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The Oaks Primary School

Primary Ages 3-11 449 pupils Ipswich
Ofsted: Outstanding
All schools in Ipswich

The Oaks Primary School is an academy converter in Ipswich for pupils aged 3 to 11. It has 449 pupils on roll. The latest Ofsted rating for The Oaks Primary School is Outstanding, from an inspection in November 2024. In 2025, 67% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths. It is hard to get into: 31 of the 88 families who put it first for a Reception place in September 2026 did not get one.

Ofsted inspection: November 2024. KS2 results: 2025.

Type Primary / Academy converter
Age Range 3-11
Religion Does not apply
Address Aster Road
Ipswich
Suffolk
IP2 0NR
Phone 01473684994
Reference Number 141842

General Makeup

Number of pupils 449
Boy/Girl ratio Boys: 50.33%
Girls: 49.67%
Percentage of students eligible for free school meals 33.1%
Percentage of students where English is not their first language 23.8%

Class Sizes

Average size of one teacher classes 29.9
Average size of Key Stage 1 classes taught by one teacher 29.3
Average size of Key Stage 2 classes taught by one teacher 29.4

Year Groups

Year Boys Girls Total
1 30 29 59
2 31 30 61
3 23 35 58
4 28 31 59
5 29 30 59
6 36 23 59

Ethnicities

Ethnicity Percentage
White, British 63.3%
White, Other 8.2%
White & Black (Caribbean) 5.6%
Mixed, Other 3.1%
White & Black (African) 2.9%
African 2%
Unclassified 1.8%
White & Asian 1.6%
Indian 1.3%
Asian, Other 0.7%
Caribbean 0.4%
Pakistani 0.4%
Chinese 0.2%

The Oaks Primary School has successfully retained the high standards established in its previous inspection, maintaining its overall effectiveness. The school demonstrates a strong commitment to providing quality education and support for all pupils, including those with additional needs. Notably, it offers multiple opportunities for personal development and emotional well-being, which contribute to positive pupil outcomes and an inclusive environment. Additionally, the leadership is proactive in its approach to fostering a supportive and ambitious learning atmosphere.

Overall Ofsted Rating Outstanding
Last Report Date 22 Oct 2024
Date Report
22 Oct 2024 School inspection
19 Sep 2018 Full inspection:
23 Jan 2018 Short inspection
04 Mar 2015 Academy conversion letter
20 Sep 2012 Full inspection:
Previously as The Oaks Community Primary School
10 Feb 2011 Monitoring visit
14 Oct 2009 Full inspection:
27 Jun 2007 Full inspection:

Strengths

  • Pupils achieve well in national tests and develop excellent communication skills.
  • The school provides a comprehensive curriculum enriched with trips and experiences.
  • High-quality pastoral support promotes pupils' mental and emotional well-being.
  • Teachers effectively adapt learning for pupils with SEND.
  • Pupils' behaviour is exemplary, with high attendance rates.
  • The school fosters an inclusive environment and positive relationships among pupils.

Ofsted Parent View

The latest published parent view scores are from 2018. Ofsted only publish scores if there have been more than 10 responses to the survey.

Strongly Agree Agree Disagree Strongly Disagree Don't Know Total Responses
1. My child is happy at this school 61 11 1 0 0 73
2. My child feels safe at this school 57 15 1 0 0 73
3. My child makes good progress at this school 51 19 2 0 1 73
4. My child is well looked after at this school 50 20 1 0 2 73
5. My child is taught well at this school 52 18 3 0 0 73
6. My child receives appropriate homework for their age 36 20 10 3 4 73
7. This school makes sure its pupils are well behaved 47 22 2 1 1 73
8. This school deals effectively with bullying 33 20 5 1 14 73
9. This school is well led and managed 52 18 1 0 2 73
10. This school responds well to any concerns I raise 47 20 5 0 1 73
11. I receive valuable information from the school about my child’s progress 39 27 6 1 0 73
12. Would you recommend this school to another parent? 70 3

How many students meet the standards

Reading, Writing & Maths School Score Percentile (local) Percentile (nationwide)
Pupils meeting the expected standard 67%
Pupils meeting a higher standard 8%

Average Scaled Score

Results are converted into scaled scores to allow accurate comparisons of performance over time even if the difficulty of the test varies over time. Scaled scores range from 80 to 120.

