A council (local authority) in the East Midlands
In short: Most primary schools here are rated Good or better, about the same as across England. Results at 11 are below England, and results at 16 were below England in 2026. Missing school is a bigger problem than across England.
Derby at a glance
How Derby's schools compare with England, area by area.
Primary and secondary schools are ranked by Eduscope score, which weighs up results, inspections, attendance and more. Nurseries, special and independent schools aren't ranked. A high score isn't everything: always visit.
74 mainstream schools in Derby, best first
Results well above the England average.
65 first choices, 60 offers made
Met the standard at 1184%
England 62%
Results well above the England average.
95 first choices, 60 offers made
Met the standard at 1183%
England 62%
Results well above the England average.
48 first choices, 49 offers made
Met the standard at 1175%
England 62%
15 mainstream schools in Derby, best first
Results above the England average.
517 first choices, 180 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1651.6
England 46.2
Results well above the England average.
372 first choices, 288 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1654.5
England 46.2
Results above the England average.
302 first choices, 288 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1653.1
England 46.2
73 in Derby, highest Ofsted grade first
Derby, DE23 8PE · State · Nursery · Ages 2 to 5
No published results yet.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
Derby, DE3 9FN · Nursery
Nurseries don't sit tests, so there are no results to compare.
Derby, DE23 6WW · Nursery
Nurseries don't sit tests, so there are no results to compare.
17 in Derby, by the school's Eduscope score
Results above the England average.
517 first choices, 180 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1651.6
England 46.2
Results well above the England average.
372 first choices, 288 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1654.5
England 46.2
Results above the England average.
302 first choices, 288 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1653.1
England 46.2
11 in Derby. Eduscope doesn't rank these.
Derby, DE23 2FS · Academy · All-through · Ages 2 to 19
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
Derby, DE22 4LL · Independent · All-through · Ages 6 to 16
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
Derby, DE3 9AZ · Academy · Secondary · Ages 11 to 16
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
9 in Derby. Eduscope doesn't rank these.
Derby, DE22 4LL · Independent · All-through · Ages 6 to 16
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
De22 3fs · Independent · Secondary · Ages 11 to 18
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
Derby, DE23 8DF · Independent · All-through · Ages 5 to 16
Independent school. Results well above the England average.
Attainment 8 at 1656.7
England 46.2
Each dot is a school or nursery, coloured by its latest Ofsted grade. Point at a dot to see its name, or use the list.
Apply through the council where you live, even for a school in another council's area. Independent schools take applications directly.
Derby is a unitary authority in the East Midlands with 74 mainstream primary schools and 15 mainstream secondary schools. 81.7% got their first-choice secondary school, against 83.6% across England.
From Derby council's website, checked 7 November 2026. Check the council's pages before you apply.
School admissions team: admissions@derby.gov.uk · 01332 642730
If a date falls on a weekend or bank holiday, offers go out the next working day.
94.4%got their first-choice primary school in Derby in 2026. England: 92.4%. Ranked 51 of 151 councils. 99.1% got one of their top three.3.1% were offered a primary school in another council. England: 3.6%.
81.7%got their first-choice secondary school in Derby in 2026. England: 83.6%. Ranked 92 of 151 councils. 94.5% got one of their top three.4.3% were offered a secondary school in another council. England: 8.0%.
Source: DfE applications and offers, 2026. A low rate shows high demand, not poor schools.
35 of 223 primary appeals heard in Derby succeeded in 2025. 30 of 219 secondary appeals heard in Derby succeeded in 2025.
| Term | Starts | Half term | Ends |
|---|---|---|---|
| Autumn | 4 Sept | Breaks up 23 Oct, back 2 Nov | 18 Dec |
| Spring | 4 Jan | Breaks up 12 Feb, back 22 Feb | 25 Mar |
| Summer | 12 Apr | Breaks up 28 May, back 7 Jun | 26 Jul |
For schools that follow the council's dates. Academies, faith and foundation schools can set their own, and schools add training days. Source, checked 6 November 2026.
Pick a stage to see every Derby school for that age, with filters for type, faith and Ofsted grade.
Ages 0 to 4
6 Outstanding, 46 Good, 1 need to improve.
73nurseries
Ages 4 to 11
94% Good or better. 57% met the standard at 11.
