Willaston Primary Academy
Derwent Close, Willaston, Nantwich, CW5 6QQ
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 3 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- CHANCERY MULTI ACADEMY TRUST
- Headteacher
- Miss Joanna Wright
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Constituency
- Crewe and Nantwich
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 210
- Pupils on roll
- 251
- URN
- 142236
- Local authority
- Cheshire East
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01270661528
About this school
Willaston Primary Academy is a primary academy in Nantwich. It teaches children aged 3 to 11 and has 251 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 19 July 2023, 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 | 34 | 32 | 33 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 65% | 72% | 58% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 6% | 3% | 0% |
| Expected standard in reading | 79% | 78% | 70% |
| Expected standard in maths | 79% | 78% | 67% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 76% | 81% | 70% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 106.0 | 105.0 | 105.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 104.0 | 104.0 | 103.0 |
| Reading progress | +1.20 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -0.50 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +0.40 | - | - |
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 Willaston Primary 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 | Cheshire East average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 65% | 61.4% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 72% | 60.7% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 58% | 61.9% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 4.4% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.5% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 3.5% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 264 |
| 2023/24 | 261 |
| 2024/25 | 261 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Willaston Primary Academy compares
Willaston Primary Academy ranked 87th of 114 primary schools in Cheshire East for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 36% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. 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 | 58% | 3.5% | 13.1% | 251 | — |
| Wistaston Church Lane Academy | 70% | 4.2% | 8.3% | 416 | 0.8 miles |
| Highfields Academy | 69% | 3.4% | 12.2% | 247 | 1.0 miles |
| Pear Tree Primary School | 75% | 3.7% | 7.1% | 214 | 1.1 miles |
| The Berkeley Academy | 80% | 3.9% | 10.3% | 456 | 1.3 miles |
| Nantwich Primary Academy | 61% | 3.5% | 37.7% | 187 | 1.5 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)
- 13.12%
- English as an additional language
- 1.5%
- Overall absence
- 3.51%
- Persistent absence
- 4.19%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Wistaston Church Lane Academy0.8 miles
Primary · Crewe
-
Highfields Academy1.0 miles
Primary · Nantwich
-
Pear Tree Primary School1.1 miles
Primary · Nantwich
-
The Berkeley Academy1.3 miles
Primary · Crewe
-
Nantwich Primary Academy1.5 miles
Primary · Nantwich
Other schools in Nantwich
Willaston Primary Academy ranks 13th of the 14 ranked primary schools in Nantwich.
- Acton Church of England Primary Academy Primary
- Bridgemere CofE Primary School Primary
- Highfields Academy Primary
- Kingsbourne Academy Primary
- Millfields Primary Academy Primary
- Nantwich Primary Academy Primary
- Pear Tree Primary School Primary
- Sound and District Primary School Primary
- St Anne's Catholic Primary School Primary
- St Oswald's Worleston CofE Primary School Primary
- Stapeley Broad Lane CofE Primary School Primary
- Weaver Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does Willaston Primary Academy teach?
- Willaston Primary Academy teaches children aged 3 to 11. It is a primary school in Nantwich.
- Who is the headteacher of Willaston Primary Academy?
- The headteacher of Willaston Primary Academy is Miss Joanna Wright, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Willaston Primary Academy last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Willaston Primary 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 big is Willaston Primary Academy?
- Willaston Primary Academy has 251 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 11.
- Is Willaston Primary Academy full?
- Willaston Primary Academy has capacity for 210 pupils and 251 on roll (120%), 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 Willaston Primary Academy a faith school?
- No. Willaston Primary Academy has no designated religious character.
- Does Willaston Primary Academy have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records Willaston Primary Academy as having nursery classes.
- Who runs Willaston Primary Academy?
- Willaston Primary Academy is part of CHANCERY MULTI ACADEMY TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Willaston Primary Academy's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 65% in 2022/23 and 58% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Willaston Primary Academy rank locally?
- Willaston Primary Academy ranked 87th of 114 primary schools in Cheshire East for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 36% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 93% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Willaston Primary Academy's absence rate?
- Willaston Primary Academy's overall absence rate is 3.5% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Willaston Primary Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Willaston Primary 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 2 July 2026.