Downsview Community Primary School

Downsview Community Primary School is performing at an expected standard overall, demonstrating notable strengths in safeguarding, early years education, and inclusion practices. The school fosters a positive, inclusive atmosphere where pupils feel safe and valued, creating an environment conducive to learning. Leaders and staff collaborate effectively with external agencies to tailor support for students with special educational needs and disabilities, ensuring that all pupils have access to the curriculum. However, despite these strengths, the school faces challenges with pupils' achievement, particularly in national tests, where results have lagged below the national average. Efforts to enhance teaching, especially in literacy and numeracy, are ongoing and show signs of progress, but there remains a need for further improvement to ensure all students reach their potential.

Strengths

• Strong safeguarding culture ensuring pupils feel safe
• High-quality relationships between staff and pupils
• Effective early years curriculum adapted to children's needs
• Strong support for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities
• Leaders demonstrate clear moral purpose and high expectations
• Inclusive atmosphere fostering positive attitudes towards learning

Areas for Improvement

• Pupils' achievement in national tests is generally below the national average
• Many pupils do not attend school regularly enough, impacting overall attendance
• Variation in teaching quality affects pupils' performance across subjects
• There are noticeable gaps in the learning of some pupils hindering their progress

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 Downsview Community Primary School attended 90.9% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 31.3% 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, 5.7% of pupils at Downsview 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 Downsview Community Primary School had 19.7 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 30.3% 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, 14.3% of pupils at Downsview Community Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 5.0% 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 Downsview Community Primary School received £9,011 and spent £8,779 for each of its 140 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £106,000 (£754 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 Swanley · Kent local authority: places and applications

What is Downsview Community Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Downsview Community Primary School is Needs attention, from an inspection in March 2026.

When was Downsview Community Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Downsview Community Primary School was last inspected in March 2026.

How many pupils does Downsview Community Primary School have?

Downsview Community Primary School has 140 pupils on roll.

What age range does Downsview Community Primary School cover?

Downsview Community Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

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

In 2025, 52% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Downsview Community Primary School?

Downsview Community Primary School is at Beech Avenue, Swanley, Kent, BR8 8AU.