John Ray Infant School
John Ray Infant School is an academy converter in Braintree for pupils aged 2 to 7. It has 319 pupils on roll. The latest Ofsted rating for John Ray Infant School is Good, from an inspection in November 2019 of its predecessor, John Ray Infant School.
Ofsted inspection: July 2024.
| Type | Primary / Academy converter |
| Age Range | 2-7 |
| Religion | Does not apply |
| Address | Notley Road Braintree Essex CM7 1HL |
| Reference Number | 150501 |
General Makeup
| Number of pupils | 319 |
| Boy/Girl ratio |
Boys: 50.78%
Girls: 49.22% |
| Percentage of students eligible for free school meals | 20.2% |
| Percentage of students where English is not their first language | 13.8% |
Class Sizes
| Average size of one teacher classes | 25.8 |
| Average size of Key Stage 1 classes taught by one teacher | 28.4 |
Year Groups
| Year | Boys | Girls | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 47 | 38 | 85 |
| 2 | 53 | 58 | 111 |
Ethnicities
| Ethnicity | Percentage |
|---|---|
| White, British | 64.9% |
| White, Other | 11.9% |
| Mixed, Other | 5.3% |
| Unclassified | 3.8% |
| African | 3.8% |
| Indian | 1.6% |
| Pakistani | 1.6% |
| Asian, Other | 1.6% |
| White & Black (Caribbean) | 1.3% |
| White & Asian | 1.3% |
| White & Black (African) | 0.6% |
This school has not been graded since it changed URN, usually on converting to an academy. The rating shown is from its predecessor, John Ray Infant School, inspected in November 2019.
| Overall Ofsted Rating | Good |
| Last Report Date | This school has not had an inspection yet. |
| Date | Report |
|---|---|
| 05 Jul 2024 | Academy conversion letter |
Reception admissions, 2026 entry
Locked: unlock for £9.99, one-off payment
| Number of Applications | Number of Offers | |
| First Preference | Locked: unlock for £9.99, one-off payment | Locked: unlock for £9.99, one-off payment |
| Second Preference | 21 | 2 |
| Third Preference | 26 | 0 |
| From another Local Authority | 2 | 1 |
Previous years
Sample
UnlockPlaces and pupil numbers
In 2024–25 John Ray Infant School had 308 pupils for 360 places. 52 places (14.4%) were unfilled.
Reception intake in the “Braintree Primary E: Southwest (Braintree)” planning area
Essex counted 654 Reception pupils in this area in 2024–25 and forecasts 685 in 2029–30, up 5%.
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 John Ray Infant School attended 94.7% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 15.5% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 13.0%).
Sessions missed
Pupils persistently absent
| 2025 | |
|---|---|
| Authorised absence | 3.7% |
| Unauthorised absence | 1.5% |
| Severely absent pupils | 0.4% |
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 John Ray Infant School were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). No pupils were permanently excluded.
Pupils suspended at least once
| 2025 | |
|---|---|
| Suspensions per 100 pupils | 0.3 |
| Permanent exclusions | 0 |
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 John Ray Infant School had 22.9 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 21.0% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 15.7%).
Pupils per teacher
Teachers who left the school within a year
| 2025 | 2026 | |
|---|---|---|
| Pupils per adult | 8.3 | 10.6 |
| Teachers who left state teaching | 20.4% | – |
| Teachers who took any sick leave | 52.6% | – |
| Sick days per teacher | 2.1 | – |
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, 12.9% of pupils at John Ray Infant School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 3.1% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).
Pupils by main type of need
| SEN support | EHC plan | |
|---|---|---|
| Speech, language and communication needs | 22 | 2 |
| Autistic spectrum disorder | 9 | 5 |
| Social, emotional and mental health | 3 | 2 |
| No specialist assessment of need | 3 | 0 |
| Hearing impairment | 1 | 0 |
| Other difficulty or disability | 1 | 0 |
| Physical disability | 1 | 0 |
| Profound and multiple learning difficulty | 0 | 1 |
| Specific learning difficulty | 1 | 0 |
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 John Ray Infant School received £7,273 and spent £7,973 for each of its 324 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £426,000 (£1,314 per pupil).
Across all 24 schools of The Compass Partnership of Schools, income was £10,246 and spending £9,845 per pupil.
