Braiswick Primary School

Braiswick Primary School continues to perform well as a good school, with a nurturing environment where pupils feel safe and ready to learn. The school sets high expectations for behavior and promotes a positive culture among students. While most pupils achieve well in mathematics and reading, some struggle in a few subjects due to the irregular frequency of teaching. The school has adapted well to the needs of pupils with English as an additional language, providing strong support for early reading and writing skills. This is the first ungraded inspection since the last full inspection in July 2018, following a successful history under the Learning Pathways Academy trust.

Strengths

• Pupils feel safe and enjoy attending school.
• The school fosters a nurturing environment that supports learning.
• High expectations for pupil behavior are consistently upheld.
• Strong performance in mathematics and reading for most pupils.
• Well-designed personal development programs with diverse club offerings.
• Effective support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities.
• Strong commitment to promoting pupils' mental health and well-being.

Areas for Improvement

• Irregular frequency of teaching in a few subjects affecting retention of key knowledge.

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 Braiswick Primary School attended 94.3% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 12.2% 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, 2.4% of pupils at Braiswick 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 Braiswick Primary School had 21.4 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 16.7% 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, 11.7% of pupils at Braiswick Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 3.6% 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 Braiswick Primary School received £6,238 and spent £6,473 for each of its 409 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £415,000 (£1,015 per pupil).

Across all 3 schools of Learning Pathways Academy, income was £7,396 and spending £7,366 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 Colchester · Essex local authority: places and applications

Braiswick Primary School is part of Learning Pathways Academy, which runs 3 schools. The nearest others:

• Lyons Hall School Braintree
• White Hall Academy and Nursery Clacton-On-Sea

What is Braiswick Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Braiswick Primary School is Good, from an inspection in July 2024.

When was Braiswick Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Braiswick Primary School was last inspected in July 2024.

How many pupils does Braiswick Primary School have?

Braiswick Primary School has 419 pupils on roll.

What age range does Braiswick Primary School cover?

Braiswick Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

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

In 2025, 66% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Braiswick Primary School?

Braiswick Primary School is at Apprentice Drive, New Braiswick Park, Colchester, Essex, CO4 5QJ.