Beechwood Primary School

Beechwood Primary School is a happy, nurturing and inclusive school that was inspected in June 2026 and is providing the expected standard of education. Safeguarding standards are met. The school is part of the LDBS Frays Academy Trust and has recently undergone a significant leadership change, with new co-headteachers appointed in April 2026. Pupils behave well, feel safe and benefit from a broad, ambitious curriculum, with early years provision and inclusion standing out as particular strengths. Pupils generally make good progress, including those with SEND, and leaders have a well-informed understanding of the school's strengths and areas for development. Attendance is broadly average and improving, persistent absence is declining, and most pupils are well prepared for the next stage of education. However, published key stage 2 outcomes are below national averages in combined reading, writing and mathematics, partly because a higher-than-typical proportion of pupils join at different times of the year. Disadvantaged pupils' outcomes and large disadvantage gaps remain a concern. Inspectors identified three main priorities: strengthening older pupils' writing foundations, including handwriting, sentence construction and spelling; improving attendance for a small but persistent group, including disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND; and ensuring staff address errors and misconceptions promptly so gaps in learning close quickly. Leaders are committed and well supported by the trust, and they know what needs to improve.

Strengths

• Happy, nurturing and inclusive school where pupils feel safe and are proud to attend.
• Pupils behave well, have positive attitudes to learning and benefit from calm, caring routines.
• Broad, ambitious and well-sequenced curriculum from early years to Year 6.
• Early years provision is engaging, well-resourced and prepares children strongly for key stage 1.
• Reading and phonics are prioritised, with children developing secure decoding skills.
• Effective support for pupils with SEND and disadvantaged pupils, including tailored strategies and adapted provision.
• Leaders, governors and trustees are committed, knowledgeable and provide effective support and challenge.
• Strong professional development and trust networks support staff expertise and wellbeing.
• Parents and carers are very positive about the school and feel partners in their children's education.
• Personal development programme is coherent and relevant, promoting tolerance, British values and healthy living.
• Pupils benefit from a wide range of clubs, visits, leadership roles and enrichment opportunities.
• Attendance is broadly average and improving, with persistent absence declining.

Areas for Improvement

• Weaknesses in handwriting, sentence construction and spelling prevent some older pupils from writing as fluently and accurately as they could.
• Teaching does not always address gaps in older pupils' writing skills sufficiently.
• Variability in teachers' checks means gaps in pupils' knowledge are not consistently identified or addressed.
• Staff do not always address errors and misconceptions promptly enough to close gaps in learning quickly.
• Attendance remains variable for a small proportion of pupils, including disadvantaged pupils and some pupils with SEND.
• Overall absence and persistent absence rates remain above national averages.
• Disadvantaged pupils' outcomes in reading, writing and mathematics are below national averages, with large disadvantage gaps.
• Published key stage 2 combined outcomes are below national averages, although high pupil mobility affects how fairly the data reflects achievement.

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 Beechwood Primary School attended 93.6% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 18.8% 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, 2.4% of pupils at Beechwood 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 Beechwood Primary School had 17.0 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 32.3% 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, 19.7% of pupils at Beechwood Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 4.1% 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 Beechwood Primary School received £7,195 and spent £7,222 for each of its 295 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £93,000 (£314 per pupil).

Across all 7 schools of Ldbs Frays Academy Trust, income was £7,789 and spending £7,976 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 Reading · Wokingham local authority: places and applications

Beechwood Primary School is part of Ldbs Frays Academy Trust, which runs 7 schools. The nearest others:

• All Saints Church of England Primary School Wokingham
• Keep Hatch Primary School Wokingham
• St Martin's Church of England Primary School West Drayton
• Laurel Lane Primary School West Drayton
• Cowley St Laurence CofE Primary School Uxbridge
• St Matthew's CofE Primary School West Drayton

What is Beechwood Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Beechwood Primary School is Expected standard, from an inspection in September 2026.

When was Beechwood Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Beechwood Primary School was last inspected in September 2026.

How many pupils does Beechwood Primary School have?

Beechwood Primary School has 244 pupils on roll.

What age range does Beechwood Primary School cover?

Beechwood Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

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

In 2025, 53% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Beechwood Primary School?

Beechwood Primary School is at Ambleside Close, Woodley, Reading, Berkshire, RG5 4JJ.