The Bawburgh School

The Bawburgh School is a small primary where pupils are nurtured and feel safe, with warm relationships and high expectations. Inspectors found provision strong across education, behaviour, personal development, leadership and early years. Pupils achieve well, especially in reading and mathematics, and the school is notably inclusive, with tailored support helping disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND learn alongside their peers. Behaviour is praiseworthy, and pupils enjoy a wide range of enrichment, including an opera project and residential visits. Reading is a clear priority: phonics is delivered well, struggling readers are identified quickly, and pupils read widely and enthusiastically. Early years provision gives children a flying start, and the carefully planned PSHE curriculum, strong governor monitoring and positive parent views reinforce the school's strengths. This was the school's first routine inspection since the pandemic, and it now operates within the Barford and Bawburgh Federation. The main area for improvement is assessment in some subjects where the curriculum has recently been reviewed. New plans are in place, but leaders have not yet fully embedded systems to check what pupils know and understand, or used that information to adapt the curriculum and close gaps. Safeguarding is effective.

Strengths

• Warm, professional relationships create a caring, safe and nurturing environment.
• Staff have high expectations and pupils achieve highly, especially in reading and mathematics.
• The school is highly inclusive, with tailored support for disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND.
• The curriculum is broad, engaging and ambitious, and is carefully sequenced from early years.
• Teachers explain learning well and use resources effectively to support understanding.
• Reading is prioritised, with well-delivered phonics and strong support for pupils who struggle.
• Children get off to a flying start in early years, developing vocabulary and mathematical understanding.
• Pupils behave considerately, and routines are consistently applied across the school.
• The PSHE curriculum is carefully planned and enriched with trips, theatre visits and sporting opportunities.
• Governors monitor the school thoroughly and offer effective support and challenge.
• Staff are motivated and proud to work at the school and feel well supported with workload and well-being.
• Parents are highly positive and readily recommend the school.

Areas for Improvement

• Assessment systems are not yet fully embedded in some subjects with recently reviewed curriculums.
• Leaders have not yet used assessment information to check how well pupils are learning the new curriculum and to address any gaps.

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 The Bawburgh School attended 96.1% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 2.2% 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, 0.0% of pupils at The Bawburgh 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 The Bawburgh School had 18.7 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 16.3% 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, 20.2% of pupils at The Bawburgh School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 3.0% 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 The Bawburgh School received £8,366 and spent £8,712 for each of its 99 pupils. It ended the year with a deficit of £125,000 (-£1,260 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 Norwich · Norfolk local authority: places and applications

What is The Bawburgh School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for The Bawburgh School is Good, from an inspection in November 2024.

When was The Bawburgh School last inspected by Ofsted?

The Bawburgh School was last inspected in November 2024.

How many pupils does The Bawburgh School have?

The Bawburgh School has 99 pupils on roll.

What age range does The Bawburgh School cover?

The Bawburgh School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

What are The Bawburgh School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 86% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is The Bawburgh School?

The Bawburgh School is at Hockering Lane, Bawburgh, The Bawburgh School, Norwich, Norfolk, NR9 3LR.