Brabourne Church of England Primary School

About Brabourne Church of England Primary School

Brabourne Church of England Primary School is a small, mixed state primary for children aged 5 to 11, and it is running at full capacity with exactly 105 pupils on roll. The school is oversubscribed for the 2025/26 intake, receiving 38 applications for just 11 places, with 10 of those offers going to first-preference families. That gives an oversubscription ratio of 3.45, a clear signal of local demand. The proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals stands at 4.8%, which is notably low compared with the national average and suggests a relatively affluent intake. As a Church of England school in Ashford, Kent, it serves a community where competition for places is fierce, and the school’s popularity is reflected in the fact that only a fraction of applicants can be accommodated. This is a school that families actively seek out, and its small size means it retains a close-knit feel.

Academically, Brabourne performs well above the local authority average. In the 2023/24 Key Stage 2 assessments, 80% of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, compared with a Kent average of 63%. The school also excels at the higher standard, with 13% of pupils achieving that level across all three subjects. Reading and maths average scores were 107 and 106 respectively, both above the national benchmark of 100. In the Ashford local authority ranking, Brabourne sits 3rd out of 40 primary schools, placing it in the top 7.5% locally. Nationally, it ranks in the top 10.4% of all primary schools. The most recent Ofsted inspection, an ungraded visit in March 2024, confirmed the school remains Good, a rating it has held consistently since its previous graded inspection in 2013.

The school offers a broad range of facilities including a library, gymnasium, playing fields, music rooms, a forest school, ICT suite, art studios and a chapel. Sports provision covers rounders, athletics, cricket, cross country, swimming, netball and dance, while clubs include chess, coding, eco club and science club. For children with additional needs, the school supports a range of SEND categories including dyslexia, moderate learning difficulty, speech and language needs, visual impairment, physical disability and autistic spectrum disorder. Given its small size, strong academic outcomes and high demand, Brabourne is best suited to families who live close enough to secure a place and who value a church school with a strong community feel. The lack of nursery provision means children typically join in Reception, and the school does not have a sixth form.

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