Ouston Primary School
Arisaig, Ouston, Chester le Street, DH2 1RQ
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 3 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- JIGSAW LEARNING TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mrs L Lavelle
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Sponsor
- Jigsaw Learning Trust
- Constituency
- North Durham
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 280
- Pupils on roll
- 259
- URN
- 144658
- Local authority
- County Durham
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01914102599
About this school
Ouston Primary School is a primary academy in Chester le Street. It teaches children aged 3 to 11 and has 259 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. Seeing a school for yourself shows what no page can, so arrange a visit before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Confirmed by a short inspection, not a full one
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 12 May 2022, 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 | 46 | 33 | 26 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 52% | 61% | 54% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 9% | 9% | 19% |
| Expected standard in reading | 76% | 82% | 73% |
| Expected standard in maths | 72% | 82% | 62% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 76% | 76% | 62% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 106.0 | 104.0 | 106.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 104.0 | 105.0 | 104.0 |
| Reading progress | -0.10 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -0.60 | - | - |
| 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 Ouston 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 | County Durham average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 52% | 58% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 61% | 58.4% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 54% | 60% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 5.1% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.6% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 4.5% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 258 |
| 2023/24 | 239 |
| 2024/25 | 249 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Ouston Primary School compares
Ouston Primary School ranked 129th of 185 primary schools in County Durham 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 71% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 54% | 4.5% | 16.4% | 259 | — |
| St Benet's Catholic Primary School, Ouston | 59% | 3.4% | 7.7% | 217 | 0.2 miles |
| Pelton Community Primary School | 48% | 7.1% | 50.2% | 290 | 0.7 miles |
| St Joseph's Catholic Junior School, Birtley | 76% | 3.6% | 30.9% | 105 | 1.3 miles |
| Barley Mow Primary School | 57% | 7.4% | 45.1% | 155 | 1.3 miles |
| Portobello Primary School | 71% | 4.3% | 18.1% | 182 | 1.4 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)
- 16.36%
- English as an additional language
- 0.8%
- Overall absence
- 4.51%
- Persistent absence
- 8.16%
Location
Nearby schools
-
St Benet's Catholic Primary School, Ouston0.2 miles
Primary · Chester le Street
-
Pelton Community Primary School0.7 miles
Primary · Chester le Street
-
St Joseph's Catholic Junior School, Birtley1.3 miles
Primary · Chester le Street
-
Barley Mow Primary School1.3 miles
Primary · Chester le Street
-
Portobello Primary School1.4 miles
Primary · Chester le Street
Other schools in Chester le Street
Ouston Primary School ranks 15th of the 16 ranked primary schools in Chester le Street.
- Barley Mow Primary School Primary
- Bullion Lane Primary School Primary
- Cestria Primary School Primary
- Chester-Le-Street CofE (Controlled) Primary School Primary
- Lumley Infant and Nursery School Primary
- Lumley Junior School Primary
- Nettlesworth Primary School Primary
- Newker Primary School Primary
- Pelton Community Primary School Primary
- Portobello Primary School Primary
- Ravensworth Terrace Primary School Primary
- Red Rose Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does Ouston Primary School teach?
- Ouston Primary School teaches children aged 3 to 11. It is a primary school in Chester le Street.
- Who is the headteacher of Ouston Primary School?
- The headteacher of Ouston Primary School is Mrs L Lavelle, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Ouston Primary School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Ouston 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 Ouston Primary School?
- Ouston Primary School has 259 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 11.
- Is Ouston Primary School full?
- Ouston Primary School has capacity for 280 pupils and 259 on roll (93%), so it has space against 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 Ouston Primary School a faith school?
- No. Ouston Primary School has no designated religious character.
- Does Ouston Primary School have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records Ouston Primary School as having nursery classes.
- Who runs Ouston Primary School?
- Ouston Primary School is part of JIGSAW LEARNING TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Ouston Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 52% 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 Ouston Primary School rank locally?
- Ouston Primary School ranked 129th of 185 primary schools in County Durham 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 71% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Ouston Primary School's absence rate?
- Ouston Primary School's overall absence rate is 4.5% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Ouston Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Ouston 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.