Fordbridge Community Primary School

About Fordbridge Community Primary School

Fordbridge Community Primary School in Solihull has been rated Good by Ofsted, a significant improvement from its previous Requires Improvement rating. The school's most recent graded inspection in 2016 gave it an overall effectiveness score of 2, with leadership and management also rated Good. A subsequent ungraded inspection in 2020 confirmed the school remains Good. The most telling academic metric is the Key Stage 2 combined reading, writing and maths expected standard, where 69% of pupils achieved the benchmark. That puts Fordbridge slightly above the Solihull local authority average of 67%, placing it 18th out of 42 primary schools in the borough. The school also saw 10% of pupils reach the higher standard in all three subjects, and individual subject scores were solid: 83% met the expected standard in reading, 79% in maths and 79% in writing.

Digging deeper into the 2023/24 exam results, Fordbridge's average scaled scores were 106 in reading and 105 in maths, both comfortably above the national baseline of 100. The proportion of pupils reaching the higher standard was strongest in reading at 32%, followed by maths at 21% and writing at 17%. The school's early years provision was singled out as Outstanding in the 2016 inspection, a notable strength given that 61.2% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well above the national average. Nationally, Fordbridge ranks in the top 35% of all primary schools for its Key Stage 2 expected standard performance, and in the West Midlands it sits in the top third. The school has no official sixth form, as expected for a primary, but does offer nursery provision for children aged two and above.

Fordbridge is a popular choice locally, oversubscribed for the 2025/26 intake with 95 applications for 58 places and 55 first-preference offers made from 58 first-preference applications. The school has a wide range of facilities including a library, ICT suite, gymnasium, dining hall, art studios and even a chapel. Sports on offer include rounders, swimming, dance, cross country and netball, while clubs cover eco, drama and choir. SEND provision is comprehensive, covering specific learning difficulties like dyslexia, moderate learning difficulty, social and emotional needs, speech and language issues, hearing impairment, physical disability, autistic spectrum disorder and other difficulties. For families considering alternatives, the nearest Outstanding-rated school is St Anne's Catholic Primary School, just 0.4 km away. Fordbridge suits families who want a well-regarded, inclusive community primary with strong early years provision and a track record of improvement.

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