Phoenix Community Primary School

Phoenix Community Primary School continues to be a good institution, characterized by a strong commitment to an inclusive and caring community. Pupils display happiness and enthusiasm for learning, encouraged by teachers who make lessons engaging and uphold high expectations for hard work. Despite facing challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic and ongoing building works, the leadership has successfully prioritized pupils' learning, ensuring a broad and ambitious curriculum that supports all students, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND). The nurturing environment enables pupils to feel safe and supported, and both parents and staff express strong satisfaction with the school.

Strengths

• Pupils enjoy their learning and are motivated to succeed.
• Strong commitment to inclusion and pupil welfare.
• Effective teaching of phonics supports reading development.
• Wide range of extracurricular clubs available for pupils.
• Strong collaboration among staff, contributing to a positive school culture.
• Effective safeguarding practices ensure pupil safety.

Areas for Improvement

• Knowledge and skills expected by the end of each year are not clearly defined in all subjects.
• Pupils do not consistently remember what they have learned.

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 Phoenix Community Primary School attended 94.0% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 18.2% 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, 1.0% of pupils at Phoenix 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 Phoenix Community Primary School had 15.6 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 26.3% 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, 16.8% of pupils at Phoenix Community Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 6.8% 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 Phoenix Community Primary School received £9,494 and spent £9,251 for each of its 190 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £163,000 (£860 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 Ashford · Kent local authority: places and applications

Phoenix Community Primary School is part of Care Foundation Trust, which runs 6 schools. The nearest others:

• Brook Community Primary School Ashford
• Challock Primary School Ashford
• Mersham Primary School Ashford
• Smeeth Community Primary School Ashford
• Aldington Primary School Ashford

What is Phoenix Community Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Phoenix Community Primary School is Good, from an inspection in September 2022.

When was Phoenix Community Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Phoenix Community Primary School was last inspected in September 2022.

How many pupils does Phoenix Community Primary School have?

Phoenix Community Primary School has 190 pupils on roll.

What age range does Phoenix Community Primary School cover?

Phoenix Community Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

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

In 2025, 41% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Phoenix Community Primary School?

Phoenix Community Primary School is at Belmont Road, Kennington, Ashford, Kent, TN24 9LS.