Willoughton Primary School

About Willoughton Primary School

Willoughton Primary School holds a Good rating from Ofsted, a grade it has maintained consistently across its two most recent inspections. The most recent ungraded inspection in March 2024 confirmed the school remains Good, with leadership and management, early years provision, and overall effectiveness all judged to be Good. The most telling academic metric for this small village primary is its Key Stage 2 results in reading, writing, and maths. Just 54% of pupils met the expected standard in all three subjects, which is below the Lincolnshire local authority average of 57%. This places the school in the bottom half of primary schools nationally, ranking 145th out of 280 schools in the county. While the headline figure is modest, the breakdown reveals a more nuanced picture: 85% of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, and 69% did so in both writing and maths, suggesting that reading is a relative strength.

Looking deeper at the 2023/24 SATs scores, the average reading score was 105 and the average maths score was 101, both of which are above the national baseline of 100. However, the proportion of pupils achieving the higher standard in reading, writing, and maths combined was just 8%, and only 23% reached that higher bar in reading alone. This indicates that while most children are meeting basic expectations, fewer are stretching into the top performance tiers. The school's Progress 8 scores are not available, so it is difficult to measure how much value the school adds relative to pupils' starting points. In the West Lindsey local authority area, Willoughton ranks 23rd out of 41 primary schools, placing it in the bottom 50% regionally. For parents focused purely on academic outcomes, the data suggests a school where the majority of children achieve the expected standard in reading, but where maths and combined writing attainment lag slightly behind the local average.

Willoughton Primary is a very small school with just 44 pupils on roll against a capacity of 70, and it is oversubscribed for the 2025/26 intake, receiving 13 applications for 7 places. The school offers a range of facilities including a sensory room, ICT suite, gymnasium, and playing fields, alongside clubs such as film club, eco club, and gardening. Sports provision includes netball, tennis, athletics, and swimming. The school has identified support for pupils with moderate learning difficulties, social, emotional and mental health needs, and speech, language and communication needs. With 34.1% of pupils eligible for free school meals, the school serves a community with above-average disadvantage. This is a school that will suit families who value a close-knit, rural setting with strong pastoral support and a broad club offer, but who are comfortable with academic results that sit slightly below the county average.

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