Best primary schools in Darlington (2026)

Darlington has 22 ranked primary schools with published results. The top-ranked is St Teresa's Catholic Primary School, in the top 14% in England. The average reading, writing & maths here in 2025 was 63%, against 62% for England. 0 are in England's top 10%, and 1 are rated Outstanding by Ofsted.

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Rank	School	Reading, writing & maths (2023–2025 average)	Reading, writing & maths 2025	Higher standard	Ofsted
1 Top 14% in England	St Teresa's Catholic Primary School Darlington · Roman Catholic	80%	85%	9%	No rating
2 Top 16% in England	Holy Family Catholic Primary School Darlington · Roman Catholic	74%	77%	13%	No rating
3 Top 19% in England	St Augustine's Catholic Primary School Darlington · Roman Catholic	74%	71%	6%	Good
4 Top 21% in England	Mowden Junior School Darlington	74%	77%	13%	Report card
5 Top 24% in England	West Park Academy Darlington	71%	67%	18%	No rating
6 Top 25% in England	Mount Pleasant Primary School Darlington	70%	76%	12%	Good
7 Top 28% in England	Abbey Junior School Darlington	71%	77%	8%	No rating
8 Top 32% in England	St John's Church of England Academy Darlington · Church of England	70%	70%	10%	Outstanding
9 Top 36% in England	Corporation Road Community Primary School Darlington	68%	71%	10%	Good
10 Top 41% in England	Whinfield Primary School Darlington	68%	68%	3%	No rating
11 Top 42% in England	Firthmoor Primary School Darlington	64%	62%	9%	Report card
12 Bottom 46% in England	Springfield Academy Darlington	63%	79%	0%	Report card
13 Bottom 41% in England	Reid Street Primary School Darlington	59%	57%	7%	No rating
14 Bottom 40% in England	Heathfield Primary School Darlington	58%	68%	10%	Good
15 Bottom 34% in England	St Bede's Catholic Primary School Darlington · Roman Catholic	57%	64%	5%	Not judged
16 Bottom 29% in England	Gurney Pease Academy Darlington	56%	73%	7%	Report card
17 Bottom 28% in England	Northwood Primary School Darlington	54%	56%	2%	No rating
18 Bottom 8% in England	St Mary's Cockerton Church of England Primary School Darlington · Church of England	42%	37%	3%	Good
19 Bottom 5% in England	The Rydal Academy Darlington	39%	46%	4%	Good
20 Bottom 5% in England	Harrowgate Hill Primary School Darlington	39%	48%	0%	Report card
21 Bottom 2% in England	Skerne Park Academy Darlington	31%	35%	5%	Requires improvement
22 Bottom 2% in England	Red Hall Primary School Darlington	30%	25%	0%	Not judged

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Questions

What is the best primary school in Darlington?

On exam results over the last three years, St Teresa's Catholic Primary School is the top-ranked primary school in Darlington, in the top 14% of schools in England.

How are the schools ranked?

By published Department for Education exam results averaged over three years: for secondary schools, Attainment 8 plus a quarter of the share getting grade 5+ in English and maths; for primary schools, the share reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths plus half the share reaching the higher standard. The order uses the three-year average, so a school can rank above one with a higher single-year result. Schools with fewer than 10 pupils taking the tests are not ranked. Exam results are only part of the picture: visit, read the Ofsted report and check admissions rules, as living nearby does not guarantee a place.