Heron Cross Primary School

Stoke-on-Trent · ST4 4LJ

General information Primary School · 3-11 years Who goes here 396 pupils, 43.2% FSM

Educational attainment Ofsted report card

Parent score Rate this school No reviews yet - be the first SEN 19.7% on SEN support Behaviour 4.6% absence rate Staff 20.6% turnover Financials £6,564 per pupil Environment Buildings and facilities

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Heron Cross Primary School

General Information

Address: Grove Road, Heron Cross, Stoke-on-Trent, ST4 4LJ – View on map
Phone: 01782233565
Website: Visit school website
Headteacher: Mrs Gemma Willdigg
Age range: 3-11 years
Demand for places (Reception, September 2026): 34 families put it first for 38 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

396 pupils out of 472 places

Pupils eligible for free school meals: 171
% eligible for free school meals: 43.2%
Pupil mix: 4 in 10 (less mixed than the Stoke-on-Trent average)
English as an additional language: 17% (England 22%)

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Teacher turnover: 20.6% a year (Stoke-on-Trent 13.7%, typical in England 13.9%)
Where they went: about 69% moved to another school, 31% 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.

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 Stoke-on-Trent: suspensions by reason

Suspensions for sexual misconduct: 6 (0.2 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.2)
Permanent exclusions for sexual misconduct: 0
Suspensions for bullying: 9 (0.4 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 Stoke-on-Trent, 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: 4.6%
Persistently absent pupils: 10.1%
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: 19.7%
Pupils with an EHC Plan: 2.0%
Data year: 2025/26

Most common needs - SEN Support

Speech, language and communications needs: 49 pupils
Moderate learning difficulty: 19 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 8 pupils
Specific learning difficulty: 2 pupils

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Speech, language and communications needs: 7 pupils
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 January 2026

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

Safeguarding Met
Inclusion Strong standard
Curriculum and teaching Expected standard
Achievement Expected standard
Attendance and behaviour Strong standard
Personal development and wellbeing Strong standard
Early years Expected standard
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: 59% (England 62%)
Reached the higher standard: 5% (England 8%)
Compared with the area: in line with the Stoke-on-Trent average (59%)
Compared with schools with similar pupils: As expected (3-year average 53% against an expected 54%)
3-year average (expected standard): 53%
Expected standard by subject: Reading 69% · Writing 76% · Maths 71% · Grammar, punctuation & spelling 67%
Average test scores: reading 105, maths 106
Based on: 58 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 schoolStoke-on-Trent averageEngland→ Broadly steady No clear rise or fall since 2022/23 (changes this small are normal from one year group to the next). In 2024/25 this school was in line with the Stoke-on-Trent average (59%).

Year 6 SATs: joint 39th of 64 junior and primary schools in the area

=35Sutherland Primary Academy61%
#38Saint Nathaniel's Academy60%
=39Heron Cross Primary School59%
=39Our Lady's Catholic Academy59%
=39St Joseph's Catholic Academy, Goldenhill59%

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

=1Newstead Primary Academy83%
=1Norton-Le-Moors Primary Academy83%
#3Co-op Academy Glebe82%
=4St Mary's Church of England Primary School81%
=4Whitfield Valley Primary Academy81%
#6Goldenhill Primary Academy80%
#7St Gregory's Catholic Academy78%
=8Hillside Primary School77%
=8Holden Lane Academy77%
=8St Marys Catholic Academy77%
#11Summerbank Primary Academy75%
=12St Maria Goretti Catholic Academy73%
=12St Teresa's Catholic (A) Primary School73%
=12The Willows Primary School73%
=15Mill Hill Primary Academy72%
=15Milton Primary Academy72%
=15The Crescent Academy72%
=18Co-op Academy Clarice Cliff71%
=18Greenways Primary Academy71%
=20New Ford Academy70%
=20The Meadows Primary Academy70%
#22Park Hall Academy69%
#23Sandford Hill Primary School68%
=24Belgrave St Bartholomew's Academy67%
=24Harpfield Primary Academy67%
=24Priory CofE Academy67%
=24St George and St Martin's Catholic Academy67%
#28Packmoor Ormiston Academy66%
#29Eaton Park Academy65%
#30Waterside Primary School64%
=31Ash Green Primary Academy63%
=31Smallthorne Primary Academy63%
=33Gladstone Primary Academy62%
=33Kingsland CofE Academy62%
=35Forest Park Primary School61%
=35Sandon Primary Academy61%
=35Sutherland Primary Academy61%
#38Saint Nathaniel's Academy60%
=39Heron Cross Primary School59%
=39Our Lady's Catholic Academy59%
=39St Joseph's Catholic Academy, Goldenhill59%
=39Weston Junior Academy59%
=43Oakhill Primary School58%
=43Our Lady and St Benedict Catholic Academy58%
=43St Thomas Aquinas Catholic Primary School58%
=46Sneyd Academy56%
=46St Matthews Church of England Academy56%
=46St Wilfrid's Catholic Academy56%
#49Co-op Academy Grove54%
#50St Peter's Catholic Academy53%
#51Star Academy, Sandyford50%
=52St Augustine's Catholic Academy48%
=52St John's CofE (A) Primary School48%
#54St Mark's CofE Primary School44%
=55Alexandra Junior School43%
=55Christ Church CofE Primary Academy43%
=57Moorpark Junior School42%
=57Stoke Minster CofE Primary Academy42%
#59Hanley St Luke's Church of England Academy41%
#60Abbey Hulton Primary School40%
#61St Paul's CofE (C) Primary School36%
#62Maple Court Academy35%
#63Carmountside Primary Academy32%
#64Etruscan Primary School30%

