White Bridge Primary School

White Bridge Primary School has been rated as Good overall in its recent inspection. The school has demonstrated a strong commitment to providing a safe and supportive learning environment where pupils feel happy and are eager to learn. The curriculum is broad and ambitious, with a particular focus on fostering a love for reading from an early age. Pupils engage well with their education and take on leadership roles within the school, showcasing their confidence and sense of responsibility. However, there are a few areas requiring attention, particularly in ensuring that older pupils have access to reading materials that match their abilities and in better assessing the long-term retention of knowledge across subjects.

Strengths

• Pupils exhibit kindness, care, and curiosity.
• Strong relationships are fostered between pupils and adults.
• The school emphasizes reading from early years onward.
• There is effective support for pupils with special educational needs.
• Personal development is a key focus, fostering tolerance and respect.
• Pupils are enthusiastic about participating in a range of extracurricular activities.

Areas for Improvement

• Older pupils do not always have books that match their reading stage.
• Leaders are not consistently checking the impact of the curriculum.
• Some staff do not systematically assess pupils' retention of prior learning.

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 White Bridge Primary School attended 96.2% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 8.0% 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, 0.5% of pupils at White Bridge 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 White Bridge Primary School had 23.9 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 5.2% 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, 7.8% of pupils at White Bridge Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 2.8% 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 White Bridge Primary School received £6,771 and spent £6,813 for each of its 424 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £397,000 (£939 per pupil).

Across all 16 schools of Epping Forest Schools Partnership Trust, income was £7,618 and spending £7,577 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 Loughton · Essex local authority: places and applications

White Bridge Primary School is part of Epping Forest Schools Partnership Trust, which runs 16 schools. The nearest others:

• The Alderton Infant School and Nursery Loughton
• The Alderton Junior School Loughton
• Buckhurst Hill Community Primary School Buckhurst Hill
• Oak View School Loughton
• St John's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Buckhurst Hill Buckhurst Hill
• Staples Road Primary School Loughton
• Hereward Primary School Loughton
• Limes Farm Infant School and Nursery Chigwell
• High Beech CofE Primary School Loughton
• Lambourne Primary School Romford

What is White Bridge Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for White Bridge Primary School is Good, from an inspection in June 2024.

When was White Bridge Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

White Bridge Primary School was last inspected in June 2024.

How many pupils does White Bridge Primary School have?

White Bridge Primary School has 434 pupils on roll.

What age range does White Bridge Primary School cover?

White Bridge Primary School for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are White Bridge Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 64% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is White Bridge Primary School?

White Bridge Primary School is at Greensted Road, Loughton, Essex, IG10 3DR.