Harriers Banbury Academy

Harriers Banbury Academy continues to demonstrate good performance as a school, providing a friendly and inclusive environment where pupils feel safe and respected. The school's curriculum is ambitious and well-structured, ensuring that pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities, benefit from a wide range of enriching opportunities. The school encourages leadership skills through initiatives like the 'Harriers Parliament' and has made positive strides in early reading and vocabulary development, fostering a love for learning and reading among students.

Strengths

• The school fosters a friendly and inclusive environment.
• Pupils are encouraged to take on leadership roles through the 'Harriers Parliament'.
• There is a strong focus on enriching opportunities, including trips and community engagement.
• Recent curriculum adaptations have improved vocabulary focus in all subjects.
• Teachers provide clear explanations and model the use of language effectively.
• The school has good relationships between staff and pupils, ensuring a supportive environment.

Areas for Improvement

• Pupils' understanding is not always checked effectively, leading to gaps in knowledge.
• Some pupils struggle with maintaining high levels of concentration during lessons.

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 Harriers Banbury Academy attended 94.8% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 14.2% 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, 1.4% of pupils at Harriers Banbury 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 Harriers Banbury Academy had 19.6 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 13.4% 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, 19.1% of pupils at Harriers Banbury Academy were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 3.9% 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 2024–25 Harriers Banbury Academy received £6,896 and spent £7,510 for each of its 414 pupils. It ended the year with a deficit of £21,000 (-£50 per pupil).

Across all 16 schools of Aspirations Academies Trust, income was £8,111 and spending £8,266 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 Banbury · Oxfordshire local authority: places and applications

Harriers Banbury Academy is part of Aspirations Academies Trust, which runs 16 schools. The nearest others:

• Futures Institute Banbury Banbury
• Wykham Park Banbury
• Dashwood Banbury Academy Banbury
• Park Academy West London Hillingdon
• Rivers Academy West London Feltham
• Space Studio West London Hounslow
• Oak Hill Academy West London Feltham
• Oriel Academy West London Feltham
• Jewell Academy Bournemouth Bournemouth
• Magna Academy Poole

What is Harriers Banbury Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Harriers Banbury Academy is Good, from an inspection in May 2024.

When was Harriers Banbury Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Harriers Banbury Academy was last inspected in May 2024.

How many pupils does Harriers Banbury Academy have?

Harriers Banbury Academy has 408 pupils on roll.

What age range does Harriers Banbury Academy cover?

Harriers Banbury Academy for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are Harriers Banbury Academy's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 60% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Harriers Banbury Academy?

Harriers Banbury Academy is at Harriers View, Bloxham Road, Banbury, Oxfordshire, OX16 9JW.