Gunness and Burringham Church of England Primary School

Gunness and Burringham Church of England Primary School is a small voluntary controlled primary school for pupils aged 4 to 11 in North Lincolnshire. Following its November 2024 inspection, provision was judged good for quality of education, leadership and management, and early years, and outstanding for behaviour and attitudes and personal development. Safeguarding arrangements are effective. The school has a strong nurturing culture and high expectations, and pupils are happy, safe, proud of their school and have high attendance. The school's Christian character and its work to develop pupils as 'agents of change' are central to its approach. Notable strengths include exceptionally well-planned personal development, outstanding behaviour, effective phonics and reading provision, swift identification and support for pupils with SEND, and a well-designed early years environment. Staff know pupils well, relationships are positive, and governors provide appropriate support and challenge while leaders are mindful of staff workload. Since the previous inspection, the school has improved behaviour, attendance, personal development and curriculum design. The main areas for improvement are in early writing and the wider curriculum. Pupils do not have enough opportunities to practise letter formation and the sounds they have learned in writing, which can slow writing fluency. In some wider curriculum subjects, lesson activities are not consistently matched to the intended learning, meaning some pupils are not sufficiently challenged or able to demonstrate their understanding in written work.

Strengths

• Exceptional personal development provision, including spirituality, diversity and pupil responsibility
• Outstanding behaviour and attitudes to learning
• Strong nurturing relationships and a culture of care
• Effective phonics teaching and successful promotion of reading for pleasure
• Swift identification and effective support for pupils with SEND
• Well-designed early years curriculum and learning environment
• Curriculum identifies key knowledge and builds progressively for mixed-age classes
• Effective governance and strong support for staff workload
• High attendance and pupils who feel happy and safe
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective

Areas for Improvement

• Insufficient opportunities for pupils to practise letter formation and learned sounds in writing, hindering writing fluency
• Wider curriculum lesson activities are not consistently matched to pupils' needs and intended learning
• Some pupils are not sufficiently challenged or able to secure and demonstrate curriculum understanding over time

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 Gunness and Burringham Church of England Primary School attended 96.6% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 5.7% 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 Gunness and Burringham Church of England 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 Gunness and Burringham Church of England Primary School had 18.5 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 21.7% 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, 8.8% of pupils at Gunness and Burringham Church of England Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 2.9% 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 Gunness and Burringham Church of England Primary School received £7,050 and spent £6,868 for each of its 102 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £101,000 (£991 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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All schools in Scunthorpe · North Lincolnshire local authority: places and applications

What is Gunness and Burringham Church of England Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Gunness and Burringham Church of England Primary School is Good, from an inspection in December 2024.

When was Gunness and Burringham Church of England Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Gunness and Burringham Church of England Primary School was last inspected in December 2024.

How many pupils does Gunness and Burringham Church of England Primary School have?

Gunness and Burringham Church of England Primary School has 102 pupils on roll.

What age range does Gunness and Burringham Church of England Primary School cover?

Gunness and Burringham Church of England Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

What are Gunness and Burringham Church of England Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 55% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Gunness and Burringham Church of England Primary School?

Gunness and Burringham Church of England Primary School is at Burringham Road, Gunness, Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire, DN17 3LT.