Kenton Bar Primary School

Kenton Bar Primary School is a happy, welcoming and harmonious school where pupils are proud of their school and demonstrate strong values of teamwork, kindness and respect. This was the school’s first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic, and it is part of Smart Multi Academy Trust. The school serves pupils aged 3 to 11, has a specially resourced provision for up to six pupils with autistic spectrum disorder, and supports a high proportion of disadvantaged pupils, including those with SEND and those who speak English as an additional language. Many pupils enter with low starting points, and the school generally puts effective support in place so that pupils learn well over time. Safeguarding arrangements are effective.

Strengths

• High-quality subject curriculums are in place across the school.
• Curriculums cater well for disadvantaged pupils, pupils with SEND and pupils who speak English as an additional language.
• The specially resourced provision meets pupils’ needs well and provides an appropriate education.
• Early years has a strong focus on speech, language and communication, helping children become confident communicators.
• Phonics teaching builds strong foundations and pupils who fall behind receive effective catch-up support.
• Pupils develop positive attitudes to reading and become increasingly confident and fluent readers.
• Behaviour is positive, classrooms are orderly and calm, and a new behaviour approach has had significant impact.
• Attendance is high and has improved over time.
• The personal development programme is exemplary, with strong spiritual, moral and cultural development.
• Pupils show exceptional appreciation of diversity and celebrate difference remarkably well.
• The oracy programme has significant impact and pupils debate in a considered and respectful manner.
• A comprehensive programme of enrichment and educational visits is well designed.
• Governors and trustees are well informed, highly knowledgeable and offer effective support and challenge.
• Staff are extremely positive about the school and leaders have managed workload and well-being effectively.
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective.

Areas for Improvement

• In some subjects, pedagogical and activity choices do not emphasise the important knowledge pupils should learn, so some pupils do not learn as well as they could.
• In mathematics, work set sometimes gives pupils insufficient opportunity to apply their knowledge to problem-solving and reasoning activities.
• The school’s work to embed increased problem-solving and reasoning practice securely in classrooms is not yet fully embedded.

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 Kenton Bar Primary School attended 94.3% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 15.6% 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, 0.7% of pupils at Kenton Bar 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 Kenton Bar Primary School had 16.9 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 15.9% 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, 19.4% of pupils at Kenton Bar Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 5.1% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

The school has resourced provision with 4 pupils.

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 Kenton Bar Primary School received £8,416 and spent £8,218 for each of its 275 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £225,000 (£817 per pupil).

Across all 11 schools of Smart Multi Academy Trust, income was £7,594 and spending £7,596 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 Newcastle-Upon-Tyne · Newcastle upon Tyne local authority: places and applications

Kenton Bar Primary School is part of Smart Multi Academy Trust, which runs 11 schools. The nearest others:

• Mountfield Primary School Newcastle-Upon-Tyne
• Kingston Park Primary School Newcastle-Upon-Tyne
• Cheviot Primary School Newcastle-Upon-Tyne
• Farne Primary School Newcastle-Upon-Tyne
• Wyndham Primary School Newcastle-Upon-Tyne
• North Fawdon Primary School Newcastle-Upon-Tyne
• Stocksfield Avenue Primary School Newcastle-Upon-Tyne
• Oakfield Junior School Gateshead
• Oakfield Infant School Gateshead
• Stephenson Memorial Primary School Wallsend

What is Kenton Bar Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Kenton Bar Primary School is Good, from an inspection in February 2025.

When was Kenton Bar Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Kenton Bar Primary School was last inspected in February 2025.

How many pupils does Kenton Bar Primary School have?

Kenton Bar Primary School has 273 pupils on roll.

What age range does Kenton Bar Primary School cover?

Kenton Bar Primary School for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are Kenton Bar Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

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

Where is Kenton Bar Primary School?

Kenton Bar Primary School is at Ryal Walk, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Tyne and Wear, NE3 3YF.