Purfleet Primary Academy

About Purfleet Primary Academy

Purfleet Primary Academy sits within the Thurrock local authority, a mixed state primary for pupils aged 3 to 11. Among the 39 primary schools in the borough, it ranks 21st, placing it just above the middle of the pack. The top-performing local peers are Quarry Hill Academy, Chadwell St Mary Primary School, and St Mary's Catholic Primary School, all of which score higher on the same ranking metric. The nearest school rated Outstanding by Ofsted is Kenningtons Primary Academy, about 2.8 kilometres away. Purfleet itself holds a Good rating, a significant improvement from its previous Requires Improvement grade in 2015. The school's most recent graded inspection in 2016 confirmed the Good rating, and an ungraded inspection in 2021 concluded that the school remains Good. Leadership and management, early years provision, and behaviour and attitudes were all judged Good in that graded inspection, reflecting steady progress under headteacher Eugene Samuel.

Academically, Purfleet Primary Academy performs slightly above the local average at Key Stage 2. In the 2023/24 results, 68% of pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing, and maths combined, compared with the Thurrock average of 67%. The school's ranking score of 68 places it in the top 50 nationally for this metric. In individual subjects, 86% of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, 77% in maths, and 77% in writing. Higher attainment — reaching a higher standard — was achieved by 21% in reading, 20% in maths, and 10% in writing, with 8% hitting the higher bar across all three subjects. Average scaled scores were 105 in reading and 104 in maths. Progress scores are not available in the data, so it is not possible to compare how much value the school adds relative to pupils' starting points.

The school is well equipped with facilities including a sports hall, library, music rooms, playing fields, a forest school, and a sensory room. It offers a broad range of sports and clubs, from netball and cricket to coding and gardening. SEND provision is comprehensive, covering eight areas including autistic spectrum disorder, speech and language communication needs, and social, emotional and mental health difficulties. The school has a nursery and is oversubscribed: for 2025/26, there were 113 applications for 88 places, with 84 offers made to first-preference families. With 35.1% of pupils eligible for free school meals, it serves a relatively disadvantaged community. This is a school that has turned around its Ofsted rating and now delivers solid, slightly above-average outcomes in a practical, well-resourced setting that suits families looking for a stable local primary with strong SEND support.

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