Cold Norton Primary School
St Stephens Road, Cold Norton, Chelmsford, CM3 6JE
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Community school
- Ages
- 4 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Headteacher
- Ms Emily Penkett
- Constituency
- Maldon
- Setting
- Smaller rural: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 147
- Pupils on roll
- 157
- URN
- 114904
- Local authority
- Essex
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01621827086
About this school
Cold Norton Primary School is a community primary school in Chelmsford. It teaches children aged 4 to 11 and has 157 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Cold Norton 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
Overall judgement at the last full inspection
This inspection took place under the previous framework, which gave a single overall grade. Ofsted now publishes report cards instead, so newer inspections of other schools will look different. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Good
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Good
- Personal development
- Good
- Leadership and management
- Good
- Early years
- Good
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 23 | 18 | 23 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 87% | 78% | 70% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 9% | 11% | 22% |
| Expected standard in reading | 96% | 83% | 78% |
| Expected standard in maths | 91% | 83% | 87% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 96% | 94% | 83% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 111.0 | 106.0 | 106.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 108.0 | 105.0 | 107.0 |
| Reading progress | +3.40 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +0.20 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +1.40 | - | - |
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 Cold Norton 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 | 87% | 58.9% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 78% | 59.5% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 70% | 60.7% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 6.2% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 5.3% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 152 |
| 2023/24 | 153 |
| 2024/25 | 157 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Cold Norton Primary School compares
Cold Norton Primary School ranked 144th of 388 primary schools in Essex for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 66% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 61% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 70% | 5% | 7.6% | 157 | — |
| Purleigh Community Primary School | 74% | 3.9% | 11.2% | 206 | 1.4 miles |
| Christchurch Church of England Primary School | 33% | 6.9% | 30.3% | 109 | 2.4 miles |
| Trinity St Mary's CofE Voluntary Aided Primary School, South Woodham Ferrers | 31% | 5.2% | 17.8% | 132 | 2.8 miles |
| St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, SWF | 77% | 5.1% | 7.7% | 180 | 2.8 miles |
| Woodville Primary School | 67% | 4.6% | 8.1% | 412 | 2.9 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)
- 7.64%
- English as an additional language
- 0%
- Overall absence
- 4.95%
- Persistent absence
- 6.52%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Purleigh Community Primary School1.4 miles
Primary · Chelmsford
-
Christchurch Church of England Primary School2.4 miles
Primary · Chelmsford
-
Trinity St Mary's CofE Voluntary Aided Primary School, South Woodham Ferrers2.8 miles
Primary · Chelmsford
-
St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, SWF2.8 miles
Primary · Chelmsford
-
Woodville Primary School2.9 miles
Primary · Chelmsford
Other schools in Chelmsford
Cold Norton Primary School ranks 19th of the 46 ranked primary schools in Chelmsford.
- Baddow Hall Infant School Primary
- Baddow Hall Junior School Primary
- Barnes Farm Primary School Primary
- Beehive Lane Community Primary School Primary
- Boreham Primary School Primary
- Broomfield Primary School Primary
- Chancellor Park Primary School, Chelmsford Primary
- Christchurch Church of England Primary School Primary
- Collingwood Primary School Primary
- East Hanningfield Church of England Primary Academy Primary
- Elmwood Primary School Primary
- Ford End Church of England Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Cold Norton Primary School teach?
- Cold Norton Primary School teaches children aged 4 to 11. It is a primary school in Chelmsford.
- Who is the headteacher of Cold Norton Primary School?
- The headteacher of Cold Norton Primary School is Ms Emily Penkett, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Cold Norton Primary School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Cold Norton 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 Cold Norton Primary School?
- Cold Norton Primary School has 157 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 11.
- Is Cold Norton Primary School full?
- Cold Norton Primary School has capacity for 147 pupils and 157 on roll (107%), so it is at or above 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 Cold Norton Primary School a faith school?
- No. Cold Norton Primary School has no designated religious character.
- Does Cold Norton Primary School have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records Cold Norton Primary School as having no nursery classes.
- How have Cold Norton Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 87% in 2022/23 and 70% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Cold Norton Primary School compare with other schools in Essex?
- Cold Norton Primary School ranked 144th of 388 primary schools in Essex for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 66% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 61% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Cold Norton Primary School's absence rate?
- Cold Norton Primary School's overall absence rate is 5% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Cold Norton Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Cold Norton 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.