Thorplands Primary School

Thorplands Primary School is performing well overall, achieving a 'Good' rating across all inspected domains. The school promotes a positive and caring environment where pupils feel safe and enjoy their learning experiences. Leaders have set high expectations and provide a wide range of opportunities for personal development, including various extracurricular activities. There is a strong emphasis on support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), ensuring they have access to the curriculum and achieve well. However, the school faces challenges with attendance, particularly among disadvantaged pupils, which impacts their overall progress.

Strengths

• Pupils are happy and enjoy coming to school.
• Leaders have high aspirations and expectations for pupils.
• Strong support for pupils with SEND.
• Well-planned curriculum with ambitious content in most subjects.
• Effective teaching of phonics and reading.
• Positive relationships between pupils and staff.
• Various extracurricular opportunities, including trips and clubs.

Areas for Improvement

• Inconsistent lesson planning in some subjects affects learning.
• Insufficient checks on pupils' learning in foundation subjects.
• Attendance issues among a significant minority of pupils, particularly disadvantaged ones.

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 Thorplands Primary School attended 93.7% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 20.6% 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, 1.8% of pupils at Thorplands 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 Thorplands Primary School had 18.4 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 11.1% 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, 15.0% of pupils at Thorplands Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 7.5% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

The school has resourced provision with 8 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 2024–25 Thorplands Primary School received £8,192 and spent £8,053 for each of its 214 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £258,000 (£1,207 per pupil).

Across all 13 schools of Northampton Primary Academy Trust, income was £7,879 and spending £7,861 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 Northampton · West Northamptonshire local authority: places and applications

Thorplands Primary School is part of Northampton Primary Academy Trust, which runs 13 schools. The nearest others:

• Lings Primary School Northampton
• Blackthorn Primary School Northampton
• Headlands Primary School Northampton
• Rectory Farm Primary School Northampton
• Ecton Brook Primary School Northampton
• Abington Vale Primary School Northampton
• Simon de Senlis Primary School Northampton
• Upton Meadows Primary School Northampton
• East Hunsbury Primary School Northampton
• Park Junior School, Wellingborough Wellingborough

What is Thorplands Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Thorplands Primary School is Good, from an inspection in May 2023.

When was Thorplands Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Thorplands Primary School was last inspected in May 2023.

How many pupils does Thorplands Primary School have?

Thorplands Primary School has 226 pupils on roll.

What age range does Thorplands Primary School cover?

Thorplands Primary School for pupils aged 2 to 11.

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

In 2025, 68% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Thorplands Primary School?

Thorplands Primary School is at Farm Field Court, Thorplands, Northampton, Northamptonshire, NN3 8AQ.