Castle Bromwich Junior School

Castle Bromwich Junior School is a larger-than-average junior school in the Prosper Together Multi-Academy Trust. It was inspected in April 2026, with a new head of school in post since October 2025. Safeguarding standards are met. The school is at the expected standard for achievement, inclusion, and personal development and wellbeing, but needs attention for attendance and behaviour, curriculum and teaching, and leadership and governance. Pupils generally achieve well: outcomes are close to or above national averages, and disadvantaged pupils, pupils with SEND and other vulnerable pupils usually progress well from their starting points. Most pupils secure the basics in reading, writing and mathematics, reading teaching is secure, and the curriculum is broad and carefully sequenced. Inclusion is carefully managed, with timely support and effective use of additional funding. Personal development is a particular strength through Flourishing Futures, clubs, careers and wellbeing, and pupils feel safe, behave well overall, and trust adults. However, attendance remains below national averages and is not improving quickly enough; persistent absence and suspensions are high, especially for disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND, although leaders are working with families and agencies. The quality of teaching varies between classes, checks on learning are inconsistent, misconceptions can go unaddressed, and expectations for presentation are sometimes too low. New senior leaders and governors are working at pace, but improvements to teaching, attendance and behaviour have not yet been rapid or sustained enough.

Strengths

• Outcomes are close to or above national averages in reading, writing and mathematics
• Disadvantaged pupils, pupils with SEND and other vulnerable pupils typically progress well from their starting points
• Pupils are well prepared for secondary school by Year 6
• The curriculum is broad, balanced and carefully sequenced, particularly in core subjects
• The teaching of reading is secure across the school
• Inclusion is carefully managed, with timely support and external expertise used well
• Additional funding is used thoughtfully and has a positive impact on disadvantaged pupils
• The Flourishing Futures programme successfully develops pupils' ambitions, careers awareness and wider skills
• Pupils benefit from a well-designed personal, social and health education curriculum
• Personal development is adapted well for pupils with SEND and disadvantaged pupils
• Pupils feel safe, know trusted adults and say bullying is rare
• Most pupils behave well, are polite and cooperative and enjoy learning
• Most parents and carers speak positively about the school and would recommend it
• Staff are proud to work at the school and benefit from professional learning and mentoring

Areas for Improvement

• Attendance remains below national averages and is not improving quickly enough
• Persistent absence is above national averages, although beginning to improve
• Absence for disadvantaged pupils and pupils with SEND remains below national averages
• Suspensions have been high for a sustained period
• A small minority of pupils do not behave well, and support for key groups is not impacting quickly enough
• The quality of teaching varies from class to class
• Teachers do not always check pupils' learning, so gaps can persist
• Misconceptions are not always identified and addressed quickly enough
• Expectations for pupils' presentation and layout of work are sometimes too low
• Leaders' work to improve teaching is recent and impact is not yet evident
• Key areas such as teaching quality and attendance have not improved quickly enough over time
• Governors and trustees need to do more to ensure improvements are rapid and sustained
• Improvement plans need careful monitoring so actions are embedded 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 Castle Bromwich Junior School attended 93.8% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 16.1% 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, 4.3% of pupils at Castle Bromwich Junior 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 Castle Bromwich Junior School had 21.8 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 21.1% 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, 21.6% of pupils at Castle Bromwich Junior School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 3.4% 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 Castle Bromwich Junior School received £6,185 and spent £6,410 for each of its 465 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £691,000 (£1,485 per pupil).

Across all 5 schools of Prosper Together Multi Academy Trust, income was £7,576 and spending £7,319 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 Birmingham · Solihull local authority: places and applications

Castle Bromwich Junior School is part of Prosper Together Multi Academy Trust, which runs 5 schools. The nearest others:

• Castle Bromwich Infant and Nursery School Birmingham
• Kingshurst Primary School Birmingham
• Fordbridge Community Primary School Birmingham
• Windy Arbor Primary School Birmingham

What is Castle Bromwich Junior School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Castle Bromwich Junior School is Needs attention, from an inspection in September 2026.

When was Castle Bromwich Junior School last inspected by Ofsted?

Castle Bromwich Junior School was last inspected in September 2026.

How many pupils does Castle Bromwich Junior School have?

Castle Bromwich Junior School has 467 pupils on roll.

What age range does Castle Bromwich Junior School cover?

Castle Bromwich Junior School for pupils aged 7 to 11.

What are Castle Bromwich Junior School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 62% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Castle Bromwich Junior School?

Castle Bromwich Junior School is at Castle Bromwich Junior School Hurst Lane North, Castle Bromwich, Birmingham, West Midlands, B36 0HD.