Bracebridge Heath St John's Primary Academy

Bracebridge Heath St John’s Primary Academy has transitioned from an inadequate rating to good overall during this inspection. The school promotes a positive and nurturing environment where pupils feel safe and valued. With a strong focus on personal development and an ambitious curriculum, pupils exhibit pride in their learning and form friendships easily. Parents express high levels of satisfaction with the school’s commitment to their children's education and welfare, highlighting the leaders' accessibility and responsiveness to concerns.

Strengths

• Pupils feel safe and valued in a caring environment.
• Strong curriculum planning with a focus on early years.
• Effective teaching of phonics aiding early readers.
• High expectations from staff lead to good student behavior.
• Wide range of extra-curricular activities supporting personal development.
• Knowledgeable trustees who support and challenge leaders effectively.

Areas for Improvement

• Inconsistencies in curriculum implementation across subjects.
• High rates of persistent absence affecting learning outcomes.

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 Bracebridge Heath St John's Primary Academy attended 95.0% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 10.4% 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, 0.5% of pupils at Bracebridge Heath St John's Primary Academy 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 Bracebridge Heath St John's Primary Academy had 21.8 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 6.1% 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, 15.6% of pupils at Bracebridge Heath St John's Primary Academy were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 3.4% 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 2024–25 Bracebridge Heath St John's Primary Academy received £6,537 and spent £6,921 for each of its 367 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £396,000 (£1,080 per pupil).

Across all 14 schools of The Priory Federation of Academies, income was £8,686 and spending £8,648 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). Academy figures include a share of the trust's central services, shared out by pupil numbers, and are rounded to the nearest £1,000. Premises costs were defined differently from 2024, so compare them across that gap with care.

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Lincoln · Lincolnshire local authority: places and applications

Bracebridge Heath St John's Primary Academy is part of The Priory Federation of Academies, which runs 14 schools. The nearest others:

• Bracebridge Infant and Nursery School Lincoln
• The Priory Academy LSST Lincoln
• Waddington Redwood Primary Academy Lincoln
• The Priory Witham Academy Lincoln
• The Priory City of Lincoln Academy Lincoln
• Ling Moor Primary Academy Lincoln
• Heighington Millfield Primary Academy Lincoln
• Cherry Willingham Primary Academy Lincoln
• The Priory Pembroke Academy Lincoln
• The Priory Ruskin Academy Grantham

What is Bracebridge Heath St John's Primary Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Bracebridge Heath St John's Primary Academy is Good, from an inspection in September 2023.

When was Bracebridge Heath St John's Primary Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Bracebridge Heath St John's Primary Academy was last inspected in September 2023.

How many pupils does Bracebridge Heath St John's Primary Academy have?

Bracebridge Heath St John's Primary Academy has 358 pupils on roll.

What age range does Bracebridge Heath St John's Primary Academy cover?

Bracebridge Heath St John's Primary Academy for pupils aged 4 to 11.

What are Bracebridge Heath St John's Primary Academy's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 47% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Bracebridge Heath St John's Primary Academy?

Bracebridge Heath St John's Primary Academy is at Grantham Road, Bracebridge Heath, Lincoln, Lincolnshire, LN4 2LD.