School Chooser

Harnham Church of England Controlled Junior School

Primary · ages 7-11MixedChurch of England265 pupilsSalisburyWiltshire
School Chooser Score
15
Well below
similar schools
Likely range 8 to 24, so it could be “below”
Out of 100. Better than 6% of the 50 schools most like it. Getting better year on year.
OfstedAs expected teachingOfsted report card, May 2026
Reached the expected level at 1157%England 63%
Attendance95.0%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families22%A bit fewer than most schools
Places95 spare265 pupils, 360 places
Pupils per teacher22.9School workforce census

Harnham Church of England Controlled Junior School is a Church of England school (voluntary controlled) in Salisbury for boys and girls aged 7 to 11. It has 265 pupils and room for 360. About 22 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, a bit fewer than at most schools. We give it 15 out of 100. That puts it well below schools like it, ahead of 6% of the 50 schools most like it. Ofsted visited in May 2026 and gave it a report card, which is below.

Saxon Road, Harnham, Salisbury, SP2 8JZ01722 327218harnhamj.co.ukMs Helen Donnelly headteacherAll details

What Ofsted found

Ofsted visited on 12 May 2026. Instead of one overall word, it now gives a grade for each part of school life. Read the full report on Ofsted's website.

TeachingOfsted calls this “curriculum and teaching”
As expected
Achievement
Needs attention
Behaviour and attendanceOfsted calls this “attendance and behaviour”
As expected
Support for every childOfsted calls this “inclusion”
As expected
WellbeingOfsted calls this “personal development and wellbeing”
As expected
LeadershipOfsted calls this “leadership and governance”
As expected
SafeguardingAre pupils kept safe?
Pupils are kept safe
Met
Ofsted's scale:ExceptionalStrong standardExpected standardNeeds attentionUrgent improvement

Ofsted says these new grades can't be lined up against the old one-word grades.

Earlier inspections (1)
DateTypeOutcome
10 November 2021UngradedSchool remains Good

Results

Year 6 results (SATs), summer 2025

76 children took the tests. Here is how they did against every state primary in England.

Reached the expected level at 1157%
England 63%
Official name: Expected standard in reading, writing and maths
Working above the expected level8%
England 8%
Official name: Higher standard in reading, writing and maths
Reading score105.0
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: 57%57%20172018: 71%71%20182019: 73%73%20192023: 43%43%20232024: 51%51%20242025: 57%57%2025
Since 2017: +0%Improving overall
All Year 6 measures, year by year
Measure202520242023201920182017WiltshireEngland
Pupils tested768780868988
Reached the expected level at 11Expected standard in reading, writing and maths57%51%43%73%71%57%60%63%
Working above the expected levelHigher standard in reading, writing and maths8%6%3%6%12%10%8%8%
Reading scoreReading average scaled score105.0105.0103.0107.0106.0104.0105.4105.6
Maths scoreMaths average scaled score105.0102.0101.0105.0105.0103.0103.9104.6
Grammar and spelling scoreGPS average scaled score105.0101.0102.0106.0106.0104.0104.3105.2
Expected level: readingReading expected standard72%77%68%81%82%68%
Expected level: mathsMaths expected standard68%62%59%84%78%69%
Expected level: writingWriting expected standard (teacher assessed)71%66%51%78%87%78%
Reading progressReading progress score-1.4+1.2-0.6-1.6
Maths progressMaths progress score-2.4-1.6-0.7-2.5
Expected level: low-income pupilsExpected standard, disadvantaged33%7%13%50%42%10%
Expected level: other pupilsExpected standard, non-disadvantaged61%60%54%79%75%63%

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 11Low-income pupils vs other pupils
33%61%
Gap 28 ptsEngland 21 pts
Reached the expected level at 11Boys vs girls
62%51%
Gap 11 ptsEngland 5 pts
Reached the expected level at 11Pupils learning English vs all pupils
80%57%
Gap 23 ptsEngland 4 pts
Reached the higher level at 11Low-income pupils vs all pupils
0%8%
Gap 8 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. As a Church of England school it may put families of that faith first. Check the school's own admissions rules.

Plenty of spare places269 pupils for 360 places, 2024/25
75% full

91 places were empty (25% of the total), so almost everyone who applies gets in. Pupil numbers have fallen by 19% since 2021/22, so places are getting easier to find.

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 Wiltshire 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 roll265Census January 2026
Places36074% full
Pupils from low-income families22%22% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English13%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support13%33 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan3%9 pupils with a plan
Average class size26.76 classes, January 2026; England 25.4
Classes with more than 30 pupils17%Infant classes are capped at 30 by law; England 10%
Pupils with extra funding (pupil premium)21%£85,250 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls138 / 127
White British pupils79%

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: emotional and mental health (19), language and communications needs (9), Moderate learning difficulty (8), SEN support but no specialist assessment of type of need (2), Specific learning difficulty (2), Autistic spectrum disorder (1).

