Roman Way Primary School

Roman Way Primary School is a smaller-than-average primary in Andover serving a community with well-above-average deprivation and above-average proportions of pupils eligible for free school meals and with EHC plans. This full section 5 inspection found safeguarding standards are met and the school is performing at the expected standard in most areas: attendance and behaviour, curriculum and teaching, early years, inclusion, leadership and governance, and personal development and wellbeing. Achievement is the one area identified as needing attention, largely because too many pupils are not secure enough in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of Year 6. The school’s strengths are substantial. Pupils are kind, respectful and feel safe; behaviour is positive and bullying is rare. Attendance is tracked closely and is broadly in line with national averages, with effective support for pupils with SEND. Phonics and reading are prioritised well, teaching is inclusive, and pupils with SEND make positive progress from their starting points. Leaders are well informed, staff feel well supported, governors hold leaders to account, and parents are generally positive. Personal development is a clear strength, with pupils learning about safety, diversity, relationships and British values. The main concern is the consistency and impact of the wider curriculum. Some staff do not check pupils’ understanding before moving on, and some activities do not help pupils build securely on prior knowledge, leading to retained errors and misconceptions. Early years vocabulary opportunities are not yet fully maximised. Leaders have already identified these priorities and are expected to ensure all groups achieve securely in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of key stage 2, and that the full curriculum is taught consistently well across all year groups and subjects.

Strengths

• Safeguarding standards are met, with an open and positive safeguarding culture.
• Pupils are kind, respectful and feel safe; bullying is rare.
• Attendance is monitored forensically and is broadly in line with national averages.
• The ‘ready, respectful and safe’ behaviour approach is understood consistently across the school.
• Phonics and reading are prioritised effectively, with systematic teaching closing gaps.
• Teaching is inclusive, with well-adapted support in the school’s resourced and enhanced provision.
• Pupils with SEND are identified quickly and make positive progress from their starting points.
• Early years provides an engaging, ambitious curriculum with high expectations.
• Leaders are clear about strengths and improvement priorities and act decisively.
• Governors know the school well and hold leaders to account robustly.
• Staff wellbeing is considered, and staff report very positive support.
• Personal development is strong; pupils learn about safety, diversity, British values and relationships.
• Parents are generally supportive and describe the school as a happy, family-like place.

Areas for Improvement

• Achievement is the area needing attention; too many pupils leave Year 6 without secure knowledge and skills for the next stage.
• Published KS2 outcomes are mixed, with reading less secure than writing and mathematics and below national averages in recent years.
• The wider curriculum is not implemented consistently well across all year groups and subjects.
• Some staff do not check pupils’ understanding before introducing new content, leading to retained errors and misconceptions.
• Some wider-curriculum activities do not consistently help pupils build on prior knowledge.
• Early years vocabulary opportunities are not yet used to their full potential.
• Leaders must ensure all groups achieve securely in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of key stage 2.
• Leaders must ensure the full curriculum is taught consistently well, including in the early years, with activities matched to pupils’ needs and understanding checked before moving on.

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 Roman Way Primary School attended 94.1% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 13.2% 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 Roman Way 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 Roman Way Primary School had 21.9 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 10.8% 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, 16.8% of pupils at Roman Way Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 6.7% 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 Roman Way Primary School received £7,610 and spent £7,496 for each of its 208 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £16,000 (£78 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 Andover · Hampshire local authority: places and applications

What is Roman Way Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Roman Way Primary School is Needs attention, from an inspection in June 2026.

When was Roman Way Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Roman Way Primary School was last inspected in June 2026.

How many pupils does Roman Way Primary School have?

Roman Way Primary School has 208 pupils on roll.

What age range does Roman Way Primary School cover?

Roman Way Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

What are Roman Way Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 45% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Roman Way Primary School?

Roman Way Primary School is at Roman Way, Andover, Hampshire, SP10 5JY.