Bligh Primary School (Infants)

Bligh Primary School (Infants) is a happy, calm and inclusive school where pupils feel safe and parents value the strong family feel. This was its first routine section 5 inspection, and it is part of the Maritime Academy Trust, sharing leadership and site arrangements with the junior school. Under the current framework the school does not receive an overall effectiveness grade, but the report highlights an ambitious curriculum, strong early years provision, expert early reading and effective support for pupils with SEND. Safeguarding is effective, behaviour is good and attendance is supported well. Personal development and early years are particular strengths. Pupils learn the school's HEART values, take pride in earning badges and enjoy roles such as peer mediators. Children in early years benefit from careful checks on what they know and remember, strong communication and language work, and clear routines that build independence. Reading is a priority, with phonics taught well and any pupils falling behind helped quickly to catch up. Staff feel proud to work at the school and leaders consider workload and well-being. The main area for improvement is assessment in subjects other than English and mathematics. The school does not always have an accurate picture of the key knowledge pupils have retained and understood in these subjects, which makes it harder for teachers to build on prior learning and address misconceptions. The report asks the school to continue supporting staff to check pupils' acquisition of key knowledge systematically over time.

Strengths

• Ambitious and well-ordered curriculum from early years onwards
• High-quality staff training and a consistent teaching approach
• Strong early years provision with careful checks on children's next steps
• Expert early reading and phonics teaching with swift catch-up support
• Quick and accurate identification of pupils with SEND, with learning well adapted
• Outstanding personal development through HEART values, badges and pupil roles
• Calm, happy and orderly environment with warm relationships and good behaviour
• Strong partnerships with parents and effective work on attendance
• Effective safeguarding arrangements
• Supportive leadership that considers staff workload and well-being

Areas for Improvement

• In subjects other than English and mathematics, the school does not have an accurate enough understanding of the key knowledge pupils have retained
• Teachers are not always able to build on prior learning or address misconceptions as successfully in foundation subjects

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 Bligh Primary School (Infants) attended 93.8% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 14.7% 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, 0.3% of pupils at Bligh Primary School (Infants) 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 Bligh Primary School (Infants) had 21.6 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 23.1% 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, 13.2% of pupils at Bligh Primary School (Infants) were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 4.0% 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 2020–21 Bligh Primary School (Infants) received £8,896 and spent £8,280 for each of its 314 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £280,000 (£893 per pupil).

Across all 11 schools of Maritime Academy Trust, income was £7,897 and spending £7,468 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 Rochester · Medway local authority: places and applications

Bligh Primary School (Infants) is part of Maritime Academy Trust, which runs 13 schools. The nearest others:

• Bligh Primary School (Juniors) Rochester
• Barnsole Primary School Gillingham
• Danecourt School Gillingham
• Featherby Infant and Nursery School Gillingham
• Featherby Junior School Gillingham
• Ebbsfleet Green Primary School Swanscombe
• Hook Lane Primary School Welling
• Timbercroft Primary School London
• Greenacres Primary School and Language Impairment Unit London
• Nightingale Primary School London

What is Bligh Primary School (Infants)'s Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Bligh Primary School (Infants) is Good, from an inspection in April 2025.

When was Bligh Primary School (Infants) last inspected by Ofsted?

Bligh Primary School (Infants) was last inspected in April 2025.

How many pupils does Bligh Primary School (Infants) have?

Bligh Primary School (Infants) has 303 pupils on roll.

What age range does Bligh Primary School (Infants) cover?

Bligh Primary School (Infants) for pupils aged 2 to 7.

Where is Bligh Primary School (Infants)?

Bligh Primary School (Infants) is at Bligh Way, Strood, Rochester, Kent, ME2 2XJ.