How the mix of pupils has changed
Census202620252024202320222021
Pupils on roll265268291306329325
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals22%19%19%20%16%15%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language13%11%11%9%8%7%
Pupils getting extra supportSEN support19%20%21%20%18%
Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans4%4%2%2%3%

Attendance and behaviour

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 95.0% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance95.0%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school12.9%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Suspensions per 100 pupils14.22024/25, no permanent exclusions
Missed without permission1.1%of school time, 2024/25
Attendance year by year
Measure2024/252023/242022/232021/222020/212018/19England
Sessions missedOverall absence5.0%5.7%5.4%4.9%3.0%4.7%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence4.0%3.9%3.9%3.8%2.2%3.4%
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence1.1%1.8%1.5%1.1%0.8%1.3%
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence12.9%15.5%15.9%14.2%6.7%10.7%12.8%
SuspensionsSuspension rate14.20.01.31.80.0
Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions00000

Staff and money

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

Teachers11.6full-time equivalent, 15 people
Pupils per teacher22.9Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers100%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants4.8full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£49,879
Teachers who left in the year33%2024/25, for any reason including retirement
Vacancies0
Sick days per teacher11.02024/25

Money

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

Spend per pupil£6,740England £7,738. Total £1.8m
Income per pupil£6,638England £7,697. Total £1.8m
Spent on teachers per pupil£3,483England £3,480
Money in reserve-3%In the red: -£49k, -£185 per pupil. England 6%
Money in against money out-£27kit spent more than it took in this year
Where the money goes£6,740spent 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 m8612 months to June 2026, mostly violence and sexual offences
Local crime rate209 per 1,000 people130% higher than the England average
Typical house price£320,000Wiltshire
Nearest bus stop160 mHollows Close, 15 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
Harnham Infants' SchoolCouncil0 m215Not inspectedCompare
St Osmund's Catholic Primary School, SalisburyRoman Catholic930 m209Good 202490Compare
Five Rivers Online SchoolOnline provider1.0 milesNot inspectedCompare
Salisbury, Manor Fields Primary SchoolCouncil1.0 miles225Good 202355Compare
St Martin's CofE Primary SchoolAcademy1.1 miles141Inadequate 20232Compare
Sarum St Paul's CofE (VA) Primary SchoolChurch of England1.2 miles214No overall grade 202473Compare
Longford Church of England Primary SchoolAcademy1.3 miles42Requires improvement 20230Compare
Bemerton St John Church of England PrimaryAcademy1.4 miles208Good 202463Compare

Compared with schools like it

Our score compares Harnham Church of England Controlled Junior 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.

Beats6%of schools with a similar mix of pupils
Near the bottom of its group. Its score of 15 is 29 points below the typical school in the group.
0Lowest of the group 4 · middle 43 · highest 97100

How the score was worked out

The score is out of 100. A 15 means that once everything below is added up, this school comes out ahead of 15% of primary schools in England. Results bounce around from year to year, especially in small schools, so we also show a likely range: 8 to 24. 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%below
-0.10
2025, 2024 and 2023 results; 76 pupils
Ofsted inspection20%well below
-0.23
Ofsted report card, 0.3 years old
Progress pupils make20%well below
-0.24
DfE progress measure; 76 pupils
Direction of travel over five years10%above
+0.10
results and attendance rising year on year
Attendance and behaviour10%in line
+0.01
2024/25; 286 pupils
Results, allowing for the mix of pupils10%below
-0.08
Attainment relative to schools with a similar intake; 76 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 Harnham Church of England Controlled Junior School a good school?

The figures are weak. Harnham Church of England Controlled Junior School scores 15 out of 100. That is well below schools that take in a similar mix of pupils, and ahead of 6% of the 50 schools most like it in England. The score could fairly be anywhere from 8 to 24, so a few points either way between schools doesn't mean much. Its results have been getting better over the last five years.

What is Harnham Church of England Controlled Junior School's Ofsted rating?

Ofsted no longer gives schools one overall grade. When it visited on 12 May 2026 it rated teaching as as expected, achievement as needs attention, behaviour and attendance as as expected, leadership as as expected.

How good are Harnham Church of England Controlled Junior School's SATs results?

In summer 2025, 57% of Year 6 children reached the expected level in reading, writing and maths. Across England it was 63%. 8% went further and reached the higher level.

How many pupils does Harnham Church of England Controlled Junior School have?

265 pupils aged 7 to 11 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 360 places, so it is 74% full.

Is Harnham Church of England Controlled Junior School oversubscribed?

Probably not. 91 places were empty in 2024/25 (25% of the total), so most families who apply get a place.

What is attendance like at Harnham Church of England Controlled Junior School?

Pupils were in school 95.0% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 13% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

How big are the classes at Harnham Church of England Controlled Junior School?

The average class had 26.7 pupils in January 2026. Across England it was 25.4. 17% 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
Saxon Road, Harnham, Salisbury, SP2 8JZ
Telephone
01722 327218
Website
www.harnhamj.co.uk
Headteacher
Ms Helen Donnelly
Type of school
Church of England school (voluntary controlled) (Voluntary controlled school, local authority maintained schools)
Phase
Primary school, ages 7-11
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
Church of England, Diocese of Salisbury
Local authority
Wiltshire
Ward
Salisbury Harnham West
Constituency
Salisbury
Setting
Urban: Further from a major town or city
URN
126351 · LAESTAB 8653158 · UKPRN 10075431

Where these figures come from