School Chooser

Joydens Wood Infant School

Primary · ages 4-7MixedAcademy190 pupilsKent
School Chooser Score
18
Below
similar schools
Likely range 8 to 40
Out of 100. Better than 2% of the 50 schools most like it. Slipping year on year.
OfstedGoodConfirmed by Ofsted, October 2023
Attendance93.5%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families9%Far fewer than most schools
Places80 spare190 pupils, 270 places
Pupils per teacher20.4School workforce census
Pupils on roll190Census January 2026

Joydens Wood Infant School is a converter academy in Bexley for boys and girls aged 4 to 7. It has 190 pupils and room for 270. About 9 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far fewer than at most schools in England. We give it 18 out of 100. That puts it below schools like it, ahead of 2% of the 50 schools most like it. Ofsted's last grade was good, back in 2023.

Park Way, Bexley, DA5 2JD01322 523188joydens.nestschools.orgMrs Lorraine Richards headteacherAll details

What Ofsted found

A shorter visit on 5 October 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

No published results yet for this school.

Getting a place

Admissions policy not published.

Plenty of spare places211 pupils for 270 places, 2024/25
78% full

59 places were empty (22% of the total), so almost everyone who applies gets in. Pupil numbers have fallen by 17% 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 Kent 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 roll190Census January 2026
Places27070% full
Pupils from low-income families9%9% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English11%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support13%25 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan3%5 pupils with a plan
Average class size24.77 classes, January 2026; England 25.4
Classes with more than 30 pupils0%Infant classes are capped at 30 by law; England 10%
Pupils with extra funding (pupil premium)9%£26,350 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls100 / 90
White British pupils86%

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: emotional and mental health (15), language and communications needs (11), Physical disability (2), Autistic spectrum disorder (1), Other difficulty or disability (1).

How the mix of pupils has changed
Census202620252024202320222021
Pupils on roll190212239238247250
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals9%9%7%6%5%4%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language11%17%18%16%16%17%
Pupils getting extra supportSEN support18%13%13%13%10%
Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans2%1%0%0%1%

Attendance and behaviour

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 93.5% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance93.5%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school16.9%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Suspensions per 100 pupils4.32024/25, no permanent exclusions
Missed without permission1.3%of school time, 2024/25
Attendance year by year
Measure2024/252023/242022/232021/222020/212018/19England
Sessions missedOverall absence6.5%5.3%5.6%6.3%2.5%5.1%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence5.2%4.3%4.2%5.1%1.9%3.6%
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence1.3%0.9%1.4%1.2%0.6%1.5%
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence16.9%14.2%16.1%20.3%7.1%12.4%12.8%
SuspensionsSuspension rate4.31.32.50.00.0
Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions00000

Staff and money

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

Teachers9.3full-time equivalent, 12 people
Pupils per teacher20.4Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers100%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants10.1full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£56,931
Teachers who left in the year19%2024/25, for any reason including retirement
Vacancies0
Sick days per teacher2.52024/25

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£6,552England £7,128. Total £1.4m
Income per pupil£6,726England £7,587. Total £1.4m
Spent on teachers per pupil£2,967England £3,405
Money in reserve10%A healthy amount put by: £139k, £656 per pupil. England 9%
Money in against money out+£37kit took in more than it spent this year
Where the money goes£6,552spent 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 m8012 months to June 2026, mostly violence and sexual offences
Local crime rate51 per 1,000 people44% lower than the England average
Typical house price£370,000Dartford
Nearest bus stop190 mBirchwood Drive, 8 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
Joydens Wood Junior SchoolAcademy90 m315No overall grade 202514Compare
Maypole Primary SchoolAcademy520 m410Report card 202682Compare
Hextable Primary SchoolCouncil0.8 miles605Good 202326Compare
Wilmington Primary SchoolAcademy0.9 miles212Not inspected83Compare
Wentworth Primary SchoolAcademy1.3 miles649Good 202345Compare
Oakfield Primary AcademyAcademy1.6 miles716Good 202176Compare
St Pauls' Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary SchoolChurch of England1.6 miles107No overall grade 202576Compare
West Hill Primary AcademyAcademy1.8 miles542Report card 202657Compare

Compared with schools like it

Our score compares Joydens Wood Infant School with the 48 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 48 schools are dotted all over the country, so we don't list them. What matters is where this school sits among them.

Beats2%of schools with a similar mix of pupils
Near the bottom of its group. Its score of 18 is 52 points below the typical school in the group.
0Lowest of the group 16 · middle 70 · highest 97100

Nearby schools with a similar mix of pupils that score higher

Of those 48 schools, these are within 25 km and score at least five points more than Joydens Wood Infant School, nearest first. A school with the same kind of pupils and a higher score is the fairest sign that it gets more out of them.

SchoolTypeDistancePupilsOfstedScore
Keston Church of England Primary SchoolAcademy7.7 miles161Good 202430Compare
St Helen's Catholic Infant & Nursery SchoolRoman Catholic15.0 miles173Good 202475Compare

How the score was worked out

The score is out of 100. A 18 means that once everything below is added up, this school comes out ahead of 18% 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 40. 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 years0%no data
Ofsted inspection20%in line
+0.03
Ofsted grade, 2.9 years old
Progress pupils make0%no data
Direction of travel over five years10%well below
-0.36
results and attendance falling year on year
Attendance and behaviour10%below
-0.13
2024/25; 166 pupils
Results, allowing for the mix of pupils0%no data
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 Joydens Wood Infant School a good school?

The figures are weak. Joydens Wood Infant School scores 18 out of 100. That is below schools that take in a similar mix of pupils, and ahead of 2% of the 50 schools most like it in England. The score could fairly be anywhere from 8 to 40, so a few points either way between schools doesn't mean much. Its results have been slipping over the last five years.

What is Joydens Wood Infant School's Ofsted rating?

Ofsted rated Joydens Wood Infant School good at its last full inspection on 5 October 2023.

How many pupils does Joydens Wood Infant School have?

190 pupils aged 4 to 7 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 270 places, so it is 70% full.

Is Joydens Wood Infant School oversubscribed?

Probably not. 59 places were empty in 2024/25 (22% of the total), so most families who apply get a place.

What is attendance like at Joydens Wood Infant School?

Pupils were in school 93.5% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 17% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

How big are the classes at Joydens Wood Infant School?

The average class had 24.7 pupils in January 2026. Across England it was 25.4. No class 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
Park Way, Bexley, DA5 2JD
Telephone
01322 523188
Website
www.joydens.nestschools.org
Headteacher
Mrs Lorraine Richards
Type of school
Converter academy (Academy converter, academies)
Phase
Primary school, ages 4-7
Gender
Mixed
Multi-academy trust
Nexus Education Schools Trust (20 schools)
Local authority
Kent
Ward
Joyden's Wood
Constituency
Dartford
Setting
Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
Opened
1 November 2011 (academy converter)
URN
137660 · LAESTAB 8862500 · UKPRN 10035690
Formerly
Joydens Wood Infant School

Where these figures come from