Blackfell Primary School

Sunderland · NE37 1HA

General information Primary School · 3-11 years Who goes here 142 pupils, 39.6% FSM

Educational attainment Ofsted report card

Parent score Rate this school No reviews yet - be the first SEN 22.5% on SEN support Behaviour 4.9% absence rate Staff 22.3% turnover Financials £8,746 per pupil Environment Buildings and facilities

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Blackfell Primary School

General Information

Address: Knoulberry, Blackfell, Washington, NE37 1HA – View on map
Phone: 01919171665
Website: Visit school website
Headteacher: Mr Danny Patterson
Age range: 3-11 years
Demand for places (Reception, September 2026): 14 families put it first for 15 places – 9 for every 10 places. Every one of them was offered a place. No places went to families living outside the council area. Children putting it first, for every 10 places: 2023 10 · 2024 10 · 2025 10 · 2026 9
Sixth form: No
Intake: Mixed
Religious character: Does not apply
Nursery provision: Yes

Who goes here

142 pupils out of 246 places Plenty of room

Pupils eligible for free school meals: 53
% eligible for free school meals: 39.6%
Pupil mix: 1 in 10 (less mixed than the Sunderland average)
English as an additional language: 2% (England 22%)

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Teacher turnover: 22.3% a year (Sunderland 12.6%, typical in England 13.9%)
Where they went: about 17% moved to another school, 83% left state schools altogether (retirement, other careers, independent schools, abroad)
Data years: 2022/23 to 2024/25 (average of 3 years, DfE school workforce census)

Teachers who moved school or left state schools in the year after each November, as a share of all the school's teachers. Some turnover is healthy – retirements, promotions, moving house. This is a small staff, so one or two teachers leaving moves the figure a lot.

Behaviour

Awaiting Data

About this Behaviour status

We've asked this school for real behaviour figures under Freedom of Information and haven't had a response yet.

Across Sunderland: suspensions by reason

Suspensions for sexual misconduct: 1 (0.0 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.2)
Permanent exclusions for sexual misconduct: 0
Suspensions for bullying: 4 (0.2 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.2)
Suspensions for abuse against sexual orientation or gender identity: 0 (0.0 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.0)
Data year: 2024/25 (DfE suspensions and exclusions statistics)

These are figures for all state primary schools in Sunderland, not this school's own – the government doesn't publish them school by school. A suspension can have up to three reasons. Most sexual harassment between pupils never leads to a suspension, so these figures show only part of the picture.

Attendance

Overall absence: 4.9%
Persistently absent pupils: 11.0%
Data year: 2024/25

About persistent absence

A pupil is counted as "persistently absent" if they miss 10% or more of their possible school sessions - roughly one day in every two weeks. Schools and Ofsted both pay close attention to this figure specifically, since it can highlight a pattern the overall absence rate alone might hide.

SEN

No dedicated Unit or Resourced Provision

SEN Unit and Resourced Provision

Most mainstream schools don't have a dedicated SEN Unit or Resourced Provision - it isn't a mark against a school that doesn't, just a different kind of setup than one that does.

Pupils on SEN Support: 22.5%
Pupils with an EHC Plan: 2.1%
Data year: 2025/26

Most common needs - SEN Support

Social, emotional and mental health: 10 pupils
Speech, language and communications needs: 10 pupils
Moderate learning difficulty: 6 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 3 pupils
Specific learning difficulty: 2 pupils

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Moderate learning difficulty: 1 pupil
Speech, language and communications needs: 1 pupil
Autistic spectrum disorder: 1 pupil

These figures show the makeup of the school.

About these SEND figures

These figures give a sense of the makeup of the school - they aren't a judgement on the quality of support provided.

Parent score - no reviews yet –

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Behaviour

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Openness

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Teaching Quality

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School Ethos

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Ability to Deal with Problems

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Headteacher Approval

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SafeguardingSafeguarding (parent rating)How parents rate the school on keeping children safe - how safe their child feels, and how well concerns are listened to and acted on. It's parents' experience, not an inspection result; Ofsted checks safeguarding separately.

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Wraparound CareWraparound Care (parent rating)How parents rate the school's breakfast and after-school clubs - availability, cost and quality. Only asked for infant, junior and primary schools, where it matters most for working parents.

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Would recommend –

Educational Attainment

Ofsted report card February 2026

Ofsted's new report cards grade each part of school life separately, instead of giving one overall word.

