Displaying items by tag: Primary Reception Pressures

 Updated May 2020

Coronavirus; There are a number of articles on this site exploring the implications of the pandemic on school applications and appeals. You will find them by putting 'Coronavirus' in the search engine on the top left hand corner of this page. This page contains outcomes of Ofsted Inspections carried out up until 4th February 2020, the last ones published before schools were closed. I estimate about another 10 will have been completed but results are waiting until schools are opened, which may not be until September. I think it most unlikely there will be any more this school year.  

Entries on this page include the OFSTED Grade for each Primary School updated twice a year, also recording change from previous Inspection result, together with some other relevant information below. It is worth using the search engine on the Home Page to pick up other references to individual schools.

You will find advice on Primary school Admissions and Appeals here. 

You can read the full Report on each Primary School at OFSTED. Each school is awarded a main Grade: Outstanding, Good, Requires Improvement (previously Satisfactory), and Inadequate (two sub categories - A school that has serious weaknesses is inadequate overall and requires significant improvement but leadership and management are judged to be Grade 3 or better - A school that requires special measures is one where the school is failing to give its pupils an acceptable standard of education and the school’s leaders, managers or governors have not demonstrated that they have the capacity to secure the necessary improvement in the school). Each Report carries a brief description of the school before justifying its decision in more detail. If a school is in Special Measures or Serious Weaknesses, the results of further monitoring visits are noted.

A majority of the schools that have previously had a 'Good' or 'Outstanding' assessment are given a Short Inspection (known as Section 8). These are indicated by 'Good (S). These will be confirmed in their assessment grade. However for some of these schools, the Inspection Team may consider that there are concerns, or in the case of a Good school, grounds for raising the Grade and this can only be done by a full Section Five Grade. These are recorded for example as  'Outstanding (SC) or 'Good (SR). 

You will find an analysis of oversubscription and vacancies for  Gravesham Primary Places for September 2019 Allocations here, for 2018 here, for 2017 here, and for 2016 here.

You will find a commercial site providing a comprehensive analysis of  different 11 Plus exams, preparation and appeals at 11 Plus Exams.

Reports on Inspections between between September 2019 and July 2020  are in the first table, followed by other tables containing older ones.

(A) Indicates the school is an Academy (2017 onwards) 

* Put Copperfield in Search Engine for further information. Early allocation information has Copperfield with 42 LAAs and still 19 free places out of its 90. 

 *Copperfield Academy has had a dreadful record for as long as I have run this website, most recently covered here. You will find a positive Monitoring Report here.  

** Istead Rise has also had a dreadful history both as a KCC school and being run by Meopham Community Trust. Now run by Swale Academies Trust and Good for the first time. See Ofsted record below.

 Item on Copperfield Academy here

* Article on renaissance of Kings Farm here. 

Excerpt from Gravesham section of article on oversubscription and vacancies in Kent primary schools 2015: "Gravesend and Northfleet families have most difficulties across Kent in finding good schools for their children".

*Chantry: See article here. 

**Kings Farm: See article on Inspection Report here. Further article on Whitehill and Kings Farm here.

Information from Oversubscription Survey of Kent primary schools, for entry September 2014. 

Next up is probably Gravesham, and certainly the town where I have had most concerns expressed (Sevenoaks parents may be used to it!).  Quite simply, there are just two vacancies in the whole urban district of Gravesend and Northfleet, and 12 in the rural south at Vigo. Every other one of the 24 other schools is full. The two Catholic schools, St John’s in Gravesend (second in Kent), and St Joseph’s in Northfleet (last year’s most oversubscribed school) account for 86 first choices turned away. Here 129 children, 10% of the total applicants, were offered no school of their choice, five schools all of whom have had difficult histories, mopping up the large majority of these, headed up by Whitehill, with a remarkable 30 Local Authority Allocations out of its 90 places. No extra places created to tackle this issue, although I have been warning about it for some years.

 2012-13 OFSTED Reports 

Both Raynehust and Dover Road are being taken over by Reach2 to become Sponsored academies. 

Pre September 2012 Reports

Chantry Primary School working in tandem with Meopham Community Academy for a year from Jun 2011 under executive Head from Meopham.

