Blackthorns Community Primary School

Blackthorns Community Primary School is performing well overall. Achievement is a clear strength: pupils achieve highly from the early years onwards, attainment in Year 6 reading, writing and mathematics is above national averages, and disadvantaged pupils achieve very well. Pupils with SEND and those facing other barriers make good progress from their starting points. Safeguarding standards are met, and pupils say they feel safe and well supported. Across attendance, behaviour, curriculum, early years, inclusion, leadership and personal development, the school is meeting expected standards. Attendance is high and well above national averages, persistent absence has been reducing, and behaviour is calm and respectful. The broad curriculum is well sequenced, teaching is typically secure, and the early years provision gives children a strong start. Inclusion is effective, and leaders use pupil premium and external support well. The school joined Hurst Education Trust in June 2026 and has maintained high standards during significant change; governance is effective and staff wellbeing is prioritised. The main areas for further development are to embed highly effective teaching consistently across all subjects and year groups, to continue strengthening the personal development programme so pupils are very well prepared for life beyond school, and to keep reducing persistent absence. Overall, this is a strong and improving school with no widespread concerns.

Strengths

• Pupils achieve highly, with attainment above national averages in reading, writing and mathematics.
• Disadvantaged pupils achieve very well and benefit from effective pastoral and academic support.
• Pupils with SEND make good progress from their starting points through adapted teaching and targeted support.
• Phonics teaching helps pupils read fluently and access learning across the curriculum.
• Attendance is high and above national averages, including for SEND and disadvantaged pupils.
• Behaviour is calm, positive and respectful, with rare disruption to learning.
• The curriculum is broad and well sequenced, with reading, writing and mathematics at its heart.
• Early years provision gives children a strong start and prepares them well for Year 1.
• Inclusion is effective, with swift identification of needs and appropriate adaptations in lessons.
• Leadership and governance are effective following the school's move to a new academy trust.
• Pastoral support and personal development help pupils build confidence, resilience and independence.
• Staff workload and wellbeing are given close attention, contributing to a strong team spirit.

Areas for Improvement

• Highly effective teaching is not yet embedded consistently across all subjects and year groups.
• The personal development programme needs further embedding so pupils are very well prepared for life beyond school, including understanding of fundamental British values.
• Persistent absence has reduced but still requires further work.

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 Blackthorns Community Primary School attended 96.8% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 4.4% 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 Blackthorns Community 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 Blackthorns Community Primary School had 23.0 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 17.0% 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, 9.4% of pupils at Blackthorns Community Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 3.4% 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 Blackthorns Community Primary School received £5,935 and spent £7,086 for each of its 210 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £5,000 (£23 per pupil).

Across all 11 schools of Hurst Education Trust Limited, income was £5,584 and spending £5,780 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 Haywards Heath · West Sussex local authority: places and applications

Blackthorns Community Primary School is part of Hurst Education Trust Limited, which runs 14 schools. The nearest others:

• Lindfield Primary Academy Haywards Heath
• St Wilfrid's CofE Primary School Haywards Heath
• Bolnore Village Primary School Haywards Heath
• Holy Trinity Church of England Primary School, Cuckfield Haywards Heath
• Balcombe Cofe Primary School Haywards Heath
• West Hoathly CofE Primary School Select
• Ditchling St Margaret's Church of England Primary School Ditchling
• Turners Hill Church of England Primary School Crawley
• Albourne Church of England Primary School Hassocks
• Crawley Down Village CofE School Crawley

What is Blackthorns Community Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Blackthorns Community Primary School is Expected standard, from an inspection in September 2026.

When was Blackthorns Community Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Blackthorns Community Primary School was last inspected in September 2026.

How many pupils does Blackthorns Community Primary School have?

Blackthorns Community Primary School has 203 pupils on roll.

What age range does Blackthorns Community Primary School cover?

Blackthorns Community Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

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

In 2025, 77% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Blackthorns Community Primary School?

Blackthorns Community Primary School is at 3 Blackthorns Close, Lindfield, Haywards Heath, West Sussex, RH16 2UA.