Curwen Primary School

About Curwen Primary School

Curwen Primary School in Newham has been rated Outstanding in every category of its most recent Ofsted inspection, carried out in November 2023. The inspectors awarded top marks across the board: overall effectiveness, quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, early years provision, and leadership and management all received the highest possible grade. That consistency is notable — the school also held an Outstanding rating in its previous inspection back in 2009. On the key academic metric for primary schools, the proportion of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined stands at 77%, which is three percentage points above the Newham local authority average of 74%. This places Curwen 27th out of 61 primary schools in the borough, putting it comfortably in the top half of local schools and within the top 25% nationally when ranked by this measure.

Looking more closely at the 2023/24 Key Stage 2 results, Curwen’s performance is solid across the three core subjects. In maths, 89% of pupils met the expected standard and 40% reached the higher standard, with an average scaled score of 108. Reading saw 85% at expected and 31% at the higher level, with an average score of 107. Writing was similar, with 86% at expected and 31% at the higher level. The proportion of pupils achieving the higher standard across all three subjects — reading, writing and maths — was 17%. While the school does not publish progress scores for reading, writing or maths, the attainment figures are strong enough to suggest effective teaching across the board. With 41% of pupils eligible for free school meals, these results represent a significant achievement and reflect the school’s inclusive approach to raising standards for all its pupils.

Curwen is a large primary school with 854 pupils on roll, slightly above its official capacity of 840, and it is clearly popular with local families. For entry in 2025/26, the school received 202 applications for 90 places, with 89 of those going to first-preference applicants — an oversubscription ratio of 2.24. The school has a nursery provision for younger children and offers a wide range of facilities including a sensory room, forest school area, ICT suite, art studios, music rooms and a gymnasium. Sports on offer include athletics, swimming, cricket, netball, football, gymnastics and cross country, while clubs cover drama, coding and science. SEND provision is well developed, with support for pupils with specific learning difficulties like dyslexia, speech and language needs, social and emotional challenges, and autistic spectrum disorder. This is a school that suits families looking for a high-performing, well-resourced state primary with strong pastoral and SEND support, particularly those living within commuting distance of the nearest Outstanding alternative, Portway Primary School, which is just half a kilometre away.

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