School Chooser

Blackwater Community Primary School

Primary · ages 3-11MixedAcademy128 pupilsNurseryTruroCornwall
School Chooser Score
64
In line with
similar schools
Likely range 32 to 86, so it could be “above”
Out of 100. Better than 72% of the 50 schools most like it. Slipping year on year.
OfstedGoodConfirmed by Ofsted, July 2023
Reached the expected level at 1175%England 63%
Attendance96.2%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families16%Far fewer than most schools
PlacesFull128 pupils, 120 places
Pupils per teacher21.9School workforce census

Blackwater Community Primary School is a converter academy in Truro for boys and girls aged 3 to 11. It has 128 pupils, 8 more than it has places for. About 16 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far fewer than at most schools in England. We give it 64 out of 100. That puts it in line with schools like it, ahead of 72% of the 50 schools most like it. Ofsted's last grade was good, back in 2023.

North Hill, Blackwater, Truro, TR4 8ES01872 560570blackwater.cornwall.sch.ukMrs Evey Evison headteacherAll details

What Ofsted found

A shorter visit on 18 July 2023 found nothing to change the school's grade. Read the report on Ofsted's website.

Good overall. A shorter follow-up visit found nothing to change that. The last full inspection was before September 2019, which is as far back as Ofsted's public records go, so we can't show its date or the grades for each area.

Results

Year 6 results (SATs), summer 2025

16 children took the tests. Here is how they did against every state primary in England. With a year group this small, a couple of children can move the percentages a long way.

Reached the expected level at 1175%
England 63%
Official name: Expected standard in reading, writing and maths
Working above the expected level6%
England 8%
Official name: Higher standard in reading, writing and maths
Reading score108.0
England 105.6
Official name: Reading average scaled score
Maths score105.0
England 104.6
Official name: Maths average scaled score
Trend
Reached the expected level at 11
2017 to 2025
2017: 43%43%20172018: 75%75%20182019: 57%57%20192023: 69%69%20232024: 76%76%20242025: 75%75%2025
Since 2017: +32%Declining overall
All Year 6 measures, year by year
Measure202520242023201920182017CornwallEngland
Pupils tested161716141614
Reached the expected level at 11Expected standard in reading, writing and maths75%76%69%57%75%43%60%63%
Working above the expected levelHigher standard in reading, writing and maths6%6%13%21%19%0%8%8%
Reading scoreReading average scaled score108.0107.0112.0106.0106.0105.0105.4105.6
Maths scoreMaths average scaled score105.0105.0108.0103.0106.0102.0103.8104.6
Grammar and spelling scoreGPS average scaled score104.0102.0106.0105.0106.0106.0103.8105.2
Expected level: readingReading expected standard88%88%81%79%94%79%
Expected level: mathsMaths expected standard81%76%75%71%81%57%
Expected level: writingWriting expected standard (teacher assessed)75%76%69%93%81%79%
Reading progressReading progress score+3.1+2.6+0.3-1.0
Maths progressMaths progress score+0.6-1.4+0.9-3.1
Expected level: low-income pupilsExpected standard, disadvantaged50%
Expected level: other pupilsExpected standard, non-disadvantaged80%

There are no progress figures for 2025. That year group missed their Year 2 tests during Covid, so there was no starting point to measure from. Progress figures come back with the December 2026 results. Tests were cancelled altogether in 2020 and 2021.

Does every child do well here?

A good school does well by every child, not just on average. Each row compares two groups of pupils here. The grey marks show the same two groups across England. None of the gaps is smaller than the gap across England. When a group has fewer than about ten pupils, its figures jump around a lot from year to year.

At the end of primary school, 2025

Reached the expected level at 11Boys vs girls
60%100%
Gap 40 ptsEngland 5 pts
First groupSecond groupEngland, each group

Low-income means the child has had free school meals at some point in the last six years. A group's figure isn't published when it has fewer than six pupils.

Getting a place

Admissions policy not published.

Full109 pupils for 105 places, 2024/25
104% full

The school is full, with 4 more pupils than it has places for. More families apply than can get in, so things like how close you live and whether an older brother or sister is already here decide who gets a place. Pupil numbers have stayed about the same since 2021/22.

