Lime Academy Watergall

About Lime Academy Watergall

Lime Academy Watergall is a state primary school in Peterborough, serving 316 pupils aged 5 to 11. It sits within the Peterborough local authority, where it ranks 34th out of 53 primary schools based on the proportion of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths. That places it in the bottom half of schools locally, well behind the top-performing peers in the area. The three highest-ranked primaries in Peterborough are Barnack CofE (Controlled) Primary School, Winyates Primary School, and St John's Church School, each with ranking scores in the mid-90s. The nearest school rated Outstanding by Ofsted is Fulbridge Academy, just over two kilometres away. Lime Academy Watergall itself was rated Requires Improvement in its most recent graded inspection in July 2024, a rating it has held across both its recent inspections. The school is led by headteacher Andy Buffham and has no religious character.

Academically, the school’s Key Stage 2 results for the 2023/24 academic year show that 53% of pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths, below the Peterborough local authority average of 59%. Just 4% reached the higher standard in that combined measure. In individual subjects, 68% met the expected standard in reading, 66% in writing, and 58% in maths. Average scores were 103 in reading and 102 in maths. The school’s Ofsted report from July 2024 rated the quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, and leadership and management all as Requires Improvement, while early years provision and personal development were judged Good. The previous inspection in January 2022 had rated personal development as Requires Improvement and behaviour and attitudes as Good, so the most recent inspection saw behaviour slip while personal development improved. Progress scores for reading, writing and maths were not published in the data.

The school operates from a site that includes an outdoor playground, sports hall, ICT suite, music rooms, sensory room, and a forest school area. Sports on offer include football, athletics, rounders, dance and netball, and there are clubs for drama, choir, film, art and chess. The school has a broad range of SEND provisions, covering specific learning difficulties like dyslexia, moderate learning difficulties, speech and language needs, social and emotional mental health support, physical disabilities, and autistic spectrum disorder. For the 2025/26 intake, the school was oversubscribed: it received 44 applications for 33 places, with all 33 first-preference applicants offered a place, giving an oversubscription ratio of 1.33. With capacity for 420 pupils but currently 316 on roll, there is room for growth. This school may suit families in Peterborough who value a broad range of facilities and SEND support, but who are aware that academic outcomes are below the local average and that Ofsted has identified areas for improvement.

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