Lower Farm Primary School

Lower Farm Primary School continues to perform well, maintaining its good status since the last inspection in December 2018. Pupils are happy, safe, and engaged in their learning, reflecting the school's high expectations for their potential. Notably, children in the early years receive strong support, and pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) achieve commendable outcomes due to individualised assistance. The school's curriculum has been effectively restructured in recent years, enhancing pupils' retention of knowledge and understanding across subjects.

Strengths

• Pupils are happy and enjoy their lessons.
• Strong emphasis on early reading and phonics, leading to confident readers.
• Effective support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities.
• Well-structured curriculum facilitating knowledge retention.
• Positive relationships fostered within the school community.
• Good behaviour observed among pupils in lessons and around school.
• Strong governance with a commitment to quality education.

Areas for Improvement

• Some pupils struggle to remember key knowledge or vocabulary in a few subjects.

Admissions: local authority offers data from the Department for Education. A school is oversubscribed when at least 5% of the families who put it first were not offered a place, and undersubscribed when everyone who put it first got in but 10% or more of its places were unfilled in the Department's school capacity survey (the latest survey is used for entry years it does not cover). Places: Department for Education, School capacity, from local authorities' annual survey as at 1 May. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024–25); the survey was not run in 2020. Places include sixth form places. Forecasts are the local authority's own for the school's planning area, an area it uses to plan places that is not the school's catchment area. The forecast starts from a head count in 2025; the dashed line is the Department's estimate of places in that area, including those the authority has firm plans for. Planned places are cumulative, and only those with firm plans are counted.

In 2024–25 pupils at Lower Farm Primary School attended 95.5% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 10.8% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 13.0%).

Sessions missed

Pupils persistently absent

Source: Department for Education, Pupil absence in schools in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Persistent absence means missing 10% or more of sessions; severe absence means 50% or more. No figures were published for 2019/20.

In 2024–25, 0.0% of pupils at Lower Farm Primary School were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). No pupils were permanently excluded.

Pupils suspended at least once

Source: Department for Education, Suspensions and permanent exclusions in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). A pupil can be suspended more than once, so suspensions per 100 pupils can be higher than the share of pupils suspended. Very small numbers are hidden by the DfE. Exclusion figures dropped in 2020 and 2021 because of school closures.

In 2025–26 Lower Farm Primary School had 19.7 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 0.0% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 15.7%).

Pupils per teacher

Teachers who left the school within a year

Source: Department for Education, School workforce in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Pupils per teacher counts full-time-equivalent pupils and teachers. Turnover is the share of a year's teachers (full-time equivalent) who were not at the school the following year, whether they moved to another school or left state-funded teaching. Turnover and sickness figures run one year behind the ratios. Sick leave is the share of teachers who took at least one day in the year, so it swings widely at small schools, where a few teachers can make it 0% or 100%. The national figures are for all state schools of the same type.

In 2025–26, 13.2% of pupils at Lower Farm Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 3.9% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

Pupils by main type of need

Source: Department for Education, Special educational needs in England (the 2025–26 school census). SEN support is extra help in school without an EHC plan. National figures are for all state-funded primary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2025–26 Lower Farm Primary School received £7,544 and spent £7,110 for each of its 446 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £352,000 (£789 per pupil).

Income per pupil

Spending per pupil

Source: Department for Education, Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool. Each year is the one the financial year ends in (2024 is 2023–24).

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What is Lower Farm Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Lower Farm Primary School is Good, from an inspection in May 2024.

When was Lower Farm Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Lower Farm Primary School was last inspected in May 2024.

How many pupils does Lower Farm Primary School have?

Lower Farm Primary School has 463 pupils on roll.

What age range does Lower Farm Primary School cover?

Lower Farm Primary School for pupils aged 2 to 11.

What are Lower Farm Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 68% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Lower Farm Primary School?

Lower Farm Primary School is at Bakewell Close, Bloxwich, Walsall, West Midlands, WS3 3QH.