Whitmore Primary School and Nursery

Whitmore Primary School and Nursery is performing well overall, with a 'Good' rating for the quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and early years provision. The school has not been inspected before and has established a positive culture where pupils feel safe and respected, often describing it as a family environment. Staff are dedicated to providing a rich curriculum and fostering pupils' development, helping them prepare for the next stages in their education. Despite notable strengths, challenges remain in matching the level of work to all students, particularly for the more able pupils and younger children in the early years.

Strengths

• Strong commitment to a full and rich curriculum
• Pupils feel safe and respected
• Effective support for pupils with SEND
• Writing is taught particularly well
• Dedicated staff providing good support and care

Areas for Improvement

• Inconsistent level of challenge for more able pupils
• New reading program needs monitoring for fostering love of reading
• Some Reception children lack concentration on activities

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 Whitmore Primary School and Nursery attended 93.3% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 22.1% 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, 1.4% of pupils at Whitmore Primary School and Nursery 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 Whitmore Primary School and Nursery had 23.5 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 16.8% 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, 14.8% of pupils at Whitmore Primary School and Nursery were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 3.0% 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 Whitmore Primary School and Nursery received £7,086 and spent £7,043 for each of its 650 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £232,000 (£356 per pupil).

Across all 10 schools of Berlesduna Academy Trust, income was £7,659 and spending £7,506 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 Basildon · Essex local authority: places and applications

Whitmore Primary School and Nursery is part of Berlesduna Academy Trust, which runs 11 schools. The nearest others:

• The Willows Primary School Basildon
• Fairhouse Community Primary School Basildon
• Felmore Primary School Basildon
• Cherry Tree Primary School Basildon
• Crays Hill Primary School Billericay
• Merrylands Primary School Basildon
• Downham Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School Billericay
• St Nicholas Church of England Primary School Rayleigh
• St Mary's Church of England Primary School Chelmsford
• Canewdon Church of England Primary School Rochford

What is Whitmore Primary School and Nursery's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Whitmore Primary School and Nursery is Good, from an inspection in May 2025.

When was Whitmore Primary School and Nursery last inspected by Ofsted?

Whitmore Primary School and Nursery was last inspected in May 2025.

How many pupils does Whitmore Primary School and Nursery have?

Whitmore Primary School and Nursery has 633 pupils on roll.

What age range does Whitmore Primary School and Nursery cover?

Whitmore Primary School and Nursery for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are Whitmore Primary School and Nursery's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 57% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Whitmore Primary School and Nursery?

Whitmore Primary School and Nursery is at Whitmore Way, Basildon, Essex, SS14 2TP.