Income per pupil
Spending per pupil
| 2025 | |
|---|---|
| Revenue reserve | £426,000 |
| per pupil | £1,314 |
| In-year balance | -£227,000 |
| per pupil | -£701 |
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.
| Name | Distance |
|
John Ray Junior School
Notley Road, Braintree, Essex, CM7 1HL |
0 miles |
|
St Michael's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School
Maple Avenue, Braintree, Essex, CM7 2NS |
0.97 miles |
|
Notley Green Primary School
Blickling Road, Great Notley, Braintree, Essex, CM77 7ZJ |
1 miles |
|
St Francis Catholic Primary School, Braintree
Gilchrist Way, Gilchrist Way, Braintree, Essex, CM7 2SY |
1.12 miles |
|
White Court School
Ennerdale Avenue, Great Notley, Braintree, Essex, CM77 7UE |
1.15 miles |
|
Beckers Green Primary School
Beckers Green Road, Braintree, Essex, CM7 3PR |
1.3 miles |
|
John Bunyan Primary School and Nursery
Lancaster Way, John Bunyanprimary, Braintree, Essex, CM7 5UL |
1.33 miles |
|
Great Bradfords Junior School
Marlborough Road, Braintree, Essex, CM7 9LW |
1.4 miles |
|
Great Bradfords Infant and Nursery School
Marlborough Road, Great Bradfords Estate, Braintree, Essex, CM7 9LW |
1.4 miles |
|
Lyons Hall School
Deerleap Way, Braintree, Essex, CM7 9FH |
1.65 miles |
|
Cressing Primary School
Braintree Road, Tye Green, Cressing, Braintree, Essex, CM77 8JE |
1.72 miles |
|
Rayne Primary and Nursery School
Capel Road, Rayne, Braintree, CM77 6BZ |
2.17 miles |
|
Bocking Primary School
Church Street, Bocking, Braintree, Essex, CM7 5LA |
2.55 miles |
|
White Notley Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School
Vicarage Avenue, White Notley, Witham, Essex, CM8 1RZ |
2.82 miles |
|
Stisted Church of England Primary Academy
The Street, Stisted, Braintree, Essex, CM77 8AN |
3.2 miles |
|
Great Leighs Primary School
Aragon Road, Great Leighs, Chelmsford, Essex, CM3 1RP |
3.32 miles |
|
Silver End Academy
School Road, Silver End, Witham, Essex, CM8 3RZ |
3.57 miles |
|
Terling Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School
New Road, Terling, Chelmsford, Essex, CM3 2PN |
4.23 miles |
|
Felsted Primary School
Watch House Green, Felsted, Dunmow, Essex, CM6 3EB |
4.31 miles |
|
Shalford Primary School
Church End, Shalford, Braintree, Essex, CM7 5EZ |
4.49 miles |
| Name | Distance |
|
Notley High School and Sixth Form
Notley Road, Braintree, Essex, CM7 1WY |
0.13 miles |
|
Alec Hunter Academy
Stubbs Lane, Braintree, Essex, CM7 3NR |
1.04 miles |
|
Tabor Academy
Panfield Lane, Braintree, Essex, CM7 5XP |
1.39 miles |
|
The Edith Borthwick School
Enterprise Drive, Braintree, Essex, CM7 2YN |
1.58 miles |
|
Southview School
Conrad Road, Witham, Essex, CM8 2TA |
4.84 miles |
|
Lift New Rickstones
Conrad Road, Witham, Essex, CM8 2SD |
4.87 miles |
|
Felsted School
Stebbing Road, Felsted, CM6 3LL |
4.9 miles |
All schools in Braintree · Essex local authority: places and applications
John Ray Infant School is part of The Compass Partnership of Schools, which runs 28 schools. The nearest others:
- John Ray Junior School Braintree
- Notley Green Primary School Braintree
- Shalford Primary School Braintree
- Cann Hall Primary School Clacton-On-Sea
- Pathways School Dagenham
- Ravenswood Community Primary School Ipswich
- Rushmere Hall Primary School Ipswich
- Horizon Academy London
- Earlham Primary School London
- Boxgrove Primary School Greenwich
What is John Ray Infant School's Ofsted rating?
The latest Ofsted rating for John Ray Infant School is Good, from an inspection in November 2019 of its predecessor, John Ray Infant School.
When was John Ray Infant School last inspected by Ofsted?
John Ray Infant School was last inspected in July 2024.
How many pupils does John Ray Infant School have?
John Ray Infant School has 319 pupils on roll.
What age range does John Ray Infant School cover?
John Ray Infant School for pupils aged 2 to 7.
Where is John Ray Infant School?
John Ray Infant School is at Notley Road, Braintree, Essex, CM7 1HL.