Bobbing Village School

Bobbing Village School, a primary academy within the Bourne Alliance Multi Academy Trust, is currently categorized as requiring improvement following its first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic. The school is perceived positively by pupils, who enjoy a strong sense of community and are supported in their well-being. However, there are concerns regarding the consistency of pupil behaviour and the effectiveness of teaching practices, especially in assessing pupils' understanding prior to introducing new concepts. Despite these challenges, the leadership team is committed to enhancing educational quality and is actively working on various initiatives to improve learning outcomes.

Strengths

• Pupils benefit from a wide range of extra-curricular activities.
• The school promotes a love of reading, providing support for those who struggle.
• The new 'discovery' curriculum is helping pupils connect knowledge across subjects.
• Children in the early years engage effectively with literacy and numeracy skills.

Areas for Improvement

• Inconsistent management of pupil behaviour disrupts learning.
• Teaching does not always check pupil understanding before progressing.
• Leaders lack adequate oversight of school practices and areas needing improvement.

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 Bobbing Village School attended 95.9% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 11.2% 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, 4.0% of pupils at Bobbing Village School were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). One pupil was 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 Bobbing Village School had 17.4 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 21.7% 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, 14.1% of pupils at Bobbing Village School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 1.6% 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 Bobbing Village School received £6,193 and spent £6,021 for each of its 199 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £362,000 (£1,819 per pupil).

Across all 4 schools of Bourne Alliance Multi Academy Trust, income was £8,479 and spending £8,618 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 Sittingbourne · Kent local authority: places and applications

Bobbing Village School is part of Bourne Alliance Multi Academy Trust, which runs 4 schools. The nearest others:

• Grove Park Primary School Sittingbourne
• Aspire School Sittingbourne
• Iwade School Sittingbourne

What is Bobbing Village School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Bobbing Village School is Requires Improvement, from an inspection in July 2024.

When was Bobbing Village School last inspected by Ofsted?

Bobbing Village School was last inspected in July 2024.

How many pupils does Bobbing Village School have?

Bobbing Village School has 192 pupils on roll.

What age range does Bobbing Village School cover?

Bobbing Village School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

What are Bobbing Village School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 75% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Bobbing Village School?

Bobbing Village School is at Sheppey Way, Bobbing, Sittingbourne, Kent, ME9 8PL.