Queensway Junior Academy

About Queensway Junior Academy

Queensway Junior Academy’s headline Key Stage 2 results sit well below the Norfolk local authority average for primary schools. Just 24% of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, compared with a county average of 52%. That gap of 28 percentage points is significant and places the school in the bottom 2% nationally for this measure. Within Breckland, it ranks 35th out of 43 primary schools, and across the East of England it sits at the 97th percentile — meaning only 3% of schools in the region perform worse. The school’s ranking score of 24 (out of 100) confirms it is in the bottom 50 tier. These figures make clear that academic attainment is a serious challenge here, and parents considering this school will want to understand what support is in place to address it.

Looking more closely at the 2023/24 KS2 breakdown, the picture is mixed by subject. In reading, 58% of pupils met the expected standard and 11% reached a higher standard, with an average scaled score of 100. Maths was slightly stronger: 60% met expectations and 13% achieved the higher threshold, with an average score of 101. Writing was the weakest area — only 38% reached the expected standard and none achieved a higher mark. No progress scores are available for any subject, so it is not possible to say whether pupils are making typical gains from their starting points. The school’s most recent Ofsted inspection in January 2022 rated it Inadequate overall, with leadership and management, quality of education, and personal development all judged Inadequate, and behaviour and attitudes Requires Improvement. The previous inspection in 2016 had rated it Requires Improvement, so the trajectory has been downwards.

Queensway Junior Academy is a small school with 151 pupils against a capacity of 271, meaning it is significantly under-subscribed. Over half of its pupils (51%) are eligible for free school meals, well above the national average, and the school has a broad range of SEND provisions covering dyslexia, moderate learning difficulties, social and emotional mental health needs, speech and language communication needs, and autistic spectrum disorder. Facilities include playing fields, a sports hall, music rooms, art studios, a library, a dining hall, and a forest school. Clubs on offer include eco club, drama, book club, film club and science club, and sports range from football and netball to gymnastics and cross country. For families whose priority is strong academic outcomes, this school is unlikely to be the right fit. It may suit parents who value a small, inclusive setting with a wide range of enrichment activities and are prepared to work closely with the school on the improvements flagged by Ofsted.

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