School Context Comparator

Exam results say a lot about a school's pupils, not just its teaching. A school where many children are disadvantaged or have special educational needs will usually have lower results, even if it's doing a great job. This compares each school with what you'd expect from the pupils it teaches.

Primary and junior schools in West Lindsey: SATs results in context

% meeting the expected standard, average of the three years to 2024/25. Each numbered dot is a school (see the table below). Above the line means better results than you'd expect from its pupils; the shaded strip is "about what you'd expect".

  • Better than expected
  • About as expected
  • Below expected

The faint grey dots behind are every other school in England, for comparison.

Outlined in black: the school you compared (marked "Compared" in the table).

Green ring: low teacher turnover – among the quarter of similar schools in England where teachers are most likely to stay (three-year average).

303040405050606070708080Better than expectedBelow expectedExpected % (from the school's pupils)Actual % meeting the expected standard1234567891011121314151617181920212223242526272829303132333435
303040405050606070708080Better than expectedBelow expectedExpected %Actual % meeting the expected standard1234567891011121314151617181920212223242526272829303132333435

Loading stats for 13,485 schools across England…

Did you know? In a class of 30, one child moves a school's SATs percentage by more than 3 points - which is why we use a three-year average. How this works

How each school compares

# School Compared with what you'd expect Actual Expected Gap Disadvantaged SEN EAL Pupils(3 years) Teacher turnover(a year)
1 Benjamin Adlard Primary School Well above 59% 38% +20.6 78% 70% 7% 86 16%above average
2 Kelsey Primary School Well above 72% 52% +20.2 50% 40% 0% 46 31%
3 Grasby All Saints Church of England Primary School Well above 78% 59% +19.2 38% 23% 0% 32 15%
4 Morton Trentside Primary School Well above 70% 55% +14.6 43% 32% 0% 79 14%
5 Bardney Church of England and Methodist Primary School Well above 69% 57% +12.4 49% 23% 6% 94 26%high
6 The Marton Academy Above 74% 63% +11.2 11% 33% 0% 38 7%
7 Reepham Church of England Primary School Above 77% 66% +10.8 17% 14% 3% 87 13%
8 Welton St Mary's Church of England Primary Academy Above 74% 64% +9.9 32% 9% 6% 198 18%above average
9 Keelby Primary Academy Above 69% 62% +6.8 31% 17% 3% 88 16%
10 Ingham Primary School As expected 71% 66% +4.8 10% 20% 0% 41 9%
11 Osgodby Primary School As expected 71% 67% +3.8 13% 13% 0% 38 10%
12 The Middle Rasen Primary School As expected 64% 61% +3.3 24% 29% 0% 55 15%
13 Dunholme St Chad's Church of England Primary School As expected 70% 67% +2.8 13% 13% 0% 94 12%
14 Ellison Boulters Church of England Primary School As expected 69% 67% +1.9 3% 24% 3% 120 13%below average
15 Nettleton Community Primary School As expected 57% 56% +0.9 36% 36% 0% 44 17%
16 Corringham CofE VC Primary School As expected 61% 61% −0.4 21% 29% 0% 46 13%
17 The Market Rasen Church of England Primary School As expected 61% 62% −1.4 29% 17% 0% 136 17%above average
18 Cherry Willingham Primary Academy As expected 58% 60% −1.7 33% 27% 9% 95 12%
19 The Gainsborough Charles Baines Community Primary School Compared As expected 47% 49% −2.4 60% 40% 0% 88 14%
20 Saxilby Church of England Primary School Below 61% 66% −4.6 20% 13% 0% 150 6%low
21 Blyton Cum Laughton Church of England School Below 51% 58% −6.9 41% 24% 0% 59 0%
22 St George's Church of England Community Primary School, Gainsborough Below 44% 52% −7.7 77% 20% 20% 81 17%above average
23 Fiskerton Church of England Primary School Below 52% 61% −9.4 25% 25% 0% 42 13%
24 Scotter Primary School Below 52% 63% −10.8 25% 20% 2% 133 9%low
25 Caistor CofE and Methodist Primary School Below 50% 61% −11.1 30% 23% 5% 119 7%low
26 Frances Olive Anderson Church of England (Aided) Primary School Below 52% 63% −11.1 25% 18% 0% 79 3%
27 The Gainsborough Parish Church Primary School Well below 46% 58% −12.4 47% 20% 13% 129 7%low
28 Tealby School Below 45% 58% −13.3 36% 27% 0% 38 6%
29 White's Wood Academy Well below 39% 52% −13.3 66% 26% 12% 158 27%high
30 Sturton by Stow Primary School Well below 48% 62% −13.9 20% 28% 0% 69 13%
31 Castle Wood Academy Well below 45% 60% −14.6 40% 21% 11% 121 18%above average
32 The Nettleham Church of England Voluntary Aided Junior School Well below 48% 63% −14.7 32% 15% 7% 179 9%low
33 Mercer's Wood Academy Well below 34% 50% −16.1 79% 21% 7% 78 36%high
34 Faldingworth Community Primary School Well below 38% 55% −16.5 50% 29% 0% 32 0%
35 Waddingham Primary School Well below 32% 66% −33.5 11% 22% 0% 37 9%

