Abbey Infants' School

Academy converter·Infant school Darlington·DL3 8JA

School type

Infant school

Ages 4–7

Key Stage 2 performance

Abbey Infants' School is an infant school for pupils aged 4–7. Pupils move on to a separate junior or middle school before Year 6, so the school does not enter pupils for the Key Stage 2 SATs and has no KS2 results to publish.

This applies to every infant school in England — it does not mean data is missing. Ofsted judgements and school information are shown below.

Getting a place

Offered a place after putting it first

100%

73 first choices, 80 places

First choices per place

0.91

fewer first choices than places

Applications naming the school

202

any preference, for 80 places

Last place offered lived

2.88 mi

straight line, 2025 intake · 4635 m

Applications from another council area

First preferences per place, last five years▼ 0.08

00.511.5

1 per place

1.1120220.9220230.9620240.9920250.912026

Red dashed line = one first choice per place. How to read this

The cut-off distance is how far the last child offered a place lived, not a catchment boundary: it moves every year with the number of applicants. Published by the council in its 2025 allocation figures, and checked against that document before we show it. In 2026 the school was not oversubscribed, so no distance limit applied.

Application figures: DfE, school level applications and offers (2026 intake).

Ofsted judgements

Legacy framework · Read full report ↗

Overall effectiveness

Good

Quality of education

Good

Behaviour and attitudes

Good

Personal development

Good

Leadership and management

Good

Safeguarding effective?

Yes

Early years provision

Good

School profile

Age range: 4–7
Pupils on roll: 265
Gender: Mixed
Religious character: None

Pupil background

% FSM ever-6

3.4%

Typical primary: 21.5%

% EAL

7.9%

Typical primary: 9.6%

Special educational needs

% SEN support

3.4%

Typical primary: 14.3%

% with an EHC plan

3.8%

Typical primary: 3.0%

Attendance

Overall absence

3.7%

Typical primary: 5.3%

Persistently absent

4.4%

Typical primary: 13.3%

Staffing & funding

Pupils per teacher

25.7

Typical primary: 20.7

Spend per pupil

£6,223

Typical primary: £6,960

“Typical” = the median primary school in England. What this means

Nearby primary schools

Abbey Junior School Darlington · 0.2 mi 59.4 St Augustine's Catholic Primary School Darlington · 0.5 mi 53.2 Polam Hall School Darlington · 0.6 mi 45.4 Mowden Junior School Darlington · 0.9 mi 65.2 Reid Street Primary School Darlington · 1.0 mi 45.2 Holy Family Catholic Primary School Darlington · 1.0 mi 65.2 St Mary's Cockerton Church of England Primary School Darlington · 1.1 mi 27.6 Corporation Road Community Primary School Darlington · 1.1 mi 57.8

Location

Official sources

Latest Ofsted report reports.ofsted.gov.uk DfE Compare School Performance compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk GIAS school details get-information-schools.service.gov.uk

About Abbey Infants' School

Abbey Infants' School is a primary school in Darlington, classified by the DfE as a converter academy. Around 265 pupils aged 4 to 7 attend the school. The school holds a 'Good' judgement from Ofsted.

Abbey Infants' School was not oversubscribed for September 2026: all 73 families who put it first were offered a place. The council's own allocation figures show the last child offered a place for 2025 lived 2.88 miles away in a straight line — that distance is not a fixed catchment and moves each year. Overall pupil absence was 3.7%. There are about 25.7 pupils per teacher. Its intake is relatively advantaged, with around 3% of pupils eligible for free school meals in the last six years versus about 24% nationally. When comparing schools, it is still worth visiting in person to see whether the atmosphere and approach suit your child. This overview is generated automatically from the latest published DfE performance tables and Ofsted data; figures are rounded, and you can check the originals via the official links above.