88schools
Ages 11 to 16
1 Outstanding, 10 Good, 1 need to improve. 38% got grade 5 in English and maths.
32schools
All 9 inspected are Good or better. About 8 pupils per teacher.
11schools
Here's how Derby's schools break down by type, faith and more.
Some areas, like parts of a bigger town, are easiest to find by postcode.
Inspections, exam results and attendance, next to the figure for England where we have it.
DerbyEngland
Primaries rated Good or Outstanding
Latest Ofsted grade, 54 primaries with one.
94%
England 96%
Close to England
Secondaries rated Good or Outstanding
11 of the 12 with a grade.
92%
England 93%
Close to England
Met the expected standard at 11
Reading, writing and maths.
57%
England 62%
Grade 5 or above in English and maths
At GCSE.
38%
Pupils who miss a lot of school
Missed 1 in 10 days or more. Lower is better.
20%
England 18%
Primary pupils on free school meals
A sign of family income, not of school quality.
38%
Latest graded inspection for the 81 schools that have one.
95%
Good or Outstanding
Derby in blue. There were no tests in 2020 and 2021 because of Covid.
The latest published year for each measure. Sources and years are on our data sources page.
| Measure | Derby | England |
|---|---|---|
| Good or Outstanding (Ofsted) | 95% | 95% |
| Met the expected standard at 11 (KS2) | 57% | 62% |
| Attainment 8 | 42.3 | 46.2 |
| Persistent absence | 20% | 18% |
| Pupils per teacher | 18.6:1 | 17.9:1 |
| Spending per pupil | £7,808 | £8,120 |
| In education or work after 16 | 88% | 91% |
| Went on to higher education | 61% | 56% |
| Pupils with special educational needs | 21% | 21% |
| Pupils with English as an additional language | 31% | 22% |
| Pupils on free school meals | 37% | 27% |
DfE local authority code 831, ONS code E06000015.
Derby has 182 schools and nurseries.
There are 8% more pupils than in 2018.
38% of primary pupils here get free school meals. Schools get extra money for each of them.
Pupils in Derby's state schools each January.
Up 8% since 2018. More children can mean popular schools fill up faster.
Out of every 10 primary pupils, how many get free school meals. It's a sign of family income, not of school quality.
Derby38%
Follow any school and we'll email you when it gets a new Ofsted report or new results are out. Nothing else.
Derby has 182 schools, including 88 primary schools, 32 secondary schools, 73 nurseries, 9 independent schools, 11 special schools. Some count in more than one group. You can browse each category using the filters on Eduscope.
The highest-ranked schools in Derby on Eduscope are Lawn Primary School, Griffe Field Primary School, St George's Catholic Voluntary Academy. We rank each state school against schools of the same phase across England on its Ofsted inspection, results and attendance. Independent, special and nursery schools aren't ranked.
95% of inspected schools in Derby hold a Good or Outstanding Ofsted rating, which is above the England average of 94.8%. This includes 13 schools rated Outstanding and 64 rated Good.
Across primary schools in Derby, 57% of pupils meet the expected standard in reading, writing, and maths at Key Stage 2. This is based on the latest published results from the Department for Education.
The average pupil-teacher ratio across schools in Derby is 18.6:1. While not a direct measure of class size, this indicates the level of teaching resource available per pupil. Across England it is 17.9:1.
The persistent absence rate across schools in Derby is 19.5%. A pupil is classed as persistently absent if they miss 10% or more of school sessions. Across England it is 18.1%.
There are 46,011 pupils enrolled across schools in Derby, with 24,404 in primary and 21,157 in secondary. 36.5% of pupils are eligible for free school meals.
There are 9 independent schools in Derby. Fees vary by school and age group, with day school fees typically ranging from £10,000 to £20,000 per year. You can compare all private schools in Derby on Eduscope, including ISI inspection ratings where available.
Start by considering your child's age, your location, and whether you prefer a state or independent school. Use Eduscope to compare 182 schools in Derby by Ofsted ratings, exam results, and distance. Filter by school type, gender, religious character, and admissions policy to narrow your options.
Sources: DfE school performance tables, DfE school census and workforce, DfE pupil absence, Ofsted. Photos are stand-ins.
