Elmstead Wood Primary School

Elmstead Wood Primary is a warm and friendly school where pupils feel happy, safe and supported. Pupils enjoy a broad and ambitious curriculum, and although published outcomes were low last year, learning is generally strong and improvements are underway under recent leadership. The school has high expectations for all pupils, including those with SEND, and staff are committed to securing specialist support and adapting learning successfully. The inspection found the school good across all key judgements. Reading is prioritised, attendance is high, behaviour has improved, and pupils benefit from a wide range of personal development and wider opportunities. Safeguarding arrangements are effective. Staff are positive about working at the school, and trust leaders are working constructively with school leaders. There are still areas to improve. Curriculum implementation is not always sufficiently ambitious or precise, and pupils do not always recall and apply key knowledge over time. Some pupils’ attitudes to learning are not consistently positive, with some becoming distracted or disrupting others. Pupils who struggle with reading also need more frequent practice. The school is part of The Spring Partnership Trust, and this was its first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Strengths

• Pupils are happy, safe and feel well supported by adults
• The curriculum is broad, ambitious and well designed, including for mixed-age classes
• Reading is prioritised, with early phonics and quick support for pupils who struggle
• Pupils with SEND are identified early and well supported to be fully included
• Staff receive high-quality training and use strong subject knowledge
• Behaviour has improved, and pupils typically follow the school’s behaviour rules
• Attendance is high due to rigorous systems and close work with families
• Pupils benefit from a wide range of clubs, leadership roles and wider opportunities
• Personal development is enhanced through learning about health, finance, relationships and cultures
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective
• Trustees and trust leaders work closely and constructively with school leaders
• Staff are positive about working at the school and value wellbeing support and training

Areas for Improvement

• Curriculum implementation is not always sufficiently ambitious or precise
• Key knowledge is not always presented clearly or revisited over time
• Some pupils do not retain or apply specified curriculum knowledge as well as they could
• Pupils’ attitudes to learning are not always positive, and some become distracted or disrupt others
• Some pupils are not resilient to setbacks or do not know how to study effectively
• Pupils who struggle with reading need more frequent practice

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 Elmstead Wood Primary School attended 94.3% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 14.6% 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, 3.4% of pupils at Elmstead Wood 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 Elmstead Wood Primary School had 16.5 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 25.6% 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, 22.9% of pupils at Elmstead Wood Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 6.4% 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 Elmstead Wood Primary School received £8,267 and spent £8,064 for each of its 290 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £40,000 (£138 per pupil).

Across all 5 schools of The Spring Partnership Trust, income was £7,638 and spending £7,559 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 Bromley · Bromley local authority: places and applications

Elmstead Wood Primary School is part of The Spring Partnership Trust, which runs 5 schools. The nearest others:

• Midfield Primary School Orpington
• Leesons Primary School Orpington
• Hayes Primary School Bromley
• St. Mary Cray Primary Academy Orpington

What is Elmstead Wood Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Elmstead Wood Primary School is Good, from an inspection in December 2024.

When was Elmstead Wood Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Elmstead Wood Primary School was last inspected in December 2024.

How many pupils does Elmstead Wood Primary School have?

Elmstead Wood Primary School has 280 pupils on roll.

What age range does Elmstead Wood Primary School cover?

Elmstead Wood Primary School for pupils aged 3 to 11.

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

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

Where is Elmstead Wood Primary School?

Elmstead Wood Primary School is at Castlecombe Road, Mottingham, London, SE9 4AT.