Woodside Academy
General Information
- Address: Grangewood Avenue, Grays, RM16 2GJ – View on map
- Phone: 01375372513
- Website: Visit school website
- Headteacher: Ms J Ryder
- Age range: 3-11 years
- Demand for places (Reception, September 2026): 62 families put it first for 69 places – 9 for every 10 places. 98% of them were offered a place. No places went to families living outside the council area. Children putting it first, for every 10 places: 2023 11 · 2024 10 · 2025 10 · 2026 9
- Sixth form: No
- Intake: Mixed
- Religious character: Does not apply
- Nursery provision: Yes
Who goes here
- Pupils eligible for free school meals: 120
- % eligible for free school meals: 18.1%
- Pupil mix: 6 in 10 (similar to the Thurrock average)
- English as an additional language: 14% (England 22%)
Staff
Teachers leaving each year
- Teacher turnover: 11.9% a year (Thurrock 17.4%, typical in England 13.9%)
- Where they went: about 58% moved to another school, 42% 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.
Supply and cover teaching
- Classes taught mainly by supply or cover staff for half a term or more: 0 (a full term or more: 0)
- Teaching posts vacant or only temporarily filled during the year: 0
- Days of supply or agency teacher cover: 0
- Data year: 2025/26 (from the school, under Freedom of Information)
Government figures only count teachers on contracts of 28 days or more, so a class covered by a run of supply teachers doesn't show up in them – which is why we ask schools directly.
Behaviour
Higher incident record 2025/26
Reading the numbers: higher figures below often mean a school records thoroughly and takes concerns seriously, rather than more incidents happening. A school reporting unusually low figures sometimes has a reporting gap rather than a problem-free intake. If a figure stands out, it's worth asking the school how it records.
- Data year: 2025/26
- Bullying incidents: 23
- Physical aggression / violence incidents: 39
- Child protection referrals: 11
- Safeguarding concerns: 17
- Racist incidents: 23
- Suspensions (fixed-term exclusions): 5
- Permanent exclusions: 0
- Sexual harassment or sexual violence between pupils (recorded incidents): 1 (led to a suspension or exclusion: 6; referred to social care or police: 6) – a higher number can mean a school takes reports seriously and records them carefully
Figures may show "<5" for some schools.
5th of 5 primary schools in Thurrock for behaviour
- #3Giffards Primary School50%
- #4West Thurrock Academy45%
- #5Woodside Academy30%
Click to see the full ranking
Across Thurrock: suspensions by reason
- Suspensions for sexual misconduct: 2 (0.1 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.2)
- Permanent exclusions for sexual misconduct: 0
- Suspensions for bullying: 0 (0.0 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.2)
- Suspensions for abuse against sexual orientation or gender identity: 2 (0.1 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 Thurrock, 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: 4.5%
- Persistently absent pupils: 10.8%
- Data year: 2024/25
SEN
No dedicated Unit or Resourced Provision
- Pupils on SEN Support: 20.4%
- Pupils with an EHC Plan: 5.0%
- Data year: 2025/26
Most common needs - SEN Support
- Moderate learning difficulty: 73 pupils
- Speech, language and communications needs: 30 pupils
- Social, emotional and mental health: 20 pupils
- Specific learning difficulty: 9 pupils
- Hearing impairment: 2 pupils
Most common needs - EHC Plan
- Autistic spectrum disorder: 21 pupils
- Social, emotional and mental health: 3 pupils
- Speech, language and communications needs: 3 pupils
- Moderate learning difficulty: 2 pupils
- Specific learning difficulty: 1 pupil
These figures show the makeup of the school.
This score reflects how openly the school responded to our Freedom of Information request. Schools that withhold information are rated lower — even the act of hiding data tells parents something about a school’s openness.
- Response
- Full response (+60)
- Timeliness
- Response date not recorded (+10)
- Optional data
- No optional data (+0)
Exemplary (80–100) · Cooperative (60–79) · Reluctant (40–59) · Obstructive (20–39) · Opaque (0–19)
Educational Attainment
Good 2024 report
Year 6 SATs results
- Met the expected standard in reading, writing & maths: 73% (England 62%)
- Reached the higher standard: 13% (England 8%)
- Compared with the area: 4 percentage points above the Thurrock average (69%)
- Compared with schools with similar pupils: Well above (3-year average 75% against an expected 62%)
- 3-year average (expected standard): 75%
- Expected standard by subject: Reading 86% · Writing 84% · Maths 83% · Grammar, punctuation & spelling 87%
- Average test scores: reading 107, maths 107
- Based on: 90 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
Year 6 SATs: joint 14th of 39 junior and primary schools in the area
- =14The Gateway Primary Free School73%
- =14Tudor Court Primary School73%
- =14Woodside Academy73%
- =17Holy Cross Catholic Primary School70%
- =17St Mary's Catholic Primary School70%
Click to see the full ranking
View full Ofsted inspection report
31st of 32 primary schools in Thurrock for Ofsted rating
- #29Warren Primary SchoolGood
- #30West Thurrock AcademyGood
- #31Woodside AcademyGood
- #32St Joseph's Catholic Primary SchoolRequires improvement
Click to see the full ranking
Financials
Spending per pupil: £6,603 (2024-25)
13th of 39 primary schools in Thurrock for spending per pupil
- #11West Thurrock Academy£6,776
- #12Stifford Clays Primary School£6,697
- #13Woodside Academy£6,603
- #14Kenningtons Primary Academy£6,585
- #15Quarry Hill Academy£6,573
Click to see the full ranking
View on the Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool (GOV.UK)
Environment
Data received 2025/26
Accessibility
- Step-free for pupils, staff and visitors: No
- Overall accessibility: Mostly
- Lifts for pupil use: Yes
- Accessible toilets: Yes
- Changing Places facility: Yes
- Sensory room: Yes
Climate
- Classrooms with air conditioning: 100%
- Mechanical ventilation: No
- Air cooling units: No
- Shaded outdoor areas: Some
- Heatwave procedures: Yes - informal arrangements
Technology
- Pupils per device: 1:1 (one each)
- Digital display in every classroom: Yes
- Interactive whiteboards: Yes - all classrooms
- 1:1 pupil device programme: Yes - all pupils
- Coding / robotics equipment: Yes
- Assistive technology for SEND pupils: Yes