Longmeadow Primary School

About Longmeadow Primary School

Longmeadow Primary School in Stevenage is a mixed state primary for children aged 3 to 11, and it’s currently running slightly over its official capacity of 200 pupils, with 206 on the roll. That squeeze is reflected in its admissions data for the 2025/26 intake: the school received 44 applications for 26 places, making it oversubscribed with a ratio of 1.69 applicants per place. 21 of those applications were first-preference choices, and all 21 received offers. The school serves a community with a notably high proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals — 30.8%, which is well above the national average for primary schools. This context matters when interpreting the school’s performance and Ofsted rating, as it points to a pupil body with higher-than-average levels of disadvantage. The school also has a nursery provision, so it offers a continuous early years to Year 6 journey for local families.

Academically, Longmeadow’s most recent Key Stage 2 results, from the 2023/24 academic year, show that 43% of pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined. That’s significantly below the local authority average of 64% for Hertfordshire. Only 3% of pupils reached the higher standard across all three subjects. In individual subjects, reading and writing saw 62% of pupils meeting expectations, while maths was lower at 46%. Average scaled scores were 101 in reading and 98 in maths. The school’s ranking within Stevenage places it 17th out of 19 primaries, and nationally it sits in the bottom 50% of schools. Its most recent graded Ofsted inspection, in May 2025, judged the school as ‘Requires improvement’ overall, though inspectors rated behaviour and attitudes, early years provision, and personal development as ‘Good’. Leadership and management, and quality of education, were both rated as ‘Requires improvement’.

On the practical side, Longmeadow offers a decent range of facilities including a sports hall, dining hall, playing fields, a forest school and a chapel. Sports on offer include athletics, netball, swimming and dance, and there’s a good selection of clubs — chess, choir, coding, book club, film club and eco club. The school has a broad SEND offer, with provisions listed for specific learning difficulties like dyslexia, moderate learning difficulties, social, emotional and mental health needs, speech and language issues, hearing and visual impairments, and autistic spectrum disorder. Parent View responses from 33 parents in the 2024/25 period were largely positive: 94% agreed or strongly agreed that their child is happy, and 100% felt their child is safe. 82% would recommend the school. However, only 30% strongly agreed that concerns are dealt with properly, and 24% disagreed that the school keeps them informed about their child’s progress. This is a school that suits families who value a strong community feel and a broad extracurricular offer, but who are realistic about academic outcomes being below the local average and an Ofsted rating that still needs improvement.

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