Earley St Peter's Church of England Primary School

Earley St Peter's Church of England Primary is a larger-than-average primary in The Keys Academy Trust, and this full inspection found it performing well overall. Pupils are happy, safe and proud of their school, behaviour is strong, and relationships between staff and pupils are warm and nurturing. The early years provision is particularly effective: children settle quickly, become independent learners and benefit from a well-designed curriculum with a strong focus on vocabulary, language and phonics. Inclusion is also a notable strength, with leaders identifying barriers early and supporting pupils with SEND and other vulnerable pupils well. Personal development and wellbeing are strong, with pupils learning about values, safety, mental health and British values, and taking part in a wide range of enrichment activities. Achievement is generally good. Most pupils achieve well, and outcomes in reading and writing by the end of Year 6 are sometimes above national averages. Disadvantaged pupils are supported carefully, and pupils learning English as an additional language make notable progress. Attendance is broadly in line with national averages and improving, and pupils behave well in lessons and at social times. Leadership and governance are effective, with clear vision from leaders and the trust, strong staff support and diligent oversight from governors and trustees. The main areas for development relate to consistency. The teaching of early writing transcription skills, including handwriting, spelling and sentence construction, is not yet fully consistent across key stages 1 and 2, so some pupils do not develop confidence and fluency in writing as quickly as they should. In addition, teachers' checks on learning are sometimes inconsistent, meaning a few pupils do not receive timely support to address gaps in knowledge and understanding across the wider curriculum.

Strengths

• Children in the early years make a flying start through a well-designed curriculum and skilful staff interactions
• Early years staff strongly promote vocabulary, language development, songs, rhymes and stories
• Phonics is taught well by well-trained staff, supporting younger pupils to read confidently
• Inclusion is a clear strength, with leaders swiftly identifying barriers and providing well-considered support
• Pupils with SEND and other vulnerable pupils gain confidence, independence and achieve well
• Personal development and wellbeing are highly effective, including pupils' understanding of values, safety and mental health
• Pupils behave well, are eager to learn and build warm, trusting relationships with staff
• Pupils benefit from a wide range of purposeful enrichment, clubs, trips and leadership opportunities
• Reading is a strength, with pupils exploring texts enthusiastically and learning rich vocabulary
• Leadership and governance are effective, with clear vision, strong staff support and diligent trust oversight
• Disadvantaged pupils are supported carefully to access opportunities and achieve well

Areas for Improvement

• The teaching of early writing transcription skills, including handwriting, spelling and sentence construction, is not fully consistent across key stages 1 and 2
• Some pupils do not develop confidence and fluency in writing as quickly as they should because early writing work varies across the school
• Teachers' checks on pupils' understanding are sometimes inconsistent, leaving occasional gaps in knowledge and understanding
• Some pupils do not receive support quickly enough to help them fully secure their learning across the wider curriculum

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 Earley St Peter's Church of England Primary School attended 95.4% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 10.0% 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, 0.0% of pupils at Earley St Peter's Church of England 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 Earley St Peter's Church of England Primary School had 24.7 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 7.1% 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, 12.4% of pupils at Earley St Peter's Church of England Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 2.4% 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 Earley St Peter's Church of England Primary School received £6,459 and spent £6,531 for each of its 465 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £519,000 (£1,117 per pupil).

Across all 12 schools of The Keys Academy Trust, income was £6,910 and spending £6,798 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.

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All schools in Reading · Wokingham local authority: places and applications

Earley St Peter's Church of England Primary School is part of The Keys Academy Trust, which runs 13 schools. The nearest others:

• Sonning Church of England Primary School Reading
• Alder Grove Church of England Primary School Shinfield
• St Nicholas Church of England Primary, Hurst Wokingham
• The Coombes Church of England Primary School Reading
• Polehampton Church of England Infant and Nursery School Reading
• St Cecilia's CofE Primary School Wokingham
• Polehampton Church of England Junior School Reading
• Grazeley Church of England Primary School Reading
• Crazies Hill Church of England Primary School Reading
• Saint Sebastians Church of England Primary School and Nursery Wokingham

What is Earley St Peter's Church of England Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Earley St Peter's Church of England Primary School is Expected standard, from an inspection in January 2026.

When was Earley St Peter's Church of England Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Earley St Peter's Church of England Primary School was last inspected in January 2026.

How many pupils does Earley St Peter's Church of England Primary School have?

Earley St Peter's Church of England Primary School has 458 pupils on roll.

What age range does Earley St Peter's Church of England Primary School cover?

Earley St Peter's Church of England Primary School for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are Earley St Peter's Church of England Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 69% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Earley St Peter's Church of England Primary School?

Earley St Peter's Church of England Primary School is at Church Road, Earley, Reading, Berkshire, RG6 1EY.