Riverview Junior School: The notice to improve was issued solely because the schoool failed to complete satfety checks on staff, thus potlentially placing children at risk. This is part of the statutory safeguarding required, where failure to comply produces an automatic failure at an OFSTED Inspection. The Report states: "Were it not for the safeguarding weakness noted, this would be a good school with a number of outstanding features". The July 2011 Report confirms it is back to its previous status as a good school. 

Updated May 2020

Coronavirus; There are a number of articles on this site exploring the implications of the pandemic on school applications and appeals. You will find them by putting 'Coronavirus' in the search engine on the top left hand corner of this page. This page contains outcomes of Ofsted Inspections carried out up until 4th February 20120, the last ones published before schools were closed. I estimate about another 10 will have been completed but results are waiting until schools are opened, which may not be until September. I think it most unlikely there will be any more this school year. 

Entries on this page include the OFSTED Grade for each Primary School updated twice a year, also recording change from previous Inspection result, together with some other relevant information below. It is worth using the search engine on the Home Page to pick up other references to individual schools.

You will find advice on Primary school Admissions and Appeals here. 

You can read the full Report on each Primary School at OFSTED. Each school is awarded a main Grade: Outstanding, Good, Requires Improvement (previously Satisfactory), and Inadequate (two sub categories - A school that has serious weaknesses is inadequate overall and requires significant improvement but leadership and management are judged to be Grade 3 or better - A school that requires special measures is one where the school is failing to give its pupils an acceptable standard of education and the school’s leaders, managers or governors have not demonstrated that they have the capacity to secure the necessary improvement in the school). Each Report carries a brief description of the school before justifying its decision in more detail. If a school is in Special Measures or Serious Weaknesses, the results of further monitoring visits are noted.

A majority of the schools that have previously had a 'Good' or 'Outstanding' assessment are given a Short Inspection (known as Section 8). These are indicated by 'Good (S). These will be confirmed in their assessment grade. However for some of these schools, the Inspection Team may consider that there are concerns, or in the case of a Good school, grounds for raising the Grade and this can only be done by a full Section Five Grade. These are recorded for example as  'Outstanding (SC) or 'Good (SR). 

You will find an analysis of oversubscription and vacancies for  Dartford Primary Places for September 2019 Allocations here, for 2018 here, for 2017 here, and for 2016 here. (2020 to follow). 

You will find a commercial site providing a comprehensive analysis of  different 11 Plus exams, preparation and appeals at 11 Plus Exams.

Reports on Inspections between between September 2019 and Feb 2020  are in the first table, followed by other tables containing older ones.

(A) Indicates the school is an Academy 

*Dartford Bridge Community: A shocking and sudden decline from 'Good' in just twelve months. The Report talks about decline over years, so begging two questions: how did it get Good in a Short Inspection just twelve months previously, suggesting the Short Inspection was itself inadequate: secondly what has happened with KCC monitoring given the warning of declining KS2 results. I understand that the headteacher went missing shortly before the inspection, but rarely does one see a statement such as:'Parents’ confidence and trust in the wider leadership of the school has broken down'.

**The Joyden's Wood concerns appear mainly historical now being addressed. Four years since previous inspection so no doubt plenty of work being done.

*** Another Kent school off the KCC failed list, by academisation. 

 Knockhall Primary, previously a Lilac Sky school continues to be a matter of concern. 

Excerpt from article in the Dartford section on oversubscription and vacancies in Kent primary schools: "There are no vacancies in any school in the town, but again, most parents have been offered one school of their choice, with 34 being allocated places by KCC, nearly all at Temple Hill or Holy Trinity CofE". 

 Excerpt from an article on oversubscription in Kent's primary schools, 2014: Dartford’s problems fall mainly on the Western side, where not one of its 16 primary schools has any vacancies, with Westgate (42 first choices turned away) and Brent (35) both in the top ten most popular schools across the county. With just 41 children being allocated by the Local Authority, most to the two very large infant schools, there are no schools that parents appear trying to avoid; however, 222 children, over 20% of the total did not get their first choice of school. Just 20 extra places were created to meet this demand. In the rest of the Borough, there are vacancies in just two schools, at Knockhall (14), which has 26 children allocated to it, and at Manor Primary in Swanscombe (8).

2012-13 OFSTED Reports 

Pre September 2012 Reports

The following primary schools had additional Reception intake places added in March for 2010 entry, to meet local pressures:

Manor Community Primary, up from 60 to 90 places

Maypole Primary up from 30 to 60 places