Waterside Primary School
Eastwood Road, Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, ST1 3JS
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 3 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- THE SHAW EDUCATION TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mrs Louise Willis
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Sponsor
- The Shaw Education Trust
- Constituency
- Stoke-on-Trent Central
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 360
- Pupils on roll
- 473
- URN
- 148121
- Local authority
- Stoke-on-Trent
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01782234630
About this school
Waterside Primary School is a primary academy in Stoke-on-Trent. It teaches children aged 3 to 11 and has 473 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Waterside 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. Seeing a school for yourself shows what no page can, so arrange a visit before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 9 October 2024, where inspectors found that standards have been maintained. 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 | 56 | 57 | 59 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 55% | 61% | 64% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 7% | 11% | 7% |
| Expected standard in reading | 66% | 77% | 73% |
| Expected standard in maths | 79% | 84% | 80% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 84% | 79% | 92% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 103.0 | 104.0 | 105.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 104.0 | 104.0 | 103.0 |
| Reading progress | -0.30 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +2.80 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +1.30 | - | - |
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 Waterside 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 | Stoke-on-Trent average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 55% | 54.8% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 61% | 56.5% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 64% | 57.6% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 5.7% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 5.4% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5.2% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 449 |
| 2023/24 | 470 |
| 2024/25 | 470 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Waterside Primary School compares
Waterside Primary School ranked 30th of 64 primary schools in Stoke-on-Trent for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 50% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 56% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 64% | 5.2% | 30.8% | 473 | — |
| Hanley St Luke's Church of England Academy | 41% | 5% | 49.9% | 455 | 0.2 miles |
| Co-op Academy Northwood | — | 4% | 36.4% | 179 | 0.5 miles |
| St Mark's CofE Primary School | 44% | 6.1% | 57.5% | 449 | 0.6 miles |
| Co-op Academy Grove | 54% | 4.4% | 44.1% | 317 | 0.6 miles |
| St George and St Martin's Catholic Academy | 67% | 3.8% | 31.4% | 233 | 0.8 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)
- 30.79%
- English as an additional language
- 42.6%
- Overall absence
- 5.18%
- Persistent absence
- 11.14%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Hanley St Luke's Church of England Academy0.2 miles
Primary · Stoke-on-Trent
-
Co-op Academy Northwood0.5 miles
Primary · Stoke-on-Trent
-
St Mark's CofE Primary School0.6 miles
Primary · Stoke-on-Trent
-
Co-op Academy Grove0.6 miles
Primary · Stoke-on-Trent
-
St George and St Martin's Catholic Academy0.8 miles
Primary · Stoke-on-Trent
Other schools in Stoke-on-Trent
Waterside Primary School ranks 54th of the 102 ranked primary schools in Stoke-on-Trent.
- Abbey Hulton Primary School Primary
- Alexandra Infants' School Primary
- Alexandra Junior School Primary
- All Saints' CofE First School Primary
- Alsager Highfields Community Primary School Primary
- Alsagers Bank Primary Academy Primary
- Ash Green Primary Academy Primary
- Ball Green Primary Academy Primary
- Barlaston CofE (VC) First School Primary
- Belgrave St Bartholomew's Academy Primary
- Bishop Rawle CofE Primary School Primary
- Burnwood Primary Academy Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Waterside Primary School teach?
- Waterside Primary School teaches children aged 3 to 11. It is a primary school in Stoke-on-Trent.
- Who is the headteacher of Waterside Primary School?
- The headteacher of Waterside Primary School is Mrs Louise Willis, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Waterside Primary School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Waterside 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 Waterside Primary School?
- Waterside Primary School has 473 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 3 to 11.
- Is Waterside Primary School full?
- Waterside Primary School has capacity for 360 pupils and 473 on roll (131%), 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 Waterside Primary School a faith school?
- No. Waterside Primary School has no designated religious character.
- Does Waterside Primary School have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records Waterside Primary School as having nursery classes.
- Is Waterside Primary School part of an academy trust?
- Waterside Primary School is part of THE SHAW EDUCATION TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Waterside Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 55% in 2022/23 and 64% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Waterside Primary School compare with other schools in Stoke-on-Trent?
- Waterside Primary School ranked 30th of 64 primary schools in Stoke-on-Trent for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 50% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 56% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Waterside Primary School's absence rate?
- Waterside Primary School's overall absence rate is 5.2% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Waterside Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Waterside 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.