Pillowell Community Primary School

About Pillowell Community Primary School

Pillowell Community Primary School is a small state primary in the Forest of Dean, and the numbers suggest it is a school that local families are keen to get into. For the 2025/26 intake, the school received 30 applications for just 12 places, giving an oversubscription ratio of 2.5. Of those applicants, 13 put it as their first preference, and 11 first-preference offers were made. That level of demand is notable for a school with only 74 pupils on roll, and it hints at a strong local reputation. However, the most recent parent view data is not available in the school's records, so it is hard to gauge current parental satisfaction directly. What is clear is that the school is not resting on its laurels: it was rated Requires Improvement overall in its 2023 Ofsted inspection, a drop from its previous Good rating in 2014, and the leadership and management were also judged to require improvement. That said, inspectors rated behaviour and attitudes, personal development, and early years provision as Good, so there are clear strengths to build on.

Academically, the school's Key Stage 2 results for 2023/24 show a mixed picture. Just 43% of pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, which is well below the local authority average of 59%. In the Forest of Dean, this places the school 28th out of 39 primaries, and nationally it sits in the bottom 50% of schools. Digging into the individual subjects, 57% of pupils reached the expected standard in reading and 57% in maths, while 71% did so in writing. At the higher standard, 29% achieved it in reading, 21% in maths, and 14% in writing. The average scores in reading and maths were both 102, which is around the national average, so while the combined expected standard is low, the school is not far off the mark in individual subjects. Progress scores are not available, so it is hard to say how much value the school adds from starting points, but the data suggests there is room for improvement in driving up the proportion of pupils hitting the combined benchmark.

The school offers a decent range of facilities for its size, including a library, playing fields, a sports hall, a sensory room, and a gymnasium, plus clubs like chess, science club and choir. Sports on offer include rounders, netball, cross country and athletics. For children with additional needs, the school has SEND provisions for moderate learning difficulty, social, emotional and mental health needs, and speech, language and communication needs. The school has no nursery provision and no sixth form, so it is purely for primary-aged children. With a capacity of 84 and only 74 pupils, there is some spare capacity, but the oversubscription ratio shows that demand outstrips supply. This school will suit families who value a small, community-focused setting in the Forest of Dean and who are willing to work with the school as it addresses the areas identified for improvement by Ofsted.

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