Ashwood Park Primary School

About Ashwood Park Primary School

Ashwood Park Primary School in Dudley is a mixed state primary for children aged 3 to 11, currently operating well below its capacity. With 312 pupils on roll against a school capacity of 417, there is significant room for growth. The proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals stands at 25.5%, which is notably higher than the national average of around 23% and reflects the school's role in a community with above-average levels of disadvantage. Despite this spare capacity, the school is clearly in demand: for the 2025/26 intake, it received 60 applications for just 29 places, an oversubscription ratio of 2.07 to one. Of those, 26 were first-preference applications, and 26 first-preference offers were made, suggesting that while the school is popular locally, it is not yet oversubscribed to the point of turning away many first-choice families. The headteacher is Keith Butler, and the school has no religious character.

Academically, Ashwood Park is in a period of transition. Its most recent Ofsted inspection in June 2024 rated overall effectiveness as Requires Improvement, a downgrade from the Good rating it received in 2018. The inspection found that quality of education and leadership and management both require improvement, while early years provision, personal development, and behaviour and attitudes were all judged Good. At Key Stage 2, 50% of pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, which is below the Dudley local authority average of 59%. Average scores in reading and maths were both 102, and only 12% of pupils reached the higher standard in reading and maths, with 5% doing so in writing. In the Dudley local authority rankings, the school sits at 51st out of 69 primary schools, placing it in the bottom half regionally and nationally.

The school offers a solid range of facilities including an ICT suite, gymnasium, library, music rooms and a chapel. Sports provision covers rounders, football, cricket, netball and dance, while clubs include gardening, choir and drama. SEND support is comprehensive, with provisions for specific learning difficulties like dyslexia, moderate learning difficulties, social, emotional and mental health needs, speech and language communication needs, hearing impairment, autistic spectrum disorder, and a resourced provision for pupils with more complex needs. There is also nursery provision for children from age three. Given its current Ofsted rating and below-average KS2 outcomes, Ashwood Park may particularly suit families who value its strong SEND support and broad extracurricular offer, and who are comfortable with a school that is actively working to improve its academic performance under new leadership.

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