Trowse Primary School

Trowse Primary School is performing exceptionally well. Pupils are happy, safe and highly engaged in learning, and they achieve very well across a broad, ambitious curriculum. Behaviour is excellent, relationships are caring, and pupils benefit from a rich programme of trips, enrichment and leadership opportunities. The school is especially strong in reading, SEND support, personal development and governance, and safeguarding arrangements are effective. The main area for improvement is in early years, where provision is still good but not as strong as the rest of the school. Adults do not always set clear enough expectations for how some children should learn, which means a few children do not focus as well as they could on planned tasks. This is a relatively narrow concern in an otherwise highly positive report. This was the school’s first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic and its first section 5 inspection since 2014, after a period of inspection exemption. Since September 2024, schools no longer receive an overall effectiveness grade, but the key judgements show outstanding provision in quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, and leadership and management, with early years judged good.

Strengths

• Pupils achieve exceptionally well across a broad and ambitious curriculum.
• Behaviour is exceptional, with orderly classrooms and positive attitudes to learning.
• Reading is a priority and is taught very effectively, including through a well-planned phonics programme.
• Pupils with SEND are supported extremely well and achieve well alongside their peers.
• Personal development is a central part of the school and prepares pupils exceptionally well for life in modern Britain.
• Enrichment opportunities are rich and varied, including skiing and sailing, and no pupil misses out.
• Leadership and governance are highly effective, with invested governors who know the school well.
• Staff feel valued, supported and proud to work at the school.
• Children make a strong start in early years and are academically well prepared for Year 1.
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective.

Areas for Improvement

• In early years, adults do not always set clear enough expectations around how children should learn, so some children do not focus and concentrate as well as they might on planned tasks.

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 Trowse Primary School attended 95.7% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 6.4% 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, 1.0% of pupils at Trowse 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 Trowse Primary School had 22.1 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 0.0% 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, 11.2% of pupils at Trowse Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 1.9% 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 Trowse Primary School received £6,880 and spent £6,620 for each of its 206 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £4,000 (£19 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

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What is Trowse Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Trowse Primary School is Outstanding, from an inspection in March 2025.

When was Trowse Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Trowse Primary School was last inspected in March 2025.

How many pupils does Trowse Primary School have?

Trowse Primary School has 206 pupils on roll.

What age range does Trowse Primary School cover?

Trowse Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

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

In 2025, 76% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Trowse Primary School?

Trowse Primary School is at Pepperpot Drive, Trowse, Norfolk, NR14 8TU.