Pennine Way Junior Academy
Pennine Way, Swadlincote, DE11 9EY
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 7 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- None
- Trust
- EMBARK MULTI ACADEMY TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mrs Caroline Hughes and Miss Hannah Wallis
- Sponsor
- Embark Multi Academy Trust
- Constituency
- South Derbyshire
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 360
- Pupils on roll
- 358
- URN
- 137543
- Local authority
- Derbyshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01283223697
About this school
Pennine Way Junior Academy is a primary academy in Swadlincote. It teaches children aged 7 to 11 and has 358 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Pennine Way Junior Academy, 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
- Safeguarding
- Effective
A short monitoring inspection followed on : inspectors found that standards have been maintained.
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 95 | 95 | 96 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 57% | 47% | 54% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 5% | 3% | 3% |
| Expected standard in reading | 71% | 72% | 73% |
| Expected standard in maths | 73% | 66% | 75% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 69% | 64% | 76% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 105.0 | 103.0 | 104.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 104.0 | 102.0 | 104.0 |
| Reading progress | -1.50 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -1.50 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -1.60 | - | - |
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 Pennine Way Junior Academy 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 | 57% | 58.1% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 47% | 56.8% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 54% | 57.9% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 4.7% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.7% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5.4% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 372 |
| 2023/24 | 377 |
| 2024/25 | 370 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Pennine Way Junior Academy compares
Pennine Way Junior Academy ranked 166th of 246 primary schools in Derbyshire for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 28% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 52% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 54% | 5.4% | 33% | 358 | — |
| Church Gresley Infant and Nursery School | — | 4.9% | 24.8% | 314 | 0.0 miles |
| St George's CofE Primary School | 34% | 5.4% | 31.6% | 198 | 0.4 miles |
| Albert Village Primary School | 59% | 4.9% | 14.7% | 234 | 0.8 miles |
| Belmont Primary School | 45% | 5.5% | 26% | 415 | 0.8 miles |
| St Edward's Catholic Academy | 45% | 5.8% | 24.6% | 248 | 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.
Inspection history
-
Ungraded inspection report13 November 2024
- 19 November 2019
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 32.97%
- English as an additional language
- 4.9%
- Overall absence
- 5.35%
- Persistent absence
- 11.35%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Church Gresley Infant and Nursery School0.0 miles
Primary · Swadlincote
-
St George's CofE Primary School0.4 miles
Primary · Swadlincote
-
Albert Village Primary School0.8 miles
Primary · Swadlincote
-
Belmont Primary School0.8 miles
Primary
-
St Edward's Catholic Academy0.9 miles
Primary · Swadlincote
Other schools in Swadlincote
Pennine Way Junior Academy ranks 11th of the 23 ranked primary schools in Swadlincote.
- Albert Village Primary School Primary
- Blackfordby St Margaret's Church of England Primary School Primary
- Church Gresley Infant and Nursery School Primary
- Coton-in-the-Elms Cof E Primary School Primary
- Donisthorpe Primary School Primary
- Elmsleigh Infant & Nursery School Primary
- Eureka Primary School Primary
- Fairmeadows Foundation Primary School Primary
- Hartshorne CofE Primary School Primary
- Linton Primary School Primary
- Measham Church of England Primary School Primary
- Moira Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Pennine Way Junior Academy teach?
- Pennine Way Junior Academy teaches children aged 7 to 11. It is a primary school in Swadlincote.
- Who is the headteacher of Pennine Way Junior Academy?
- The headteacher of Pennine Way Junior Academy is Mrs Caroline Hughes and Miss Hannah Wallis, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Pennine Way Junior Academy been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Pennine Way Junior Academy, 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 Pennine Way Junior Academy?
- Pennine Way Junior Academy has 358 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 7 to 11.
- Is Pennine Way Junior Academy full?
- Pennine Way Junior Academy has capacity for 360 pupils and 358 on roll (99%), 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 Pennine Way Junior Academy a faith school?
- No. Pennine Way Junior Academy has no designated religious character.
- Does Pennine Way Junior Academy have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records Pennine Way Junior Academy as having no nursery classes.
- Is Pennine Way Junior Academy part of an academy trust?
- Pennine Way Junior Academy is part of EMBARK MULTI ACADEMY TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Pennine Way Junior Academy's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 57% in 2022/23 and 54% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Pennine Way Junior Academy compare with other schools in Derbyshire?
- Pennine Way Junior Academy ranked 166th of 246 primary schools in Derbyshire for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 28% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 52% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Pennine Way Junior Academy's absence rate?
- Pennine Way Junior Academy's overall absence rate is 5.4% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Pennine Way Junior Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Pennine Way Junior Academy'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 1 July 2026.