New Penshaw Academy

About New Penshaw Academy

New Penshaw Academy is a primary school in Houghton le Spring, Sunderland, classified by the DfE as a sponsor-led academy. Around 138 pupils aged 3 to 11 attend the school. 58% of its pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths at the end of Key Stage 2, broadly in line with the national average (national figure: 61%). The proportion reaching the expected standard has fallen by 7.0 percentage points compared with the previous year, though small year groups can make these figures swing sharply from year to year. On our composite score, which combines the DfE attainment measures above, this places it in the lower half of primary schools nationally.

Pupils achieved an average scaled score of 102 in reading and 100 in maths (national averages are about 105 and 104). Getting a place is straightforward: for the September 2026 intake every family who made New Penshaw Academy their first choice was offered one of its 18 Reception places. Overall pupil absence was 9.1%. There are about 14.1 pupils per teacher. The school serves a community with above-average levels of disadvantage: about 49% of pupils have been eligible for free school meals in the last six years, compared with roughly 24% nationally — useful context when reading the results above. New Penshaw Academy does not currently have a recent graded Ofsted judgement on record (often the case for newer or recently converted schools), so it is worth asking when its next inspection is expected. 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.