Friars Grove Primary School
Upland Drive, Colchester, CO4 0PZ
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Community school
- Ages
- 5 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Headteacher
- Mr Chris Ruck
- Constituency
- Colchester
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 420
- Pupils on roll
- 408
- URN
- 114761
- Local authority
- Essex
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01206843683
About this school
Friars Grove Primary School is a community primary school in Colchester. It teaches children aged 5 to 11 and has 408 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Friars Grove 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. 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 12 July 2023, 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 | 60 | 60 | 59 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 52% | 48% | 59% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 2% | 2% | 7% |
| Expected standard in reading | 68% | 73% | 71% |
| Expected standard in maths | 60% | 73% | 71% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 63% | 65% | 73% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 104.0 | 106.0 | 105.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 101.0 | 103.0 | 104.0 |
| Reading progress | +2.50 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +2.50 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +0.40 | - | - |
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 Friars Grove 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 | Essex average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 52% | 58.9% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 48% | 59.5% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 59% | 60.7% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 5.3% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.7% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5.2% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 406 |
| 2023/24 | 410 |
| 2024/25 | 398 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Friars Grove Primary School compares
Friars Grove Primary School ranked 252nd of 388 primary schools in Essex for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 38% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 54% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 59% | 5.2% | 20.1% | 408 | — |
| Willow Brook Primary School and Nursery | 50% | 7.7% | 38.5% | 186 | 0.4 miles |
| Parsons Heath Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School | 47% | 5.4% | 42.6% | 197 | 0.5 miles |
| St John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Colchester | 72% | 3.7% | 11.4% | 210 | 0.5 miles |
| Roach Vale Primary School | 57% | 5.1% | 39.1% | 177 | 0.6 miles |
| Highwoods Community Primary School | 78% | 4.3% | 18.6% | 453 | 0.7 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)
- 20.1%
- English as an additional language
- 14.3%
- Overall absence
- 5.22%
- Persistent absence
- 12.23%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Willow Brook Primary School and Nursery0.4 miles
Primary · Colchester
-
Parsons Heath Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School0.5 miles
Primary · Colchester
-
St John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Colchester0.5 miles
Primary · Colchester
-
Roach Vale Primary School0.6 miles
Primary · Colchester
-
Highwoods Community Primary School0.7 miles
Primary · Colchester
Other schools in Colchester
Friars Grove Primary School ranks 42nd of the 66 ranked primary schools in Colchester.
- Alresford Primary School Primary
- Ardleigh St Mary's Church of England Primary Academy Primary
- Baynards Primary School Primary
- Birch Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School Primary
- Boxted St Peter's Church of England School Primary
- Braiswick Primary School Primary
- Brightlingsea Primary School and Nursery Primary
- Brinkley Grove Primary School Primary
- Broomgrove Infant School Primary
- Broomgrove Junior School Primary
- Camulos Academy Primary
- Chappel CofE Controlled Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Friars Grove Primary School teach?
- Friars Grove Primary School teaches children aged 5 to 11. It is a primary school in Colchester.
- Who is the headteacher of Friars Grove Primary School?
- The headteacher of Friars Grove Primary School is Mr Chris Ruck, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Friars Grove Primary School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Friars Grove 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 Friars Grove Primary School?
- Friars Grove Primary School has 408 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 5 to 11.
- Is Friars Grove Primary School full?
- Friars Grove Primary School has capacity for 420 pupils and 408 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 Friars Grove Primary School a faith school?
- No. Friars Grove Primary School has no designated religious character.
- Does Friars Grove Primary School have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records Friars Grove Primary School as having no nursery classes.
- How have Friars Grove Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 52% in 2022/23 and 59% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Friars Grove Primary School compare with other schools in Essex?
- Friars Grove Primary School ranked 252nd of 388 primary schools in Essex for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 38% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 54% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Friars Grove Primary School's absence rate?
- Friars Grove Primary School's overall absence rate is 5.2% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Friars Grove Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Friars Grove 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 30 June 2026.