Charnwood Primary Academy

About Charnwood Primary Academy

Charnwood Primary Academy sits within the Staffordshire local authority, a large county with 308 primary schools. In the most recent ranking of these schools by KS2 performance, Charnwood placed 140th, placing it in the middle of the pack. The top-performing peers in the area are St John's Catholic Primary School, Woodseaves CE Primary Academy, and Needwood CofE Primary School, each achieving a perfect ranking score of 100. Charnwood's own ranking score of 58 places it in the bottom 50% nationally, though its local context is competitive. For families considering alternatives, the nearest school rated Outstanding by Ofsted is Willows Primary Academy, just half a kilometre away. Charnwood itself has held a Good rating across its most recent graded and ungraded inspections, with leadership and management, early years provision, and overall effectiveness all judged Good in the 2017 graded inspection, and the school confirmed as remaining Good in its 2022 ungraded visit.

Academically, Charnwood's 2023/24 Key Stage 2 results show a mixed picture. The proportion of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing, and maths combined was 58%, below the Staffordshire local authority average of 65%. In individual subjects, 74% met the expected standard in reading, 71% in writing, and 87% in maths. At the higher standard, 10% achieved the combined benchmark, with 26% reaching that level in reading, 13% in writing, and 19% in maths. Average scaled scores were 106 in reading and 105 in maths, both slightly above the national average of 100. Progress measures were not reported for the 2023/24 cohort, so it is not possible to compare pupil progress against peers. The school does not have a sixth form, as it serves pupils from age 3 to 11, and its nursery provision means children can join before Reception.

Charnwood is a smaller-than-average primary with 217 pupils against a capacity of 210, and it is oversubscribed: for 2025/26 entry, it received 49 applications for 24 places, with 22 first-preference offers made, giving an oversubscription ratio of 2.04. The school serves a community with above-average disadvantage, as 41.3% of pupils are eligible for free school meals. Facilities include an ICT suite, dining hall, sensory room, forest school, and a chapel. Sports on offer range from football and cricket to swimming and netball, while clubs include art, coding, chess, choir, and book club. The school has a broad SEND offer, supporting pupils with specific learning difficulties like dyslexia, moderate learning difficulties, social, emotional and mental health needs, speech and language communication needs, visual impairment, and autistic spectrum disorder. This combination of small size, strong SEND provision, and a forest school makes it a practical choice for families seeking a community-focused primary with additional support on hand.

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