The Bishop's Church of England Primary Academy

The Bishop’s Church of England Primary Academy is on a rapid improvement journey. Inspectors found behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and early years provision to be good, while the quality of education still requires improvement. Leaders are ambitious, staff feel well supported, and the school has effective systems for checking its work; the Diocese of Norwich Education and Academies Trust is closely involved and provides useful expertise. Strengths include a highly consistent approach to reading and phonics, with precise catch-up for pupils who need it, and a calm culture built on clear behaviour expectations. Attendance has risen from a very low base because of tenacious family support. Pupils are generally well behaved, take on responsibilities and benefit from a curriculum enriched by local trips and outdoor play. Early years and the Cherry Blossom class support speech, language and physical development well, and pupils with SEND have their needs identified accurately. The main concerns are that writing is not consistently well taught, pupils do not get enough routine practice to write at length or develop fluent handwriting, and many have gaps in foundation subjects after previous weak teaching. Teachers sometimes have to reteach basic content, which slows progress, and pupils with SEND are not supported as well as they should be in writing and subjects beyond reading and mathematics. Safeguarding is effective.

Strengths

• Highly consistent phonics and reading teaching with precise catch-up support
• Calm and orderly culture with clear, consistently taught behaviour expectations
• Strong family support has helped attendance rise from being very low
• Pupils are enthusiastic, usually well behaved and take on responsibilities
• Early years provision develops speaking, vocabulary and physical skills well
• Pupils with SEND have their needs identified accurately and clear targets are set
• The Cherry Blossom class supports speech and language development and reintegration well
• Leaders, governors and the trust are ambitious and provide effective support
• The curriculum uses the local area and trips to engage pupils
• Effective systems are in place to evaluate all aspects of the school’s work
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective

Areas for Improvement

• Writing is not taught consistently effectively, and pupils lack routine practice and fluent handwriting
• Many pupils have large gaps in foundation subjects because of previous weaknesses in teaching
• Teachers have to reteach basic content in some subjects, slowing pupils’ progress
• Pupils with SEND are not supported as well as they should be in writing and foundation subjects
• Pupils’ achievement by the end of Year 6 still needs improvement beyond reading and mathematics

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 Bishop's Church of England Primary Academy attended 92.2% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 22.2% 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, 6.4% of pupils at The Bishop's Church of England Primary Academy 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 The Bishop's Church of England Primary Academy had 18.6 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 18.4% 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, 18.5% of pupils at The Bishop's Church of England Primary Academy were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 6.1% 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 The Bishop's Church of England Primary Academy received £8,011 and spent £7,999 for each of its 351 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £76,000 (£218 per pupil).

Across all 22 schools of The Diocese of Norwich Education and Academies Trust, income was £11,069 and spending £10,622 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 Thetford · Norfolk local authority: places and applications

The Bishop's Church of England Primary Academy is part of The Diocese of Norwich Education and Academies Trust, which runs 40 schools. The nearest others:

• Mundford Church of England Primary Academy Thetford
• Caston Church of England Primary Academy Attleborough
• Parker's Church of England Primary Academy Thetford
• St Peter and St Paul Church of England Primary Academy & Nursery Thetford
• Gooderstone Church of England Primary Academy King'S Lynn
• Swaffham CofE Primary Academy Swaffham
• Thomas Bullock Church of England Primary and Nursery Academy Thetford
• Sporle Church of England Primary Academy King'S Lynn
• Narborough Church of England Primary Academy King'S Lynn
• Dereham Church of England Junior Academy Dereham

What is The Bishop's Church of England Primary Academy's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for The Bishop's Church of England Primary Academy is Requires Improvement, from an inspection in April 2025.

When was The Bishop's Church of England Primary Academy last inspected by Ofsted?

The Bishop's Church of England Primary Academy was last inspected in April 2025.

How many pupils does The Bishop's Church of England Primary Academy have?

The Bishop's Church of England Primary Academy has 330 pupils on roll.

What age range does The Bishop's Church of England Primary Academy cover?

The Bishop's Church of England Primary Academy for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are The Bishop's Church of England Primary Academy's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 27% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is The Bishop's Church of England Primary Academy?

The Bishop's Church of England Primary Academy is at Canterbury Way, Thetford, Norfolk, IP24 1EB.