West Thornton Primary School
Rosecourt Road, Croydon, CR0 3BS
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 4 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- INSPIRE PARTNERSHIP ACADEMY TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mrs Donna Callaghan Mrs Clare Dennis
- Religious ethos
- None
- Sponsor
- Inspire Partnership Academy Trust
- Constituency
- Croydon West
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 1,050
- Pupils on roll
- 847
- URN
- 147971
- Local authority
- Croydon
- Website
- School website
About this school
West Thornton Primary School is a primary academy in Croydon. It teaches children aged 4 to 11 and has 847 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected West Thornton Primary School, and its latest judgement is set out 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
Ofsted did not give an overall grade. Between September 2024 and September 2025 inspections graded each area of a school's work without a single overall judgement, ahead of the move to report cards. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Good
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Outstanding
- Personal development
- Outstanding
- Leadership and management
- Outstanding
- Early years
- Outstanding
- 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 | 134 | 143 | 138 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 54% | 59% | 74% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 10% | 6% | 14% |
| Expected standard in reading | 64% | 71% | 82% |
| Expected standard in maths | 70% | 80% | 86% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 74% | 83% | 81% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 103.0 | 105.0 | 105.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 104.0 | 106.0 | 107.0 |
| Reading progress | -0.40 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +2.50 | - | - |
| 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 West Thornton 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 | Croydon average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 54% | 60.7% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 59% | 62.5% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 74% | 67.2% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 5.9% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 5% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5.4% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 929 |
| 2023/24 | 940 |
| 2024/25 | 910 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How West Thornton Primary School compares
West Thornton Primary School ranked 31st of 77 primary schools in Croydon for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 76% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 52% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 74% | 5.4% | 36% | 847 | — |
| Harris Primary Academy Croydon | 79% | 4.8% | 36.5% | 414 | 0.5 miles |
| Gonville Academy | 80% | 5.2% | 27.9% | 427 | 0.5 miles |
| Paxton Academy Sports And Science | 87% | 6.8% | 55.5% | 281 | 0.6 miles |
| Elmwood Junior School | 66% | 5.1% | 40.1% | 464 | 0.7 miles |
| Elmwood Infant School | — | 7.4% | 34.4% | 357 | 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)
- 36.04%
- English as an additional language
- 65.7%
- Overall absence
- 5.37%
- Persistent absence
- 14.17%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Harris Primary Academy Croydon0.5 miles
Primary · Croydon
-
Gonville Academy0.5 miles
Primary · Thornton Heath
-
Paxton Academy Sports And Science0.6 miles
Primary · Thornton Heath
-
Elmwood Junior School0.7 miles
Primary · Croydon
-
Elmwood Infant School0.7 miles
Primary · Croydon
Other schools in Croydon
West Thornton Primary School ranks 12th of the 33 ranked primary schools in Croydon.
- Aerodrome Primary Academy Primary
- Applegarth Academy Primary
- Ark Oval Primary Academy Primary
- Beddington Park Academy Primary
- Broadmead Primary School Primary
- Castle Hill Academy Primary
- Chestnut Park Primary School Primary
- Courtwood Primary School Primary
- Elmwood Infant School Primary
- Elmwood Junior School Primary
- Fairchildes Primary School Primary
- Forest Academy Primary
Common questions
- What ages does West Thornton Primary School teach?
- West Thornton Primary School teaches children aged 4 to 11. It is a primary school in Croydon.
- Who is the headteacher of West Thornton Primary School?
- The headteacher of West Thornton Primary School is Mrs Donna Callaghan Mrs Clare Dennis, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has West Thornton Primary School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected West Thornton 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 many pupils are at West Thornton Primary School?
- West Thornton Primary School has 847 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 11.
- Is West Thornton Primary School full?
- West Thornton Primary School has capacity for 1,050 pupils and 847 on roll (81%), 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 West Thornton Primary School a faith school?
- No. West Thornton Primary School has no designated religious character.
- Does West Thornton Primary School have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records West Thornton Primary School as having no nursery classes.
- Is West Thornton Primary School part of an academy trust?
- West Thornton Primary School is part of INSPIRE PARTNERSHIP ACADEMY TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have West Thornton Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 54% in 2022/23 and 74% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does West Thornton Primary School compare with other schools in Croydon?
- West Thornton Primary School ranked 31st of 77 primary schools in Croydon for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 76% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 52% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is West Thornton Primary School's absence rate?
- West Thornton Primary School's overall absence rate is 5.4% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are West Thornton Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, West Thornton 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 10 July 2026.