Bedenham Primary School

Bedenham Primary School continues to be a good school, with all key judgements—quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and early years provision—judged good. Inspectors found a nurturing, ambitious school where pupils are happy, safe and well cared for, and where staff put pupils’ needs at the heart of their work. The school has a clear vision built around respect, resilience and aspiration, and pupils achieve well, including those with SEND, who are identified early and supported sensitively. Safeguarding is effective. The strongest features include reading and phonics, where consistent teaching and prompt support help most pupils become fluent readers; a progressively planned early years curriculum; effective SEND provision with a specially resourced SEMH provision; and a well-revised behaviour strategy that has improved behaviour and created calm classrooms. Pupils’ personal development, attendance support and governance are also strengths. The school is part of a federation with Holbrook Primary, and this was its first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic. The main area for improvement is the curriculum in a small number of subjects, including mathematics, where the most important knowledge is not always emphasised or revisited often enough. As a result, some pupils’ learning does not consistently build on earlier content and gaps can occur. Leaders should ensure important knowledge is revisited more frequently across all subjects so teachers can build new learning on what pupils already know and remember.

Strengths

• Nurturing, caring environment where pupils feel safe and valued
• High ambitions for all pupils, including those with SEND
• Strong early reading and phonics provision with effective support for pupils who fall behind
• Early years curriculum builds knowledge, vocabulary and independence progressively
• Early identification and effective support for pupils with SEND, including SEMH provision
• Well-considered behaviour strategy that has improved behaviour and created calm classrooms
• Pupils behave well, are respectful and celebrate differences
• Personal development and character education are promoted well
• Attendance is monitored rigorously and families are supported
• Governors fulfil their responsibilities well and support staff wellbeing

Areas for Improvement

• Key knowledge is not revisited frequently enough in a small number of subjects, including mathematics
• Some pupils' learning does not consistently build on earlier content, leading to 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 Bedenham Primary School attended 94.5% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 16.1% 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, 5.0% of pupils at Bedenham 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 Bedenham Primary School had 13.0 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 28.2% 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, 22.2% of pupils at Bedenham Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 20.2% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

The school has resourced provision with 19 pupils.

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 Bedenham Primary School received £10,130 and spent £10,948 for each of its 203 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £49,000 (£242 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 Gosport · Hampshire local authority: places and applications

What is Bedenham Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Bedenham Primary School is Good, from an inspection in February 2025.

When was Bedenham Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Bedenham Primary School was last inspected in February 2025.

How many pupils does Bedenham Primary School have?

Bedenham Primary School has 203 pupils on roll.

What age range does Bedenham Primary School cover?

Bedenham Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

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

In 2025, 38% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Bedenham Primary School?

Bedenham Primary School is at Bridgemary Avenue, Gosport, Hampshire, PO13 0XT.