Elms Farm Community Primary School

About Elms Farm Community Primary School

Elms Farm Community Primary School sits in the bottom half of Birmingham primary schools when ranked by the proportion of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths at Key Stage 2. Its score of 57 places it 172nd out of 292 schools in the local authority, and 169th in the more specific LA ranking that includes all primary types. That 57% figure is six percentage points below the Birmingham LA average of 63%, a gap that puts the school firmly in the bottom 50 tier nationally. The context matters, though: 62.9% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well above the national average, and the school is at full capacity with 420 pupils. This is a school serving a high-needs community, and its headline metrics need to be read against that backdrop rather than compared to more affluent intakes.

Academically, the picture is mixed. In the 2023/24 Key Stage 2 results, 57% of pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, which is below the LA average of 63%. But individual subject scores tell a more nuanced story. In maths, 72% reached the expected standard and the average scaled score was 103, with 17% achieving a higher standard. Reading saw 65% at expected and an average score of 103, with 25% reaching the higher standard. Writing was weaker, with 63% at expected and just 3% at the higher level. No pupil achieved the higher standard across all three subjects. The school’s most recent Ofsted inspection in September 2021 rated it Good overall, a clear improvement from its previous Requires Improvement rating in 2017. All five graded categories — quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and early years provision — were judged Good.

The school offers a nursery provision for children from age three and has a broad range of facilities including a library, forest school, gymnasium and outdoor playground. Sports provision covers dance, cricket, athletics, rounders and football, while clubs include science, art, coding and chess. SEND support is extensive, covering eight categories from specific learning difficulties like dyslexia through to autistic spectrum disorder and visual impairment. For the 2025/26 admissions cycle, the school was oversubscribed: 110 applications for 53 places, with 52 first-preference offers made. That oversubscription ratio of 2.08 suggests strong local demand. Families considering Elms Farm should weigh its below-average headline results against the reality of a high-FSM intake and a Good Ofsted rating that reflects solid leadership and behaviour. It is a community school that has improved its inspection grade and offers genuine breadth in enrichment, but parents prioritising top-tier academic outcomes may find stronger options among Birmingham’s 28 Outstanding primaries.

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