A region of England
In short: Most primary schools here are rated Good or better, about the same as across England. Results at 11 are close to England, and results at 16 were close to England in 2026. Missing school is a bigger problem than across England.
North East at a glance
How North East's schools compare with England, area by area.
Councils run admissions, so this is the best way to narrow things down. Apply through the council where you live.
| Council | Schools and nurseries | First choice, primary | First choice, secondary | Secondary, another council |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| County Durham | 372 | 97.3% | 94.2% | 2.8% |
| Darlington | 73 | 92.7% | 91.5% | 1.1% |
| Gateshead | 141 | 98.1% | 87.1% | 4.6% |
| Hartlepool | 59 | 98.3% | 92.7% | 2.7% |
| Middlesbrough | 92 | 96.3% | 84.3% | 12.5% |
| Newcastle upon Tyne | 185 | 92.7% | 79.0% | 5.9% |
| North Tyneside | 139 | 91.7% | 84.3% | 7.3% |
| Northumberland | 266 | 96.8% | 96.0% | 2.6% |
| Redcar and Cleveland | 94 | 97.0% | 93.0% | 3.5% |
| South Tyneside | 96 | 96.9% | 89.2% | 0.6% |
| Stockton-on-Tees | 135 | 97.7% | 94.8% | 2.1% |
| Sunderland | 168 | 95.0% | 92.9% | 4.8% |
95.8%got their first-choice primary school in the North East in 2026. England: 92.4%. 98.7% got one of their top three.2.7% were offered a primary school in another council. England: 3.6%.
90.2%got their first-choice secondary school in the North East in 2026. England: 83.6%. 97.0% 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.
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.
857 mainstream schools in the North East, best first
Results well above the England average.
62 first choices, 45 offers made
Met the standard at 1197%
England 62%
Results well above the England average.
63 first choices, 60 offers made
Met the standard at 1187%
England 62%
Results well above the England average.
42 first choices, 45 offers made
Met the standard at 1193%
England 62%
164 mainstream schools in the North East, best first
Results well above the England average.
Met the standard at 1172%
England 62%
Results well above the England average.
215 first choices, 222 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1656.5
England 46.2
Results well above the England average.
18 first choices, 5 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1654.0
England 46.2
629 in the North East, highest Ofsted grade first
Darlington, DL3 8DT · Nursery
Nurseries don't sit tests, so there are no results to compare.
Sunderland, SR2 0RY · Nursery
Nurseries don't sit tests, so there are no results to compare.
Newcastle Upon Tyne, NE12 6QL · Nursery
Nurseries don't sit tests, so there are no results to compare.
123 in the North East, by the school's Eduscope score
Results well above the England average.
215 first choices, 222 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1656.5
England 46.2
Results well above the England average.
18 first choices, 5 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1654.0
England 46.2
Results well above the England average.
414 first choices, 225 offers made
Attainment 8 at 1654.1
England 46.2
110 in the North East. Eduscope doesn't rank these.
South Shields, NE34 7TD · Special · All-through · Ages 3 to 16
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
Choppington, NE62 5DJ · Special · All-through · Ages 4 to 19
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
Washington, NE38 7NY · Academy · Primary · Ages 5 to 11
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
67 in the North East. Eduscope doesn't rank these.
Ts20 1pq · Independent · All-through · Ages 7 to 18 · Girls
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
Gateshead, NE8 4DR · Independent · All-through · Ages 5 to 25
Specialist provision. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
Ne12 8uz · Independent · Secondary · Ages 11 to 16
Independent school. Results aren't published in the same way.
Results
Not published for this kind of school.
Pick a stage to see every North East school for that age, with filters for type, faith and Ofsted grade.
Ages 0 to 4
115 Outstanding, 370 Good, 5 need to improve.
629nurseries
Ages 4 to 11
97% Good or better. 63% met the standard at 11.
982schools
Ages 11 to 16
8 Outstanding, 80 Good, 8 need to improve. 45% got grade 5 in English and maths.
296schools
20 Outstanding, 59 Good, 1 need to improve. About 7 pupils per teacher.
110schools
Here's how North East's schools break down by type, faith and more.
Inspections, exam results and attendance, next to the figure for England where we have it.
North EastEngland
Primaries rated Good or Outstanding
Latest Ofsted grade, 641 primaries with one.
97%
England 96%
Close to England
Secondaries rated Good or Outstanding
88 of the 96 with a grade.
92%
England 93%
Close to England
Met the expected standard at 11
Reading, writing and maths.
63%
England 62%
Close to England
Grade 5 or above in English and maths
At GCSE.
45%
Pupils who miss a lot of school
Missed 1 in 10 days or more. Lower is better.
19%
England 18%
Primary pupils on free school meals
A sign of family income, not of school quality.
32%
Latest graded inspection for the 848 schools that have one.
96%
Good or Outstanding
Each square is 1% of schools.
North East 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 | North East | England |
|---|---|---|
| Good or Outstanding (Ofsted) | 96% | 95% |
| Met the expected standard at 11 (KS2) | 63% | 62% |
| Attainment 8 | 44.8 | 46.2 |
| Persistent absence | 19% | 18% |
| Pupils per teacher | 17.4:1 | 17.9:1 |
| Spending per pupil | £8,279 | £8,120 |
| In education or work after 16 | 89% | 91% |
| Went on to higher education | 55% | 56% |
| Pupils with special educational needs | 23% | 21% |
| Pupils with English as an additional language | 10% | 22% |
| Pupils on free school meals | 33% | 27% |
North East has 1,820 schools and nurseries.
There are 2% more pupils than in 2018, but numbers have fallen since 2025.
32% of primary pupils here get free school meals. Schools get extra money for each of them.
Pupils in the North East's state schools each January.
Up 2% 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.
North East32%
Apply through your local council, even for academies and faith schools.
Follow any school and we'll email you when it gets a new Ofsted report or new results are out. Nothing else.
North East has 1,820 schools, including 982 primary schools, 296 secondary schools, 629 nurseries, 67 independent schools, 110 special schools. Some count in more than one group. You can browse each category using the filters on Eduscope.
The highest-ranked schools in the North East on Eduscope are Benedict Biscop Church of England Academy, Bernard Gilpin Primary School, Newcomen Primary School. 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.
96% of inspected schools in the North East hold a Good or Outstanding Ofsted rating, which is above the England average of 94.8%. This includes 80 schools rated Outstanding and 736 rated Good.
Across primary schools in the North East, 63% 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 the North East is 17.4:1. 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 the North East is 19.4%. A pupil is classed as persistently absent if they miss 10% or more of school sessions. Across England it is 18.1%.
There are 389,471 pupils enrolled across schools in the North East, with 212,659 in primary and 172,315 in secondary. 33.0% of pupils are eligible for free school meals.
There are 67 independent schools in the North East. 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 the North East 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 1,820 schools in the North East 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.
