Sutton St James Community Primary School

Sutton St James Community Primary School is a small, below-average-sized school that is performing at the expected standard overall. Pupils achieve well from their starting points, with most reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and mathematics by the end of key stage 2. Progress is a particular strength in reading and mathematics, and disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND make steady progress with targeted support. Behaviour is calm and positive, attendance is above national averages, and pupils feel safe and included. The school has a clear vision, strong governance, and a well-planned personal development programme that prepares pupils well for life beyond school. Safeguarding standards are met.

Strengths

• Pupils achieve well from their starting points, with outcomes often in line with or above national figures
• Progress is a strength, especially in reading and mathematics
• Phonics teaching secures foundations in early reading
• Behaviour across the school is calm and positive, and bullying is rare
• Attendance is above national averages and leaders act early on concerns
• Inclusion is a strength, with early identification of needs and effective support for disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND
• Leadership and governance provide a clear vision, and staff feel well supported and valued
• Training is a strength, with regular and useful professional development for staff
• Personal development and wellbeing are prioritised, with a wide range of experiences beyond the classroom
• Safeguarding standards are met

Areas for Improvement

• Early years provision needs developing so that all children achieve as well as they should
• Teaching in the early years is not consistent, particularly in outdoor provision where support is more supervisory
• Children in the early years do not have enough chances to practise writing on their own
• Expectations of children's behaviour and routines in the early years vary, and transitions can be noisy and disorganised
• Teachers do not consistently check how well pupils remember and apply writing skills across the wider curriculum subjects
• Teachers across all subjects do not consistently identify and address gaps in pupils' foundational skills, including spelling and handwriting
• Disadvantaged pupils' performance in writing and mathematics is below national averages
• Leadership capacity needs strengthening at all levels to secure consistency and sustain improvement

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 Sutton St James Community Primary School attended 96.2% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 5.9% 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 Sutton St James Community 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 Sutton St James Community Primary School had 18.7 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 7.4% 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, 17.9% of pupils at Sutton St James Community Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 7.1% 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 Sutton St James Community Primary School received £8,149 and spent £8,210 for each of its 140 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £197,000 (£1,409 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 Spalding · Lincolnshire local authority: places and applications

What is Sutton St James Community Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Sutton St James Community Primary School is Needs attention, from an inspection in July 2026.

When was Sutton St James Community Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Sutton St James Community Primary School was last inspected in July 2026.

How many pupils does Sutton St James Community Primary School have?

Sutton St James Community Primary School has 140 pupils on roll.

What age range does Sutton St James Community Primary School cover?

Sutton St James Community Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

What are Sutton St James Community Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 77% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Sutton St James Community Primary School?

Sutton St James Community Primary School is at Bells Drove, Sutton St James, Spalding, Lincolnshire, PE12 0JG.