Safeguarding Met
Inclusion Expected standard
Curriculum and teaching Expected standard
Achievement Expected standard
Attendance and behaviour Expected standard
Personal development and wellbeing Expected standard
Early years Needs attention
Leadership and governance Expected standard

Before this, under the old system, Ofsted rated the school Good (2021). The report card above replaces that grade.

How Ofsted report cards work

Since November 2025, Ofsted grades each area of a school on its own five-point scale, and no longer gives a single word like “Good” or “Outstanding”. Safeguarding (keeping children safe) is simply met or not met.

Exceptional The very best practice nationally
Strong standard Above what Ofsted expects
Expected standard What Ofsted expects of every school
Needs attention Some weaknesses the school needs to fix
Urgent improvement Serious weaknesses needing urgent action

“Expected standard” is a sound result – it's what Ofsted expects a good school to do. Report cards aren't directly comparable with the old single grades, which is why we don't turn them into one.

Year 6 SATs results

Met the expected standard in reading, writing & maths: 80% (England 62%)
Reached the higher standard: 15% (England 8%)
Compared with the area: 14 percentage points above the Sunderland average (66%)
Compared with schools with similar pupils: Above (3-year average 69% against an expected 61%)
3-year average (expected standard): 69%
Expected standard by subject: Reading 95% · Writing 90% · Maths 85% · Grammar, punctuation & spelling 90%
Average test scores: reading 108, maths 106
Based on: 20 Year 6 pupils, 2024/25

View the School Context Comparator – how this school's SATs results compare with schools teaching similar pupils.

SATs results over time

This schoolSunderland averageEngland↗ Improving Up 10 percentage points since 2022/23. In 2024/25 this school was 14 percentage points above the Sunderland average (66%).

Year 6 SATs: joint 15th of 75 junior and primary schools in the area

=13East Herrington Primary Academy81%
=13Hill View Junior Academy81%
=15Blackfell Primary School80%
=15Seaburn Dene Primary School80%
=15St Bede's Catholic Primary School, Washington80%

Click to see the full ranking

Year 6 SATs ranking

Junior and primary schools in this area, ranked by the % of Year 6 pupils meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (official DfE results, 2024/25). Schools with the same result share a place (shown as =). In small schools one or two children can move a school several places, so treat close positions as roughly equal.

Rank School Score

#1Benedict Biscop Church of England Academy97%
#2St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Sunderland95%
#3St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Sunderland90%
#4Rickleton Primary School89%
#5St Paul's CofE Primary School88%
=6Bernard Gilpin Primary School87%
=6St Michael's Catholic Primary School, Houghton87%
=8St Leonard's Catholic Primary School, Silksworth85%
=8Valley Road Academy85%
=10Biddick Primary School83%
=10St Anne's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School83%
#12Highfield Academy82%
=13East Herrington Primary Academy81%
=13Hill View Junior Academy81%
=15Blackfell Primary School80%
=15Seaburn Dene Primary School80%
=15St Bede's Catholic Primary School, Washington80%
#18Mill Hill Primary School79%
=19Bexhill Academy78%
=19Fulwell Junior School78%
=19St Benet's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School78%
#22St John Boste Catholic Primary School, Washington77%
#23Castletown Primary School76%
#24Willow Wood Community Primary School75%
=25Fatfield Academy74%
=25Holley Park Academy74%
=25St Cuthbert's Catholic Primary School, Sunderland74%
=28East Rainton Primary School72%
=28St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Washington72%
#30Shiney Row Primary School71%
#31Redby Academy70%
=32South Hylton Primary Academy69%
=32Usworth Colliery Primary School69%
=34Diamond Hall Junior Academy68%
=34English Martyrs' Catholic Primary School, Sunderland68%
=34Hudson Road Primary School68%
=34Newbottle Primary Academy68%
=34Northern Saints Church of England Academy68%
=39Our Lady Queen of Peace Catholic Primary School, Penshaw67%
=39Ryhope Junior School67%
#41Springwell Village Primary School66%
=42John F Kennedy Primary School65%
=42Plains Farm Academy65%
#44Richard Avenue Primary School64%
=45Barnwell Academy63%
=45Christ's College63%
=45Dubmire Primary63%
=45Easington Lane Primary School63%
=45Grangetown Primary School63%
=45Thorney Close Primary School63%
=51Eppleton Academy Primary School62%
=51George Washington Primary School62%
#53Academy 36061%
=54Barmston Village Primary School60%
=54Farringdon Academy60%
=54Hetton Lyons Primary School60%
=57New Penshaw Academy58%
=57St Patrick's Catholic Primary School, Ryhope58%
=59Albany Village Primary School57%
=59Burnside Academy Inspires57%
=61Broadway Junior School55%
=61Hasting Hill Academy55%
=63Hetton Primary School54%
=63St John Bosco Catholic Primary School, Town End Farm, Sunderland54%
=63Town End Academy54%
#66Oxclose Primary Academy52%
=67New Silksworth Academy Junior51%
=67Southwick Community Primary School51%
#69Hylton Castle Primary School43%
#70Grange Park Primary School39%
=71Barnes Junior School38%
=71Lambton Primary School38%
#73Wessington Primary School23%
#74Marlborough Primary School20%
#75Gillas Lane Primary Academy15%

