Higher Bebington Junior School

Higher Bebington Junior School has shown an overall good performance in its recent inspection, particularly after a long gap since its last evaluation, which was outstanding 15 years ago. The school fosters a nurturing environment where pupils feel proud and engaged, benefiting from supportive relationships with staff and a broad range of extracurricular opportunities. The curriculum is appropriately ambitious, and staff strive to meet the needs of pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). However, there are some inconsistencies in the design of learning in a few subjects, and expectations for pupil attitudes to learning are not consistently high, potentially impacting student learning outcomes.

Strengths

• Pupils develop self-belief and determination to achieve high standards.
• Strong supportive relationships between pupils and staff.
• Ambitious and well-structured curriculum for all pupils, including those with SEND.
• Effective assessment strategies help adapt learning to pupils' needs.
• Reading is prioritized with a well-stocked library and diverse resources.
• Focus on personal development and understanding of British values.

Areas for Improvement

• Inconsistent support for staff in designing effective learning in some subjects.
• Occasional low expectations for pupils' attitudes to learning.

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 Higher Bebington Junior School attended 95.4% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 8.8% 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, 0.5% of pupils at Higher Bebington Junior 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 Higher Bebington Junior School had 21.2 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, 16.6% of pupils at Higher Bebington Junior School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 7.2% 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 Higher Bebington Junior School received £6,887 and spent £6,770 for each of its 361 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £115,000 (£319 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).

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Wirral · Wirral local authority: places and applications

What is Higher Bebington Junior School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Higher Bebington Junior School is Good, from an inspection in December 2023.

When was Higher Bebington Junior School last inspected by Ofsted?

Higher Bebington Junior School was last inspected in December 2023.

How many pupils does Higher Bebington Junior School have?

Higher Bebington Junior School has 361 pupils on roll.

What age range does Higher Bebington Junior School cover?

Higher Bebington Junior School for pupils aged 7 to 11.

What are Higher Bebington Junior School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 64% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Higher Bebington Junior School?

Higher Bebington Junior School is at Mill Road, Higher Bebington, Wirral, Merseyside, CH63 8QE.