The Grove Infant and Nursery School
Dark Lane, Harpenden, AL5 1QD
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Community school
- Ages
- 3 to 7
- Gender
- Mixed
- Headteacher
- Ms Andrea Sharkey
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Constituency
- Harpenden and Berkhamsted
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 270
- Pupils on roll
- 243
- URN
- 117281
- Local authority
- Hertfordshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01582761849
About this school
The Grove Infant and Nursery School is a community primary school in Harpenden. It teaches children aged 3 to 7 and has 243 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected The Grove Infant and Nursery 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
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
- Outstanding
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Outstanding
- Personal development
- Outstanding
- Leadership and management
- Outstanding
- Early years
- Outstanding
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Trends over time
How The Grove Infant and Nursery 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 | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 4.1% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.1% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 3.6% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 297 |
| 2023/24 | 268 |
| 2024/25 | 265 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How The Grove Infant and Nursery School compares
Its absence rate was lower than 93% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | — | 3.6% | 3.1% | 243 | — |
| The Grove Junior School | 82% | 2.9% | 9% | 350 | 0.0 miles |
| High Beeches Primary School | 80% | 3.1% | 4.6% | 420 | 0.4 miles |
| Crabtree Infants' School | — | 2.8% | 2.2% | 178 | 0.6 miles |
| Crabtree Junior School | 86% | 3.7% | 0.8% | 256 | 0.6 miles |
| St Dominic Catholic Primary School | — | — | — | 232 | 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)
- 3.14%
- English as an additional language
- 8.3%
- Overall absence
- 3.59%
- Persistent absence
- 8.86%
Location
Nearby schools
-
The Grove Junior School0.0 miles
Primary · Harpenden
-
High Beeches Primary School0.4 miles
Primary · Harpenden
-
Crabtree Infants' School0.6 miles
Primary · Harpenden
-
Crabtree Junior School0.6 miles
Primary · Harpenden
-
St Dominic Catholic Primary School0.7 miles
Primary · Harpenden
Other schools in Harpenden
- Crabtree Infants' School Primary
- Crabtree Junior School Primary
- Harpenden Academy Primary
- High Beeches Primary School Primary
- Manland Primary School Primary
- Roundwood Primary School Primary
- Sauncey Wood Primary School Primary
- St Dominic Catholic Primary School Primary
- St Nicholas CofE VA Primary School Primary
- The Grove Junior School Primary
- The Lea Primary School and Nursery Primary
- Wood End School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does The Grove Infant and Nursery School teach?
- The Grove Infant and Nursery School teaches children aged 3 to 7. It is a primary school in Harpenden.
- Who is the headteacher of The Grove Infant and Nursery School?
- The headteacher of The Grove Infant and Nursery School is Ms Andrea Sharkey, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has The Grove Infant and Nursery School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected The Grove Infant and Nursery 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 The Grove Infant and Nursery School?
- The Grove Infant and Nursery School has 243 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 7.
- Is The Grove Infant and Nursery School full?
- The Grove Infant and Nursery School has capacity for 270 pupils and 243 on roll (90%), 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 The Grove Infant and Nursery School a faith school?
- No. The Grove Infant and Nursery School has no designated religious character.
- Does The Grove Infant and Nursery School have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records The Grove Infant and Nursery School as having nursery classes.
- What is The Grove Infant and Nursery School's absence rate?
- The Grove Infant and Nursery School's overall absence rate is 3.6% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- Does The Grove Infant and Nursery School publish exam results?
- OfferDay shows exam results for a school only where the Department for Education has published them, and none are shown for The Grove Infant and Nursery School. That is usual for infant, nursery, special and independent schools, and for schools without recent published results.
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.