Glastonbury Thorn School

Glastonbury Thorn School is performing well overall, with good judgements across quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and early years provision. It has a kind, inclusive and harmonious culture, high expectations, respectful relationships and high attendance. Pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), achieve well, and safeguarding is effective. This was the school’s first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic and its first since it was exempt as outstanding; under current arrangements it does not receive an overall effectiveness grade. Leaders have built an engaging, well-sequenced curriculum and a strong reading culture. Phonics is introduced early and pupils who fall behind are supported to catch up quickly. Children in the early years get a strong start, with language and communication central, and pupils benefit from trips, clubs, leadership roles and community-focused personal development. Leadership and governance are ambitious and supportive, and staff value the attention given to their workload and professional development. The main area to improve is assessment practice. Occasionally, including in early years and phonics lessons, teaching does not check well enough what pupils understand before moving on, so some pupils do not secure important knowledge as well as they could. The school should ensure all staff use assessment efficiently to adapt teaching and support so that all pupils secure important knowledge across the curriculum.

Strengths

• A kind, inclusive and nurturing culture where pupils feel safe and belong.
• High expectations for behaviour and achievement, with pupils who are proud, courteous and respectful.
• A clearly sequenced curriculum that sets out the important knowledge pupils should learn.
• A strong reading culture with early phonics and effective support for pupils who fall behind.
• Quick identification of SEND and effective support so pupils achieve well from their starting points.
• Strong early years provision with language, communication and early number skills central.
• Good personal development through trips, clubs, leadership roles and community citizenship.
• Pupils are prepared well for life in modern Britain and learn about beliefs, families and mutual respect.
• Effective leadership and governance with purposeful support and challenge.
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective.
• High attendance and positive relationships across the school.

Areas for Improvement

• Assessment practice is inconsistent; teaching does not always check pupils’ understanding before moving on.
• In some phonics and early years lessons, pupils do not secure important knowledge as well as they could because teaching is not adapted promptly enough.

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 Glastonbury Thorn School attended 95.0% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 16.0% 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 Glastonbury Thorn 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 Glastonbury Thorn School had 19.4 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 12.2% 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, 8.1% of pupils at Glastonbury Thorn School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 0.7% 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 Glastonbury Thorn School received £8,147 and spent £9,332 for each of its 136 pupils. It ended the year with a deficit of £345,000 (-£2,539 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 Milton Keynes · Milton Keynes local authority: places and applications

What is Glastonbury Thorn School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Glastonbury Thorn School is Good, from an inspection in July 2025.

When was Glastonbury Thorn School last inspected by Ofsted?

Glastonbury Thorn School was last inspected in July 2025.

How many pupils does Glastonbury Thorn School have?

Glastonbury Thorn School has 136 pupils on roll.

What age range does Glastonbury Thorn School cover?

Glastonbury Thorn School for pupils aged 4 to 7.

Where is Glastonbury Thorn School?

Glastonbury Thorn School is at Pigott Drive, Shenley Church End, Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, MK5 6BX.