Springwood Primary Academy

Springwood Junior Academy is an inclusive, nurturing primary school within the Aston Community Education Trust. Inspectors found the school performing well across its key areas, with pupils enjoying school, feeling safe, behaving well and achieving well. Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities are supported effectively and make good progress, and most pupils are ready for secondary school when they leave Year 6. The school has strong relationships with families and the local community, and safeguarding arrangements are effective. The curriculum has recently been changed to adopt the trust curriculum, with adaptations made for the school’s context and pupils’ needs. Early years provision gives children a positive start, phonics is delivered consistently, reading is well taught, and the personal development programme is well planned and enhanced by clubs, trips and sporting opportunities. Leaders at all levels share a clear vision, and staff care deeply about pupils. There are two main areas for improvement. The writing curriculum had not ensured that pupils learn and embed writing and transcription skills well enough, and recent changes are still in the early stages. In addition, some aspects of personal development do not develop pupils’ understanding of different faiths and different types of families strongly enough, so pupils are not as prepared for life in modern Britain as they could be. The report does not give an overall effectiveness grade under the current inspection framework.

Strengths

• Inclusive and nurturing school where pupils feel safe and supported.
• Pupils with SEND make good progress because learning is adapted well to their needs.
• Pupils achieve well and most are ready for the next stage of education.
• Positive relationships with families and the local community.
• Pupils behave well and appreciate the praise they receive.
• A range of clubs, trips and residential visits build confidence and independence.
• Pupils develop leadership skills through the school council and eco team.
• Recent curriculum changes are adapted to the school context and pupils’ needs.
• Early years provision gives children a positive start and focuses well on speech, language and vocabulary.
• Phonics is delivered consistently well, and reading is taught clearly.
• The personal development programme is well planned and linked to curriculum subjects.
• A strong PE curriculum is enhanced by extracurricular clubs and competitive sport.
• Leaders at all levels, including governors, share a clear vision for the school.
• Staff care deeply about pupils and support each other well.
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective.

Areas for Improvement

• The writing curriculum has not ensured pupils learn and embed writing and transcription skills well enough.
• Recent changes to the writing curriculum are still in the early stages and need continued implementation and evaluation.
• Some pupils’ writing outcomes are not as well developed as they could be.
• Personal development does not build a strong enough understanding of different faiths and different types of families.
• Pupils are not as prepared for life in modern Britain as they could be.

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 Springwood Primary Academy attended 94.6% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 11.4% 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, 2.5% of pupils at Springwood Primary Academy 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 Springwood Primary Academy had 29.0 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 12.3% 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, 12.6% of pupils at Springwood Primary Academy were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 4.2% 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 Springwood Primary Academy received £6,905 and spent £6,619 for each of its 239 pupils. It ended the year with a deficit of £174,000 (-£729 per pupil).

Across all 12 schools of Aston Community Education Trust, income was £7,762 and spending £7,726 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 Sheffield · Rotherham local authority: places and applications

Springwood Primary Academy is part of Aston Community Education Trust, which runs 12 schools. The nearest others:

• Aughton Primary Academy Sheffield
• Aston Academy Sheffield
• Waverley Primary Academy Rotherham
• Thurcroft Junior Academy Rotherham
• Listerdale Primary Academy Rotherham
• Lowedges Primary Academy Sheffield
• Brookfield Primary Academy Mexborough
• Swinton Academy Mexborough
• Langwith Bassett Primary Academy Mansfield
• Shirebrook Academy Mansfield

What is Springwood Primary Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Springwood Primary Academy is Good, from an inspection in July 2025.

When was Springwood Primary Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

Springwood Primary Academy was last inspected in July 2025.

How many pupils does Springwood Primary Academy have?

Springwood Primary Academy has 238 pupils on roll.

What age range does Springwood Primary Academy cover?

Springwood Primary Academy for pupils aged 2 to 11.

What are Springwood Primary Academy's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 32% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Springwood Primary Academy?

Springwood Primary Academy is at Aughton Lane, Aston, Sheffield, South Yorkshire, S26 2AL.