Each council publishes its own figures on how many families applied and how far away the last child to get a place lived. We are adding councils one at a time. If you have a link to Cornwall council's admissions booklet, send it to us.

Who goes here

Who a school teaches matters. That is why our score compares it with schools that take in a similar mix of children, not with every school in the country.

Pupils on roll128Census January 2026
Places120107% full
Pupils from low-income families17%16% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English0%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support6%7 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan8%10 pupils with a plan
Average class size30.04 classes, January 2026; England 25.4
Classes with more than 30 pupils75%Infant classes are capped at 30 by law; England 10%
Pupils with extra funding (pupil premium)14%£23,250 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls53 / 75
White British pupils94%

Infant classes (Reception to Year 2) average 31.0 pupils (England 25.5); junior classes (Years 3 to 6) average 32.0 (England 27.3).

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: Autistic spectrum disorder (5), emotional and mental health (4), language and communications needs (4), Hearing impairment (1), Moderate learning difficulty (1), SEN support but no specialist assessment of type of need (1).

How the mix of pupils has changed
Census202620252024202320222021
Pupils on roll128126117126123115
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals17%12%9%13%13%14%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language0%0%0%0%0%0%
Pupils getting extra supportSEN support11%16%16%12%13%
Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans6%3%3%2%0%

Attendance and behaviour

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 96.2% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance96.2%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school4.2%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Suspensions per 100 pupils0.02024/25, no permanent exclusions
Missed without permission1.0%of school time, 2024/25
Attendance year by year
Measure2024/252023/242022/232021/222020/212018/19England
Sessions missedOverall absence3.8%4.9%5.4%6.1%2.9%4.3%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence2.8%3.7%3.8%5.3%2.5%2.7%
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence1.0%1.2%1.6%0.9%0.4%1.6%
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence4.2%12.9%10.5%13.4%3.3%4.4%12.8%
SuspensionsSuspension rate0.00.01.61.61.7
Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions00000

Staff and money

From the government's count of school staff in November 2025 and the school's published accounts.

Teachers5.5full-time equivalent, 7 people
Pupils per teacher21.9Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers100%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants9.3full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£49,412
Teachers who left in the year0%2024/25, for any reason including retirement
Vacancies0
Sick days per teacher6.52024/25

Money

From the academy accounts return, year to August 2025. The per-pupil figures are compared with other primary schools in England that report their accounts the same way.

Spend per pupil£6,950England £7,128. Total £834k
Income per pupil£7,267England £7,587. Total £872k
Spent on teachers per pupil£2,958England £3,405
Money in reserve9%A healthy amount put by: £81k, £677 per pupil. England 9%
Money in against money out+£38kit took in more than it spent this year
Where the money goes£6,950spent per pupil

Reserves are the money left over at the end of the year, kept back for emergencies and big projects. Being in the red year after year is a warning sign. Very large reserves can mean money sitting in the bank instead of being spent on today's pupils. Academy figures are rounded to the nearest £1,000 and include a share of any money the trust holds centrally.

The area around the school

Crimes within 500 m4012 months to June 2026, mostly violence and sexual offences
Local crime rate38 per 1,000 people59% lower than the England average
Typical house price£289,950Cornwall
Nearest bus stop100 mRed Lion, 6 stops within 500 m

Crime figures come from police.uk. The police record each crime at the nearest of a fixed set of map points rather than the exact spot, so “within 500 m” is only rough. House prices are from HM Land Registry sales nearby over the last two years.

Nearby schools

The closest primary schools, nearest first. Hover over a row to see it on the map.