Subject School Percentile (local) Percentile (nationwide)
Reading 104
Maths 104

Progress Scores

A progress score is a way to measure how well a student progressed in comparison to other students of a similar starting ability. A score of zero means would mean that a student made the same progress as others that had a similar starting a ability. A positive score would mean that the student made more progress than other students of similar starting ability. The scores below are for the whole school so is the average progress score across all students.

Metric School Score Percentile (local) Percentile (nationwide)
Reading 0.6
Writing 0.6
Maths 1.7

How many students meet the standards

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Average Scaled Score

Results are converted into scaled scores to allow accurate comparisons of performance over time even if the difficulty of the test varies over time. Scaled scores range from 80 to 120.

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Progress Scores

A progress score is a way to measure how well a student progressed in comparison to other students of a similar starting ability. A score of zero means would mean that a student made the same progress as others that had a similar starting a ability. A positive score would mean that the student made more progress than other students of similar starting ability. The scores below are for the whole school so is the average progress score across all students.

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Reception admissions, 2026 entry

Number of Applications Number of Offers
First Preference
Second Preference 44 1
Third Preference 28 0
From another Local Authority 0 0

Previous years

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Places and pupil numbers

In 2024–25 The Oaks Primary School had 418 pupils for 420 places. 2 places (0.5%) were unfilled.

Pupils and places

Reception intake in the “Ipswich South West” planning area

Suffolk counted 782 Reception pupils in this area in 2024–25 and forecasts 760 in 2029–30, down 3%.

2015201620172018201920212022202320242025
Places 378378378420420420420420420420
Pupils 381368375385393395414417419418
Unfilled 0.0%2.6%0.8%8.3%6.4%6.0%1.4%0.7%0.2%0.5%

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 The Oaks Primary School attended 96.0% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 6.1% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 13.0%).

Sessions missed

Pupils persistently absent

201620172018201920212022202320242025
Authorised absence 3.4%4.1%3.1%3.3%3.5%5.9%4.9%4.0%3.5%
Unauthorised absence 1.4%0.8%0.8%0.5%0.4%0.8%0.6%0.7%0.6%
Severely absent pupils 0.0%1.5%0.0%0.0%0.9%0.6%0.3%0.8%0.3%

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, 0.2% of pupils at The Oaks Primary School were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). No pupils were permanently excluded.

Pupils suspended at least once

2016201720182019202020212022202320242025
Suspensions per 100 pupils 0.00.31.60.50.70.20.00.00.90.4
Permanent exclusions 0000100000

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 The Oaks Primary School had 19.4 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 9.6% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 15.7%).

Pupils per teacher

Teachers who left the school within a year

20162017201820192020202120222023202420252026
Pupils per adult 7.48.09.49.38.48.38.911.110.511.39.1
Teachers who left state teaching 7.7%16.6%4.7%5.0%0.0%3.2%0.0%4.6%7.6%4.8%–
Teachers who took any sick leave 51.4%63.3%40.0%60.7%–44.4%43.8%78.6%59.3%57.1%–
Sick days per teacher 7.15.81.62.9–1.71.72.63.13.2–

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, 14.7% of pupils at The Oaks Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 5.6% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

Pupils by main type of need

SEN support EHC plan
Speech, language and communication needs 29 7
Autistic spectrum disorder 7 7
Social, emotional and mental health 7 5
Moderate learning difficulty 7 2
No specialist assessment of need 9 0
Physical disability 4 1
Specific learning difficulty 3 2
Severe learning difficulty 0 1

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 The Oaks Primary School received £7,356 and spent £6,150 for each of its 445 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £414,000 (£932 per pupil).

Across all 16 schools of Asset Education, income was £7,219 and spending £6,496 per pupil.

Income per pupil

Spending per pupil

2019202020212022202320242025
Revenue reserve £141,000£168,000£158,000£118,000£153,000£107,000£414,000
per pupil £343£412£376£270£344£242£932
In-year balance -£12,000-£91,000-£178,000-£118,000£29,000-£44,000£536,000
per pupil -£30-£223-£423-£271£65-£98£1,205

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.