Results are the average of the last three Year 6 groups, which is steadier than a single year. Pupil percentages are for the latest Year 6. Disadvantaged: eligible for free school meals at any point in the last six years, or looked after by the council. SEN: special educational needs (SEN support or an EHC plan). EAL: English as an additional language.

Not compared

How this works

We looked at every comparable state primary and junior school in England (14,315 schools) to see how SATs results usually change with the make-up of a year group. On average:

  • For every 10 more disadvantaged pupils in every 100, the share meeting the expected standard is about 2.4 percentage points lower.
  • For every 10 more pupils with SEN in every 100, it's about 2.4 percentage points lower.
  • For every 10 more pupils with English as an additional language in every 100, it's about 0.7 percentage points higher. Pupils learning English often catch up quickly.

From those, each school gets an expected result for its own pupils, which we compare with its actual result. Primary year groups are small – in a class of 30, one child moves the percentage by more than 3 points – so we use the three-year average and allow for each school's own pupil numbers: a small school needs a bigger gap before we call it above or below what you'd expect.

What we found: schools where teachers stay

We put every primary and junior school's result-against-expected next to its teacher turnover – the share of its teachers who moved to another school or left state schools each year, averaged over three years (DfE school workforce census). Across 8,274 schools in England, split into four equal groups by turnover:

Teacher turnoverTypical turnoverResults vs expectedDid better than expected
Lowest turnover 7% a year +1.8 pts 40%
Lower-middle 12% a year +1.2 pts 37%
Upper-middle 17% a year +0.7 pts 36%
Highest turnover 26% a year −1.2 pts 32%

The pattern is the same as for secondary schools but weaker, and most of the difference is in the quarter of schools where teachers leave most often (−1.2 percentage points, against +1.8 for the lowest-turnover quarter). Primary staffs are small and SATs results move around from year to year, which blurs the picture.

A link isn't proof that one causes the other: losing teachers may hold results back, and a school that's struggling for other reasons (leadership, for example) may also lose more teachers. Nationally, turnover is fairly steady from year to year and teachers who move are replaced – but between schools it varies a lot, from under one teacher in ten a year to more than one in five. The green rings on the chart mark the lowest-turnover quarter.

What it can't tell you

  • These three things explain only about 18% of the differences between schools. Much of what makes a school stronger or weaker, and much about its pupils, isn't captured by any published figure.
  • Even averaged over three years, small schools' results move around a lot, so treat close calls as roughly equal.
  • It isn't an excuse for lower results. It shows how a school does compared with schools teaching similar pupils, so you can compare more fairly.
  • We deliberately don't adjust for attendance or exclusions: those are partly down to the school itself.

Source: Department for Education, Key Stage 2 performance data (2024/25). Calculated by The School Companion.