Well aboveAboveIn lineBelowWell belowNot scored
SchoolTypeDistancePupilsOfstedScore
Mount Hawke AcademyAcademy1.4 miles241No overall grade 202494Compare
Chacewater Community Primary SchoolAcademy1.5 miles203Not inspected60Compare
Treleigh Community Primary SchoolFoundation2.4 miles314Good 202329Compare
St Day and Carharrack Community SchoolFoundation2.4 miles102Good 201967Compare
St Agnes AcademyAcademy3.0 miles386Outstanding 202492Compare
Mithian SchoolAcademy3.0 miles73Good 202462Compare
Pennoweth Primary SchoolAcademy3.1 miles348Good 202255Compare
Threemilestone SchoolAcademy3.1 miles409No overall grade 202450Compare

Compared with schools like it

Our score compares Blackwater Community Primary School with the 50 schools in England whose pupils are most like its own. We match on family income, how many children are learning English, special needs, the neighbourhood, the size of the school and how it admits pupils. Those 50 schools are dotted all over the country, so we don't list them. What matters is where this school sits among them.

Beats72%of schools with a similar mix of pupils
In the upper half of its group. Its score of 64 is 20 points above the typical school in the group.
0Lowest of the group 6 · middle 44 · highest 96100

How the score was worked out

The score is out of 100. A 64 means that once everything below is added up, this school comes out ahead of 64% of primary schools in England. Results bounce around from year to year, especially in small schools, so we also show a likely range: 32 to 86. That range is wide enough that the school could sit in the next band, so take the band as a rough guide rather than a verdict. Every part is judged against schools with a similar mix of pupils. For small schools we pull each part towards the group average, so one unusual year can't swing the score too far.

What we looked atHow much it countsAgainst schools like itEffect on the scoreBased on
Results over three years25%in line
+0.04
2025, 2024 and 2023 results; 16 pupils
Ofsted inspection20% (normally 20%, cut because the inspection is old)in line
+0.01
Ofsted grade, 3.2 years old
Progress pupils make20%in line
0.00
DfE progress measure; 16 pupils
Direction of travel over five years10%below
-0.07
results and attendance falling year on year
Attendance and behaviour10%above
+0.10
2024/25; 95 pupils
Results, allowing for the mix of pupils10%above
+0.09
Attainment relative to schools with a similar intake; 16 pupils
What parents say0%no data

Worked out on 13 September 2026 (method v1). Read how the score works, including every weight and the checks we run. Think a number is wrong? Tell us.

Questions parents ask

Is Blackwater Community Primary School a good school?

It is about average. Blackwater Community Primary School scores 64 out of 100. That is in line with schools that take in a similar mix of pupils, and ahead of 72% of the 50 schools most like it in England. The score could fairly be anywhere from 32 to 86, so a few points either way between schools doesn't mean much. Its results have been slipping over the last five years.

What is Blackwater Community Primary School's Ofsted rating?

Ofsted rated Blackwater Community Primary School good at its last full inspection on 18 July 2023.

How good are Blackwater Community Primary School's SATs results?

In summer 2025, 75% of Year 6 children reached the expected level in reading, writing and maths. Across England it was 63%. 6% went further and reached the higher level. The year group was small, so the percentages jump around a lot from year to year.

How many pupils does Blackwater Community Primary School have?

128 pupils aged 3 to 11 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 120 places, so it is 107% full.

Is Blackwater Community Primary School oversubscribed?

Probably. The school was full in 2024/25, with 4 more pupils than places. How close you live, and the school's other admissions rules, decide who gets in.

What is attendance like at Blackwater Community Primary School?

Pupils were in school 96.2% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 4% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

How big are the classes at Blackwater Community Primary School?

The average class had 30.0 pupils in January 2026. Across England it was 25.4. 75% of classes had more than 30 pupils.

These answers come straight from the figures on this page and update when new data comes out.

Contact and details

Address
North Hill, Blackwater, Truro, TR4 8ES
Telephone
01872 560570
Website
www.blackwater.cornwall.sch.uk
Headteacher
Mrs Evey Evison
Type of school
Converter academy (Academy converter, academies)
Phase
Primary school, ages 3-11, with nursery
Gender
Mixed
Multi-academy trust
Truro & Penwith Academy Trust (41 schools)
Local authority
Cornwall
Ward
Perranporth
Constituency
Camborne and Redruth
Setting
Smaller rural: Further from a major town or city
Opened
1 September 2015 (academy converter)
URN
142305 · LAESTAB 9082311 · UKPRN 10053791
Formerly
Blackwater Community Primary School

Where these figures come from