SCHOOL PROFILE

Downsell Primary School

Primary Community school URN 103044
Open
Pupils 8,834,192 Latest school census
Capacity 695 Published school capacity
Capacity used 61.3% Pupils as a share of capacity
Age range 2 – 11 Statutory age range
OFSTED

Latest graded inspection

29 November 2023
Latest published outcome Good
OEIF
Quality of education Good
Behaviour & attitudes Good
Personal development Good
Leadership & management Good
SCHOOL DETAILS

About this school

School type Community school
Phase Primary
Gender Mixed
Religious character Does not apply
Local authority Waltham Forest
Trust Not applicable
Census date 15 January 2026
PUPIL PROFILE

School community

Latest published pupil characteristics for 2025/26.

2025/26
Total pupils 426 373 full-time · 53 part-time
Female pupils 191 44.8% of pupils
Male pupils 235 55.2% of pupils

Free school meals

Pupils eligible for free school meals.

30.0%
5.2 pts above England
School 30.0%
Waltham Forest 24.7%
London 26.3%
England 24.8%

English as an additional language

Pupils whose first language is not English.

74.6%
54.3 pts above England
School 74.6%
Waltham Forest 38.9%
London 39.2%
England 20.3%

Young carers

Pupils recorded as young carers.

0.2%
0.8 pts below England
School 0.2%
Waltham Forest 0.4%
London 0.5%
England 1.0%

Ethnicity

Largest recorded pupil groups.

Any other White background
22.8%
97
Pakistani
20.4%
87
African
11.7%
50
Bangladeshi
8.2%
35
White British
6.3%
27
Any other Black background
4.7%
20
Council, regional and national comparisons are pupil-weighted using published school census counts.
ADDITIONAL NEEDS

Special educational needs

Pupils receiving SEN support or with an education, health and care plan.

2025/26
Pupils with SEN 53.8% 229 of 426 pupils
32.9 pts above England England: 20.8%
School 53.8%
Waltham Forest 19.6%
London 19.8%
England 20.8%
SEN support 42.0% 179 pupils
England 14.8% 27.2 pts above
EHC plans 11.7% 50 pupils
England 6.0% 5.7 pts above
PRIMARY NEEDS

Most common identified needs

Pupils
Speech, language & communication 88
Moderate learning difficulty 60
Social, emotional & mental health 43
Autistic spectrum disorder 34
Specific learning difficulty 2
Profound & multiple learning difficulty 1

SEN comparisons are pupil-weighted using published 2025/26 Department for Education school-level data. Primary needs combine pupils receiving SEN support and pupils with EHC plans.

ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE

Key stage 2 outcomes

Published Department for Education results for 2024/25.

2024/25
EXPECTED STANDARD

Reading, writing & maths

66.0% 5.6 pts above England
School 66.0%
Waltham Forest 70.3%
London 67.9%
England 60.4%
EXPECTED STANDARD

Reading

71.0%

2.8 pts below England

School 71.0%
Waltham Forest 79.2%
London 78.2%
England 73.8%
EXPECTED STANDARD

Writing

83.0%

12.7 pts above England

School 83.0%
Waltham Forest 76.7%
London 75.1%
England 70.3%
EXPECTED STANDARD

Maths

76.0%

4.0 pts above England

School 76.0%
Waltham Forest 79.3%
London 77.7%
England 72.0%
School results show the percentage of pupils meeting the expected standard. Council, regional and national comparisons are averages of published school-level percentages and are not pupil-weighted official attainment rates.
ATTENDANCE & ABSENCE

Attendance profile

Published Department for Education absence data for 2024/25. Lower absence rates are generally better.

2024/25
ABSENCE RATE

Overall absence

6.63%

Percentage of possible sessions missed.

0.41 pts higher than England
School 6.63%
Waltham Forest 6.46%
London 6.38%
England 6.22%
ABSENCE RATE

Persistent absence

19.15%

Pupils missing 10% or more of sessions.

3.33 pts higher than England
School 19.15%
Waltham Forest 17.93%
London 17.60%
England 15.82%
ABSENCE RATE

Severe absence

0.30%

Pupils missing 50% or more of sessions.

1.50 pts lower than England
School 0.30%
Waltham Forest 1.64%
London 1.67%
England 1.80%
Council, regional and national comparisons are averages of published school-level percentages rather than pupil-weighted official absence rates.
HOW DOES IT COMPARE?

School context

Comparison with open primary schools.

CAPACITY

Capacity utilisation

61.3% 26.9 pts below England
Downsell Primary School
61.3%
Waltham Forest
86.2%
London
85.9%
England
88.2%
Benchmarks use open schools in the same phase. Capacity utilisation is calculated from published pupil and capacity figures.
Sources: Department for Education · Get Information about Schools · Ofsted monthly management information