Bitterne Park Primary & Nursery School - Part of the Learning Federation Partnership of Schools

Bitterne Park Primary is a highly effective school where pupils are proud to attend, achieve highly and benefit from a very ambitious, broad curriculum that is expertly taught and carefully sequenced from early years through Year 6. Staff build strong relationships, pupils feel safe, and behaviour is excellent, with clear routines and a strong culture of inclusion and mutual help from the early years onwards. The school’s personal development and character education are exceptional. Pupils engage meaningfully with local causes, take on leadership roles and benefit from a wide range of clubs, trips and community activities. The school is well led across the federation, staff are well supported, governance is effective, and safeguarding arrangements are effective. Leaders work closely with families and the community, and attendance is strong. This was the school’s first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic. The report identifies no areas of concern and no next steps for improvement; all key judgements, including early years provision, are outstanding.

Strengths

• Highly ambitious and broad curriculum underpinned by a clear school vision
• Curriculum carefully structured so pupils build knowledge securely over time
• Pupils achieve exceptionally well across subjects
• Strong early years foundations in communication, language and numeracy
• Superb phonics approach helping children read fluently quickly
• High-quality, consistent teaching across the school
• Teachers know pupils’ prior learning and next steps precisely
• Vulnerable pupils and pupils with SEND are identified quickly and supported expertly
• Excellent pupil behaviour, communication and consistent routines
• Exceptional personal development and character education
• High uptake of well-considered clubs, trips and community activities
• Extensive high-quality pupil leadership opportunities
• Strong partnership with parents, carers and the local community
• Pupils attend regularly and persistent absence is very low
• Extremely well led, with strong federation support and effective governance
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective

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 Bitterne Park Primary & Nursery School - Part of the Learning Federation Partnership of Schools attended 95.9% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 7.8% 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, 1.3% of pupils at Bitterne Park Primary & Nursery School - Part of the Learning Federation Partnership of Schools 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 Bitterne Park Primary & Nursery School - Part of the Learning Federation Partnership of Schools had 28.3 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 61.7% 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, 14.8% of pupils at Bitterne Park Primary & Nursery School - Part of the Learning Federation Partnership of Schools were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 1.2% 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 Bitterne Park Primary & Nursery School - Part of the Learning Federation Partnership of Schools received £5,750 and spent £5,871 for each of its 725 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £71,000 (£98 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 Southampton · Southampton local authority: places and applications

What is Bitterne Park Primary & Nursery School - Part of the Learning Federation Partnership of Schools's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Bitterne Park Primary & Nursery School - Part of the Learning Federation Partnership of Schools is Outstanding, from an inspection in June 2025.

When was Bitterne Park Primary & Nursery School - Part of the Learning Federation Partnership of Schools last inspected by Ofsted?

Bitterne Park Primary & Nursery School - Part of the Learning Federation Partnership of Schools was last inspected in June 2025.

How many pupils does Bitterne Park Primary & Nursery School - Part of the Learning Federation Partnership of Schools have?

Bitterne Park Primary & Nursery School - Part of the Learning Federation Partnership of Schools has 725 pupils on roll.

What age range does Bitterne Park Primary & Nursery School - Part of the Learning Federation Partnership of Schools cover?

Bitterne Park Primary & Nursery School - Part of the Learning Federation Partnership of Schools for pupils aged 2 to 11.

What are Bitterne Park Primary & Nursery School - Part of the Learning Federation Partnership of Schools's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 69% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Bitterne Park Primary & Nursery School - Part of the Learning Federation Partnership of Schools?

Bitterne Park Primary & Nursery School - Part of the Learning Federation Partnership of Schools is at Manor Farm Road, Bitterne Park, Southampton, Hampshire, SO18 1NX.