Barnby and North Cove Community Primary School

Barnby and North Cove Community Primary is a small, friendly school that inspectors judge to be performing at the expected standard across achievement, attendance and behaviour, curriculum and teaching, early years, inclusion, leadership and governance, and personal development. Safeguarding standards are met. Leaders have raised expectations, and the curriculum is broad, well organised and helping pupils secure key knowledge. Achievement is stronger than some recent published outcomes suggest, and the school has moved forward from a challenging period with significant leadership change; the current academy head took up post in April 2025. The school's inclusive culture is a particular strength. Pupils with SEND, including those in the specially resourced provision The Broads, access a broad curriculum and progress well. Attendance has improved to match national expectations, behaviour is positive, classrooms are calm and purposeful, and personal development and wellbeing are prioritised. Parents are highly positive about the school's caring ethos and recent improvements. However, provision is not yet as strong as it could be in some classroom practice. Teachers do not always use checks on learning sharply enough to adapt tasks for all pupils, and pupils need more consistent opportunities to write well across subjects and deepen subject-specific knowledge and vocabulary. Published outcomes in some areas have been below national averages, although leaders' work in books and lessons indicates improvement and small cohorts limit the value of year-on-year data.

Strengths

• Leaders have raised expectations and established a broad, well-organised curriculum.
• Pupils, including disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND, typically gain the knowledge and skills they need.
• The specially resourced provision, The Broads, is well integrated and helps create an inclusive school culture.
• Pupils with SEND are identified quickly and supported well, and they progress appropriately from their starting points.
• Attendance has improved and now matches national expectations, supported by robust tracking and effective support.
• Pupils behave well and classrooms are calm, purposeful and inclusive.
• The early years curriculum prepares children well; children are engaged, independent and develop language and early writing skills.
• Leaders provide high-quality professional development and are mindful of staff workload and wellbeing.
• Personal development is a priority, with wide enrichment, leadership opportunities and strong pastoral support.
• Safeguarding standards are met, and pupils feel safe and know adults will listen.
• Parents and carers are highly positive about leadership and the school's caring ethos.

Areas for Improvement

• Pupils’ achievement is not as strong as it could be because teachers do not always use checks on learning effectively.
• Teachers do not consistently give pupils enough opportunities to strengthen their writing across a range of subjects.
• Pupils need more opportunities to deepen their subject-specific knowledge and vocabulary.
• Teachers should refine their checking of learning so gaps in knowledge are identified and addressed swiftly.

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 Barnby and North Cove Community Primary School attended 94.2% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 15.2% 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, 5.1% of pupils at Barnby and North Cove Community Primary School 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 Barnby and North Cove Community Primary School had 11.1 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 16.7% 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, 20.9% of pupils at Barnby and North Cove Community Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 24.2% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

The school has a SEN unit with 11 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 Barnby and North Cove Community Primary School received £11,859 and spent £12,036 for each of its 74 pupils. It ended the year with a deficit of £35,000 (-£474 per pupil).

Across all 14 schools of Consortium Trust, income was £14,612 and spending £14,475 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 Beccles · Suffolk local authority: places and applications

Barnby and North Cove Community Primary School is part of Consortium Trust, which runs 14 schools. The nearest others:

• Warren School Lowestoft
• Glebeland Community Primary School Beccles
• Reedham Primary School Norwich
• Southwold Primary School Southwold
• Mendham Primary School Harleston
• Yoxford & Peasenhall Primary Academy Saxmundham
• Middleton Community Primary School Saxmundham
• Winterton Primary School and Nursery Great Yarmouth
• St Edmund's Primary School Eye
• Rendlesham Primary School Woodbridge

What is Barnby and North Cove Community Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Barnby and North Cove Community Primary School is Expected standard, from an inspection in June 2026.

When was Barnby and North Cove Community Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Barnby and North Cove Community Primary School was last inspected in June 2026.

How many pupils does Barnby and North Cove Community Primary School have?

Barnby and North Cove Community Primary School has 91 pupils on roll.

What age range does Barnby and North Cove Community Primary School cover?

Barnby and North Cove Community Primary School for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are Barnby and North Cove Community Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 33% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Barnby and North Cove Community Primary School?

Barnby and North Cove Community Primary School is at The Street, Barnby, Beccles, Suffolk, NR34 7QB.