View full Ofsted inspection report

Financials

Spending per pupil: £8,746 (2024-25)

About this spending figure

A higher or lower position here isn't a sign of a better or worse school - schools have different needs and circumstances - but it can help reassure you that a school has sufficient funding behind your child's education.

2nd of 67 primary schools in Sunderland for spending per pupil

#1Marlborough Primary School£9,188
#2Blackfell Primary School£8,746
#3Oxclose Primary Academy£8,717
#4Southwick Community Primary School£8,683

Click to see the full ranking

Spending Per Pupil ranking

Based on official DfE financial return data (Consistent Financial Reporting / Academies Accounts Return) - not a ranking of school quality.

Rank School Score

#1Marlborough Primary School£9,188
#2Blackfell Primary School£8,746
#3Oxclose Primary Academy£8,717
#4Southwick Community Primary School£8,683
#5East Rainton Primary School£8,646
#6New Penshaw Academy£8,511
#7Thorney Close Primary School£8,388
#8Wessington Primary School£8,283
#9Benedict Biscop Church of England Academy£8,264
#10Barmston Village Primary School£8,264
#11Hasting Hill Academy£8,151
#12Albany Village Primary School£8,094
#13Valley Road Academy£8,092
#14Gillas Lane Primary Academy£8,015
#15Plains Farm Academy£8,006
#16Hetton Primary School£7,920
#17Grange Park Primary School£7,878
#18Town End Academy£7,820
#19Easington Lane Primary School£7,766
#20Usworth Colliery Primary School£7,752
#21Hylton Castle Primary School£7,609
#22Lambton Primary School£7,477
#23Willow Wood Community Primary School£7,332
#24Burnside Academy Inspires£7,298
#25Hudson Road Primary School£7,277
#26Shiney Row Primary School£7,169
#27Grangetown Primary School£7,144
#28English Martyrs' Catholic Primary School, Sunderland£7,101
#29Bexhill Academy£7,010
#30South Hylton Primary Academy£6,948
#31Eppleton Academy Primary School£6,930
#32John F Kennedy Primary School£6,904
#33St John Bosco Catholic Primary School, Town End Farm, Sunderland£6,901
#34Barnwell Academy£6,888
#35Northern Saints Church of England Academy£6,868
#36St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Sunderland£6,850
#37Farringdon Academy£6,823
#38Castletown Primary School£6,663
#39St John Boste Catholic Primary School, Washington£6,593
#40Highfield Academy£6,543
#41St Patrick's Catholic Primary School, Ryhope£6,497
#42Our Lady Queen of Peace Catholic Primary School, Penshaw£6,491
#43Redby Academy£6,469
#44George Washington Primary School£6,451
#45Holley Park Academy£6,357
#46St Anne's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School£6,309
#47Hetton Lyons Primary School£6,248
#48St Paul's CofE Primary School£6,240
#49Richard Avenue Primary School£6,230
#50Seaburn Dene Primary School£6,225
#51Fatfield Academy£6,138
#52Mill Hill Primary School£6,117
#53East Herrington Primary Academy£6,069
#54St Cuthbert's Catholic Primary School, Sunderland£6,064
#55St Benet's Roman Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School£6,009
#56St Michael's Catholic Primary School, Houghton£5,985
#57Rickleton Primary School£5,985
#58Springwell Village Primary School£5,931
#59St Bede's Catholic Primary School, Washington£5,857
#60Biddick Primary School£5,696
#61St Leonard's Catholic Primary School, Silksworth£5,668
#62St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Washington£5,573
#63St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Sunderland£5,552
#64Bernard Gilpin Primary School£5,545
#65Dubmire Primary£5,426
#66Newbottle Primary Academy£4,671
#67Dame Dorothy Primary School£3,943

View on the Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool (GOV.UK)

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