View full Ofsted inspection report

Financials

Spending per pupil: £6,564 (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.

35th of 61 primary schools in Stoke-on-Trent for spending per pupil

#33The Meadows Primary Academy£6,577
#34Etruscan Primary School£6,575
#35Heron Cross Primary School£6,564
#36Star Academy, Sandyford£6,529
#37Oakhill Primary School£6,516

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

#1Abbey Hulton Primary School£8,618
#2St Matthews Church of England Academy£8,167
#3Belgrave St Bartholomew's Academy£8,007
#4Carmountside Primary Academy£7,698
#5Harpfield Primary Academy£7,687
#6Kingsland CofE Academy£7,459
#7Holden Lane Academy£7,453
#8Co-op Academy Glebe£7,356
#9Sutherland Primary Academy£7,333
#10Our Lady's Catholic Academy£7,321
#11Christ Church CofE Primary Academy£7,317
#12Sandon Primary Academy£7,287
#13Summerbank Primary Academy£7,245
#14Goldenhill Primary Academy£7,172
#15Maple Court Academy£7,140
#16Co-op Academy Clarice Cliff£6,980
#17St Peter's Catholic Academy£6,887
#18St Mark's CofE Primary School£6,876
#19St Augustine's Catholic Academy£6,858
#20Newstead Primary Academy£6,856
#21New Ford Academy£6,828
#22Forest Park Primary School£6,825
#23St Paul's CofE (C) Primary School£6,823
#24Stoke Minster CofE Primary Academy£6,810
#25St Maria Goretti Catholic Academy£6,805
#26Our Lady and St Benedict Catholic Academy£6,786
#27St John's CofE (A) Primary School£6,769
#28Gladstone Primary Academy£6,753
#29St Mary's Church of England Primary School£6,724
#30Eaton Park Academy£6,723
#31Hanley St Luke's Church of England Academy£6,630
#32Saint Nathaniel's Academy£6,625
#33The Meadows Primary Academy£6,577
#34Etruscan Primary School£6,575
#35Heron Cross Primary School£6,564
#36Star Academy, Sandyford£6,529
#37Oakhill Primary School£6,516
#38St Thomas Aquinas Catholic Primary School£6,436
#39St Marys Catholic Academy£6,394
#40Sneyd Academy£6,339
#41Sandford Hill Primary School£6,331
#42St Joseph's Catholic Academy, Goldenhill£6,295
#43Packmoor Ormiston Academy£6,239
#44St Wilfrid's Catholic Academy£6,225
#45Ash Green Primary Academy£6,224
#46Milton Primary Academy£6,143
#47The Crescent Academy£6,135
#48Hillside Primary School£6,058
#49St Teresa's Catholic (A) Primary School£6,058
#50Priory CofE Academy£6,031
#51The Willows Primary School£6,007
#52Greenways Primary Academy£5,927
#53Waterside Primary School£5,864
#54St George and St Martin's Catholic Academy£5,836
#55Park Hall Academy£5,789
#56Mill Hill Primary Academy£5,780
#57St Gregory's Catholic Academy£5,690
#58Whitfield Valley Primary Academy£5,179
#59Smallthorne Primary Academy£5,139
#60Norton-Le-Moors Primary Academy£4,889
#61Burnwood Primary Academy£3,092

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

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