Istead Rise Primary School
Downs Road, Northfleet, Gravesend, DA13 9HG
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 4 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- SWALE ACADEMIES TRUST
- Executive Headteacher
- Mr Steven Payne
- Religious ethos
- None
- Sponsor
- Swale Academies Trust
- Constituency
- Gravesham
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 210
- Pupils on roll
- 211
- URN
- 142052
- Local authority
- Kent
- Telephone
- 01474833177
About this school
Istead Rise Primary School is a primary academy in Gravesend. It teaches children aged 4 to 11 and has 211 pupils on roll.
You can read Ofsted's latest judgement for the school 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
Confirmed by a short inspection, not a full one
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 28 February 2024, 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 | 30 | 30 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 73% | 77% | 83% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 10% | 7% | 7% |
| Expected standard in reading | 90% | 87% | 87% |
| Expected standard in maths | 82% | 80% | 87% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 77% | 73% | 67% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 107.0 | 107.0 | 107.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 106.0 | 106.0 | 108.0 |
| Reading progress | +0.10 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +0.10 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -0.90 | - | - |
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 Istead Rise 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 | Kent average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 73% | 58.3% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 77% | 60.2% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 83% | 60.8% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 6% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 5.6% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5.5% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 243 |
| 2023/24 | 208 |
| 2024/25 | 208 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Istead Rise Primary School compares
Istead Rise Primary School ranked 39th of 427 primary schools in Kent for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 91% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 49% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 83% | 5.5% | 13.9% | 211 | — |
| Langafel Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School | 35% | 5.7% | 38.4% | 286 | 1.4 miles |
| Sedley's Church of England Primary School | 67% | 5.1% | 16.2% | 98 | 1.5 miles |
| Painters Ash Primary School | 77% | 4.9% | 24.7% | 391 | 1.5 miles |
| Shears Green Infant School | — | 6% | 35.5% | 258 | 1.6 miles |
| Shears Green Junior School | 52% | 5.8% | 35.4% | 493 | 1.6 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)
- 13.94%
- English as an additional language
- 1%
- Overall absence
- 5.49%
- Persistent absence
- 11.35%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Langafel Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School1.4 miles
Primary · Longfield
-
Sedley's Church of England Primary School1.5 miles
Primary · Gravesend
-
Painters Ash Primary School1.5 miles
Primary · Gravesend
-
Shears Green Infant School1.6 miles
Primary · Gravesend
-
Shears Green Junior School1.6 miles
Primary · Gravesend
Other schools in Gravesend
Istead Rise Primary School ranks 2nd of the 24 ranked primary schools in Gravesend.
- Cecil Road Primary and Nursery School Primary
- Chantry Community Primary School Primary
- Cobham Primary School Primary
- Copperfield Academy Primary
- Culverstone Green Primary School Primary
- Holy Trinity Church of England Primary School Primary
- King's Farm Primary School Primary
- Lawn Primary School Primary
- Meopham Community Academy Primary
- Painters Ash Primary School Primary
- Sedley's Church of England Primary School Primary
- Shears Green Infant School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does Istead Rise Primary School teach?
- Istead Rise Primary School teaches children aged 4 to 11. It is a primary school in Gravesend.
- Who is the executive headteacher of Istead Rise Primary School?
- The executive headteacher of Istead Rise Primary School is Mr Steven Payne, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Istead Rise Primary School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Istead Rise 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 big is Istead Rise Primary School?
- Istead Rise Primary School has 211 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 11.
- Is Istead Rise Primary School full?
- Istead Rise Primary School has capacity for 210 pupils and 211 on roll (100%), 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 Istead Rise Primary School a faith school?
- No. Istead Rise Primary School has no designated religious character.
- Does Istead Rise Primary School have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records Istead Rise Primary School as having no nursery classes.
- Who runs Istead Rise Primary School?
- Istead Rise Primary School is part of SWALE ACADEMIES TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Istead Rise Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 73% in 2022/23 and 83% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Istead Rise Primary School rank locally?
- Istead Rise Primary School ranked 39th of 427 primary schools in Kent for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 91% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 49% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Istead Rise Primary School's absence rate?
- Istead Rise Primary School's overall absence rate is 5.5% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Istead Rise Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Istead Rise 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 2 July 2026.