Bishopswood Junior School

About Bishopswood Junior School

Bishopswood Junior School is a state primary in Basingstoke and Deane for children aged 7 to 11, and it currently operates with a bit of room to spare. With 237 pupils on roll against a capacity of 279, the school is running at roughly 85% full, which suggests it isn't under the intense admissions pressure seen at some oversubscribed local primaries. The proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals stands at 11.4%, a figure that sits below the national average for primary schools, indicating a relatively less disadvantaged intake compared with the wider population. The school is mixed, non-denominational, and led by headteacher Glen Golding. Its most recent Ofsted inspection, an ungraded visit in October 2023, confirmed that the school continues to be Good, a rating it has held consistently since at least its previous graded inspection in 2014. For families weighing up options in the Hampshire authority, Bishopswood presents as a stable, moderately-sized junior school with no obvious demand signal from its admission data to suggest a scramble for places.

Academically, Bishopswood's Key Stage 2 results for the 2023/24 academic year paint a mixed picture. The proportion of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined was 53%, which is below the local authority average of 61% for similar schools. This places the school in the bottom half of the national rankings, at the 73rd percentile, and 34th out of 40 schools within Basingstoke and Deane. Looking at individual subjects, 71% met the expected standard in maths, 69% in reading, and 68% in writing. At the higher standard, the figures are notably lower: just 6% achieved the higher benchmark across all three subjects, with 18% reaching it in reading and 13% in maths. Average scaled scores were 103 for maths and 104 for reading, both close to the national baseline of 100. Progress scores are not available in the data, so it's hard to say whether pupils are making above-expected gains from their starting points, but the raw outcomes suggest the school is not currently among the higher-performing primaries in the area.

On the practical side, Bishopswood offers a solid range of facilities for a junior school, including a library, ICT suite, sports hall, playing fields, music rooms, art studios, and a forest school area. Sports provision covers gymnastics, netball, tennis, athletics, swimming, dance, and cross country, while clubs extend to coding, art, science, eco, drama, and gardening. The school's SEND provisions are broad, supporting pupils with moderate learning difficulties, speech, language and communication needs, autistic spectrum disorder, hearing impairment, and social, emotional and mental health needs. There is no nursery or sixth form, as expected for a 7-11 primary. For families in Basingstoke and Deane who prioritise a well-resourced site with a range of extracurricular activities and a clear SEND framework, Bishopswood is a practical choice. However, those focused on top-tier academic outcomes may want to compare it with higher-ranked local peers such as Preston Candover or St Faith's, which sit at the top of the LA rankings.

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