Red Oaks Primary School

About Red Oaks Primary School

Red Oaks Primary School sits within Swindon local authority, where it ranks 34th out of 51 primary schools — placing it in the bottom half of the area’s state primaries. Among its local peers, the top performers are Bishopstone Church of England Primary School, Lift Hazelwood, and The Croft Primary School, all of which score higher on the same ranking metric. The school is one of 66 state primaries in Swindon, and just four of those currently hold an Ofsted Outstanding rating. The nearest Outstanding-rated school is Haydon Wick Primary School, about 2.1 km away. Red Oaks itself was rated Good in its most recent graded inspection back in 2013, and an ungraded inspection in January 2024 confirmed it remains Good, with the inspector noting the school is improving. That’s a reassuring sign for parents considering a school that isn’t among the top-ranked in the LA but is clearly on an upward trajectory.

Academically, Red Oaks produces mixed results at Key Stage 2. In the 2023/24 assessments, 55% of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined — below the Swindon local authority average of 62%. The school ranks in the bottom 50 nationally on this measure, sitting at 9,505 out of 13,686 primaries. Breaking it down, reading is the strongest subject: 75% of pupils hit the expected level and 27% achieved a higher standard. Writing and maths are weaker, with 73% and 65% reaching expectations respectively. Progress scores aren’t available, so it’s hard to say how much value the school adds relative to pupils’ starting points. Only 8% of children reached the higher standard across all three subjects, which is low. The school does serve a slightly more disadvantaged cohort than average, with 15.1% of pupils eligible for free school meals, which may partly explain the gap to the LA average.

The school is oversubscribed: for 2025/26 entry, 126 families applied for 49 places, a ratio of 2.57 applicants per place, and 46 first-preference offers were made. Facilities are decent for a primary, including a forest school, sensory room, art studios, gymnasium, library and even a chapel. Sports provision covers swimming, dance, rounders, athletics, tennis, cross country and netball, and there are clubs for art, science, gardening and book club. SEND support is broad, covering specific learning difficulties like dyslexia, moderate learning difficulties, speech and language needs, hearing impairment, physical disability, autism, and social, emotional and mental health needs. There’s also a resourced provision on site. With nursery provision from age 3, it suits families looking for a single-site primary through to Year 6, particularly those who value outdoor learning and strong SEND support, though academic outcomes are below the local average.

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