biggin CofE Primary School Primary
- Bishop Pursglove CofE (A) Primary School Primary
- Burbage Primary School Primary
- Buxton Infant School Primary
- Buxton Junior School Primary
- Dove Holes CofE Primary School Primary
- Earl Sterndale CofE Primary School Primary
- Fairfield Infant and Nursery School Primary
- Great Hucklow CE Primary Primary
- Harpur Hill Primary School Primary
- Hartington CofE Primary School Primary
- Hollinsclough Church of England Academy Primary
Common questions
- What ages does St Peter's Church of England (VC) Junior School teach?
- St Peter's Church of England (VC) Junior School teaches children aged 7 to 11. It is a primary school in Buxton.
- Who is the headteacher of St Peter's Church of England (VC) Junior School?
- The headteacher of St Peter's Church of England (VC) Junior School is Mrs Jayne Mercer, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has St Peter's Church of England (VC) Junior School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected St Peter's Church of England (VC) Junior 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 St Peter's Church of England (VC) Junior School?
- St Peter's Church of England (VC) Junior School has 165 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 7 to 11.
- Is St Peter's Church of England (VC) Junior School full?
- St Peter's Church of England (VC) Junior School has capacity for 240 pupils and 165 on roll (69%), so it has space against its published capacity. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is St Peter's Church of England (VC) Junior School a faith school?
- Yes. St Peter's Church of England (VC) Junior School is designated Church of England, in the Diocese of Derby.
- Does St Peter's Church of England (VC) Junior School have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records St Peter's Church of England (VC) Junior School as having no nursery classes.
- How have St Peter's Church of England (VC) Junior School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 50% in 2022/23 and 53% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does St Peter's Church of England (VC) Junior School compare with other schools in Derbyshire?
- St Peter's Church of England (VC) Junior School ranked 169th of 246 primary schools in Derbyshire for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 26% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 59% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is St Peter's Church of England (VC) Junior School's absence rate?
- St Peter's Church of England (VC) Junior School's overall absence rate is 5.1% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are St Peter's Church of England (VC) Junior School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, St Peter's Church of England (VC) Junior 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 29 June 2026.