Dowson Primary Academy
Marlborough Road, Hyde, SK14 5HU
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 3 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- THE ENQUIRE LEARNING TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mrs Kathryn Thornburn
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Sponsor
- The Enquire Learning Trust
- Constituency
- Stalybridge and Hyde
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 475
- Pupils on roll
- 477
- URN
- 143377
- Local authority
- Tameside
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01613660177
About this school
Dowson Primary Academy is a primary academy in Hyde. It teaches children aged 3 to 11 and has 477 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
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
- Outstanding
- Personal development
- Outstanding
- Leadership and management
- Good
- Early years
- Good
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 61 | 60 | 61 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 60% | 63% | 69% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 5% | 5% |
| Expected standard in reading | 72% | 80% | 79% |
| Expected standard in maths | 70% | 85% | 79% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 80% | 83% | 72% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 104.0 | 106.0 | 105.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 103.0 | 106.0 | 103.0 |
| Reading progress | -1.60 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -1.40 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -1.70 | - | - |
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 Dowson 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 | Tameside average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 60% | 56.3% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 63% | 59.6% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 69% | 59.1% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 4.3% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.2% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 3.7% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 471 |
| 2023/24 | 474 |
| 2024/25 | 475 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Dowson Primary Academy compares
Dowson Primary Academy ranked 16th of 59 primary schools in Tameside for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 63% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 91% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 69% | 3.7% | 27% | 477 | — |
| Gee Cross Holy Trinity CofE Primary School | — | — | — | — | 0.3 miles |
| Greenfield Primary Academy | 46% | 4.8% | 57% | 221 | 0.5 miles |
| St George's CofE Primary School | 52% | 6.2% | 52% | 218 | 0.5 miles |
| Endeavour Primary Academy | 64% | 5.5% | 52.6% | 227 | 0.7 miles |
| St John Fisher RC Primary School, a Voluntary Academy, Denton | — | — | — | 237 | 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.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 26.95%
- English as an additional language
- 2.1%
- Overall absence
- 3.68%
- Persistent absence
- 6.28%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Gee Cross Holy Trinity CofE Primary School0.3 miles
Primary · Hyde
-
Greenfield Primary Academy0.5 miles
Primary · Cheshire
-
St George's CofE Primary School0.5 miles
Primary · Hyde
-
Endeavour Primary Academy0.7 miles
Primary · Hyde
-
St John Fisher RC Primary School, a Voluntary Academy, Denton0.9 miles
Primary · Manchester
Other schools in Hyde
Dowson Primary Academy ranks 4th of the 9 ranked primary schools in Hyde.
- Arundale Primary School Primary
- Bradley Green Primary Academy Primary
- Broadbottom Church of England Primary School Primary
- Discovery Academy Primary
- Endeavour Primary Academy Primary
- Flowery Field Primary School Primary
- Gee Cross Holy Trinity CofE Primary School Primary
- Godley Community Primary Academy Primary
- Hollingworth Primary School Primary
- Mottram CofE Primary School Primary
- Oakfield Primary and Moderate Learning Difficulties Resource Provision Primary
- Pinfold Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does Dowson Primary Academy teach?
- Dowson Primary Academy teaches children aged 3 to 11. It is a primary school in Hyde.
- Who is the headteacher of Dowson Primary Academy?
- The headteacher of Dowson Primary Academy is Mrs Kathryn Thornburn, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Dowson Primary Academy last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Dowson 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 Dowson Primary Academy?
- Dowson Primary Academy has 477 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 11.
- Is Dowson Primary Academy full?
- Dowson Primary Academy has capacity for 475 pupils and 477 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 Dowson Primary Academy a faith school?
- No. Dowson Primary Academy has no designated religious character.
- Does Dowson Primary Academy have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records Dowson Primary Academy as having nursery classes.
- Who runs Dowson Primary Academy?
- Dowson Primary Academy is part of THE ENQUIRE LEARNING TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Dowson Primary Academy's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 60% in 2022/23 and 69% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Dowson Primary Academy rank locally?
- Dowson Primary Academy ranked 16th of 59 primary schools in Tameside for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 63% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 91% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Dowson Primary Academy's absence rate?
- Dowson Primary Academy's overall absence rate is 3.7% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Dowson Primary Academy's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Dowson 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.