Name Distance
St Mark's Catholic Primary School
Stone Lodge Lane West, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP2 9HN
0.45 miles
Sprites Primary Academy
Stonechat Road, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP2 0SA
0.57 miles
The Willows Primary School
Downing Close, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP2 9ER
0.61 miles
Ranelagh Primary School
Pauls Road, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP2 0AN
0.69 miles
Gusford Community Primary School
Sheldrake Drive, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP2 9LQ
0.72 miles
Halifax Primary School
Prince of Wales Drive, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP2 8PY
0.96 miles
Handford Hall Primary School
57 Gatacre Road, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP1 2LQ
1.11 miles
Hillside Primary School
Belstead Avenue, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP2 8NU
1.2 miles
Sproughton Church of England Primary School
Church Lane, Sproughton, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP8 3BB
1.25 miles
St Matthew's Church of England Primary School, Ipswich
Portman Road, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP1 2AX
1.29 miles
Springfield Infant School and Nursery
11 Wesley Way, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP1 4PP
1.36 miles
Springfield Junior School
Kitchener Road, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP1 4DT
1.42 miles
Copdock Primary School
School Hill, Copdock, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP8 3HY
1.78 miles
St Margaret's CEVAP School, Ipswich
Bolton Lane, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP4 2BT
1.8 miles
Whitehouse Community Primary School
Marlow Road, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP1 5JN
1.85 miles
St Helen's Primary School
Woodbridge Road, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP4 2LT
1.96 miles
Highfield Nursery School
Chesterfield Drive, Ipswich, IP1 6DW
1.98 miles
Cliff Lane Primary School
Cliff Lane, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP3 0PJ
2.08 miles
Bramford Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School
Duckamere, Bramford, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP8 4AH
2.13 miles
St Pancras Catholic Primary School
Stratford Road, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP1 6EF
2.21 miles
Name Distance
Chantry Academy
Mallard Way, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP2 9LR
0.38 miles
Stone Lodge Academy
Stone Lodge Lane West, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP2 9HW
0.49 miles
St Joseph's College
Belstead Road, Ipswich, IP2 9DR
0.59 miles
One Sixth Form College
Scrivener Drive, Pinewood, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP8 3SU
0.75 miles
The Bridge School
Sprites Lane, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP8 3ND
0.9 miles
Belstead House Adult Education Centre
Sprites Lane, Ipswich, IP8 3NA
1.01 miles
Stoke High School - Ormiston Academy
Maidenhall Approach, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP2 8PL
1.21 miles
Redstone Hall School
11 Fore Street, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP4 1JW
1.67 miles
Ipswich School
Henley Road, Ipswich, IP1 3SG
1.7 miles
Westbourne Academy
Marlow Road, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP1 5JN
1.8 miles
Learning Support, Southern Area Education Office
St Andrew House, Ipswich, IP4 1LJ
1.83 miles
Suffolk New College
Rope Walk, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP4 1LT
1.88 miles
Woodbridge Road Academy
50 Russet Road, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP4 2EB
2.31 miles
Thomas Wolsey Ormiston Academy
Defoe Road, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP1 6SG
2.36 miles
Ormiston Endeavour Academy
Defoe Road, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP1 6SG
2.66 miles
Northgate High School
Sidegate Lane West, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP4 3DL
3 miles
Ipswich Academy
Braziers Wood Road, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP3 0SP
3.01 miles
Sir Bobby Robson School
Lindbergh Road, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP3 9FA
3.08 miles
Copleston High School
Copleston Road, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP4 5HD
3.11 miles
New Skill Centre
Wolsey House, 2-5 The Drift, Nacton Road, Ipswich, IP3 9QR
3.35 miles

All schools in Ipswich · Suffolk local authority: places and applications

The Oaks Primary School is part of Asset Education, which runs 16 schools. The nearest others:

What is The Oaks Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for The Oaks Primary School is Outstanding, from an inspection in November 2024.

When was The Oaks Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

The Oaks Primary School was last inspected in November 2024.

How many pupils does The Oaks Primary School have?

The Oaks Primary School has 449 pupils on roll.

What age range does The Oaks Primary School cover?

The Oaks Primary School for pupils aged 3 to 11.

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

In 2025, 67% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is The Oaks Primary School?

The Oaks Primary School is at Aster Road, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP2 0NR.

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