Wilshere-Dacre Junior Academy
Fishponds Road, Hitchin, SG5 1NS
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 7 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- REACH2 ACADEMY TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mrs Sarah Smith
- Religious ethos
- None
- Sponsor
- REAch2 Academy Trust
- Constituency
- Hitchin
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 230
- Pupils on roll
- 234
- URN
- 140611
- Local authority
- Hertfordshire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01462459215
About this school
Wilshere-Dacre Junior Academy is a primary academy in Hitchin. It teaches children aged 7 to 11 and has 234 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Wilshere-Dacre 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
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 11 December 2024, where inspectors found that standards have been maintained. 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 | 61 | 89 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 68% | 67% | 70% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 12% | 3% | 6% |
| Expected standard in reading | 83% | 82% | 80% |
| Expected standard in maths | 77% | 75% | 79% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 77% | 89% | 85% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 107.0 | 107.0 | 108.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 105.0 | 104.0 | 105.0 |
| Reading progress | -0.70 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -1.50 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -2.00 | - | - |
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 Wilshere-Dacre 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 | Hertfordshire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 68% | 59.1% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 67% | 60.6% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 70% | 61% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 4.7% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 5.3% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 4.7% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 257 |
| 2023/24 | 267 |
| 2024/25 | 263 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Wilshere-Dacre Junior Academy compares
Wilshere-Dacre Junior Academy ranked 132nd of 339 primary schools in Hertfordshire 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 69% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 70% | 4.7% | 15.2% | 234 | — |
| Samuel Lucas Junior Mixed and Infant School | 75% | 4.3% | 5.7% | 416 | 0.3 miles |
| Oughton Primary and Nursery School | 48% | 5.1% | 47.5% | 195 | 0.5 miles |
| Strathmore Infant and Nursery School | — | 4% | 3.4% | 198 | 0.5 miles |
| Highbury Infant School and Nursery | — | 3.9% | 8.4% | 195 | 0.7 miles |
| St Andrew's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Hitchin | 68% | 3.7% | 8.5% | 234 | 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)
- 15.21%
- English as an additional language
- 17.9%
- Overall absence
- 4.65%
- Persistent absence
- 10.82%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Samuel Lucas Junior Mixed and Infant School0.3 miles
Primary · Hitchin
-
Oughton Primary and Nursery School0.5 miles
Primary · Hitchin
-
Strathmore Infant and Nursery School0.5 miles
Primary · Hitchin
-
Highbury Infant School and Nursery0.7 miles
Primary · Hitchin
-
St Andrew's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Hitchin0.7 miles
Primary · Hitchin
Other schools in Hitchin
Wilshere-Dacre Junior Academy ranks 8th of the 22 ranked primary schools in Hitchin.
- Breachwood Green Junior Mixed and Infant School Primary
- Codicote Church of England Primary School Primary
- Graveley Primary School Primary
- Highbury Infant School and Nursery Primary
- Highover Junior Mixed and Infant School Primary
- Ickleford Primary School Primary
- Kimpton Primary School Primary
- Mary Exton Primary School Primary
- Offley Endowed Primary School and Nursery Primary
- Oughton Primary and Nursery School Primary
- Our Lady Catholic Primary School Primary
- Pirton School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Wilshere-Dacre Junior Academy teach?
- Wilshere-Dacre Junior Academy teaches children aged 7 to 11. It is a primary school in Hitchin.
- Who is the headteacher of Wilshere-Dacre Junior Academy?
- The headteacher of Wilshere-Dacre Junior Academy is Mrs Sarah Smith, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Wilshere-Dacre Junior Academy been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Wilshere-Dacre 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 Wilshere-Dacre Junior Academy?
- Wilshere-Dacre Junior Academy has 234 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 7 to 11.
- Is Wilshere-Dacre Junior Academy full?
- Wilshere-Dacre Junior Academy has capacity for 230 pupils and 234 on roll (102%), 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 Wilshere-Dacre Junior Academy a faith school?
- No. Wilshere-Dacre Junior Academy has no designated religious character.
- Does Wilshere-Dacre Junior Academy have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records Wilshere-Dacre Junior Academy as having no nursery classes.
- Is Wilshere-Dacre Junior Academy part of an academy trust?
- Wilshere-Dacre Junior Academy is part of REACH2 ACADEMY TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Wilshere-Dacre Junior Academy's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 68% 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 Wilshere-Dacre Junior Academy compare with other schools in Hertfordshire?
- Wilshere-Dacre Junior Academy ranked 132nd of 339 primary schools in Hertfordshire 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 69% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Wilshere-Dacre Junior Academy's absence rate?
- Wilshere-Dacre Junior Academy's overall absence rate is 4.7% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Wilshere-Dacre Junior Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Wilshere-Dacre 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.