School Chooser

Whitchurch Primary School

Primary · ages 4-11MixedCouncil136 pupilsReadingOxfordshire
School Chooser Score
92
Well above
similar schools
Likely range 79 to 97
Out of 100. Better than 81% of the 50 schools most like it. Much the same over the last five years.
OfstedGoodLast Ofsted inspection, November 2023
Reached the expected level at 1165%England 63%
Attendance96.3%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families7%Far fewer than most schools
Places4 spare136 pupils, 140 places
Pupils per teacher18.7School workforce census

Whitchurch Primary School is a council school in Reading for boys and girls aged 4 to 11. It has 136 pupils and room for 140. About 7 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far fewer than at most schools in England. We give it 92 out of 100. That puts it well above schools like it, ahead of 81% of the 50 schools most like it. Ofsted's last grade was good, back in 2023.

Eastfield Lane, Whitchurch-on-Thames, Reading, RG8 7EJ0118 984 2347whitchurchprimary.org.ukMrs Nikki Blyth headteacherAll details

What Ofsted found

Ofsted's last full inspection was on 14 November 2023, back when it gave schools one overall grade. Read the report on Ofsted's website.

Good overall.

TeachingOfsted calls this “quality of education”
Good
BehaviourOfsted calls this “behaviour and attitudes”
Good
WellbeingOfsted calls this “personal development”
Outstanding
LeadershipOfsted calls this “leadership and management”
Good
Early years
Good
Safeguarding
Effective
Yes

Results

Year 6 results (SATs), summer 2025

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

Reached the expected level at 1165%
England 63%
Official name: Expected standard in reading, writing and maths
Working above the expected level25%
England 8%
Official name: Higher standard in reading, writing and maths
Reading score111.0
England 105.6
Official name: Reading average scaled score
Maths score110.0
England 104.6
Official name: Maths average scaled score
Trend
Reached the expected level at 11
2017 to 2025
2017: 80%80%20172018: 92%92%20182019: 85%85%20192023: 83%83%20232024: 85%85%20242025: 65%65%2025
Since 2017: -15%Steady overall
All Year 6 measures, year by year
Measure202520242023201920182017OxfordshireEngland
Pupils tested202018261215
Reached the expected level at 11Expected standard in reading, writing and maths65%85%83%85%92%80%63%63%
Working above the expected levelHigher standard in reading, writing and maths25%15%17%19%17%20%10%8%
Reading scoreReading average scaled score111.0112.0109.0109.0109.0112.0106.1105.6
Maths scoreMaths average scaled score110.0111.0108.0110.0110.0109.0104.4104.6
Grammar and spelling scoreGPS average scaled score107.0113.0108.0112.0110.0110.0104.8105.2
Expected level: readingReading expected standard100%100%100%96%100%100%
Expected level: mathsMaths expected standard100%100%94%88%100%100%
Expected level: writingWriting expected standard (teacher assessed)65%85%83%88%92%80%
Reading progressReading progress score+4.3+4.2+1.6+6.3
Maths progressMaths progress score+4.4+3.9+3.2+3.3
Expected level: other pupilsExpected standard, non-disadvantaged92%

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
33%91%
Gap 58 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.

Nearly full136 pupils for 140 places, 2024/25
97% full

Fewer than one place in twenty is empty, so in most years more families apply than there are places. Living close by, or already having a child here, makes a real difference. Pupil numbers have stayed about the same since 2021/22.

Will my child get a place?

In 2026 every child who applied got a place, so how far away you live didn't matter. That could change if the school gets more popular.

We measure in a straight line from the middle of your postcode to the school. The council measures its own way, and the cut-off changes every year. Use this as a rough guide, and read the council's admissions booklet before you apply.

How places were given out for September 2026. Every child who applied got a place (17 offers for 20 places). 17 families put it down as their first choice and 17 of them got in (100%).

EntryPlacesPut it firstApplied at allGot a placeFirst choices who got inHow far the last child livedSource
2026 Primary20173617100%all offeredLA
2025 Primary2023432187%1.4 miles (distance, outside the catchment area)LA
2024 Primary20143515100%all offeredLA
2023 Primary2023412087%700 m (distance, outside the catchment area)LA

The distances are the council's own, usually measured in a straight line from home to the school gate. If the distance is getting shorter each year, the school is getting harder to get into. See which councils we have this data for.

What a home within 1.4 miles of the school costs

Typical sale price within 1.4 miles of the school£625,000half sold for £393k to £993k
Homes sold147December 2023 to December 2025, Land Registry
Compared with the district+39%a typical home in the district sells for £450,000

Every home sold within that distance of the school (the typical cut-off over the last three years), of any type, from HM Land Registry records. If homes here cost more than the district average, that is the price people pay to live close enough to get in.

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 roll136Census January 2026
Places14097% full
Pupils from low-income families7%7% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English6%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support15%20 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan3%4 pupils with a plan
Average class size26.33 classes, January 2026; England 25.4
Classes with more than 30 pupils33%Infant classes are capped at 30 by law; England 10%
Pupils with extra funding (pupil premium)7%£13,950 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls62 / 74
White British pupils84%

Infant classes (Reception to Year 2) average 19.0 pupils (England 25.5); junior classes (Years 3 to 6) average 31.0 (England 27.3).

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: Autistic spectrum disorder (10), Specific learning difficulty (9), emotional and mental health (4), language and communications needs (1).

How the mix of pupils has changed
Census202620252024202320222021
Pupils on roll136136141140135135
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals7%6%5%4%5%7%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language6%8%6%2%2%2%
Pupils getting extra supportSEN support13%10%8%8%5%
Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans2%1%1%1%2%

Attendance and behaviour

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 96.3% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance96.3%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school5.7%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Suspensions per 100 pupils4.42024/25, no permanent exclusions
Missed without permission0.5%of school time, 2024/25
Attendance year by year
Measure2024/252023/242022/232021/222020/212018/19England
Sessions missedOverall absence3.7%3.8%4.8%6.2%2.2%2.5%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence3.2%3.4%4.2%5.7%2.0%2.1%
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence0.5%0.4%0.6%0.5%0.3%0.4%
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence5.7%8.9%6.4%9.3%3.4%1.6%12.8%
SuspensionsSuspension rate4.40.00.00.70.0
Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions00000

Staff and money

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

Teachers7.3full-time equivalent, 9 people
Pupils per teacher18.7Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers100%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants5.6full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£44,256
Teachers who left in the year14%2024/25, for any reason including retirement
Vacancies0
Sick days per teacher0.32024/25

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£7,307England £7,738. Total £994k
Income per pupil£7,314England £7,697. Total £995k
Spent on teachers per pupil£3,215England £3,480
Money in reserve8%Not much put by: £77k, £567 per pupil. England 6%
Money in against money out+£988it took in more than it spent this year
Where the money goes£7,307spent 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 m512 months to June 2026, mostly violence and sexual offences
Local crime rate33 per 1,000 people64% lower than the England average
Typical house price£450,000South Oxfordshire
Nearest bus stop540 mThe Greyhound, 0 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
Pangbourne Primary SchoolCouncil0.6 miles107Good 202326Compare
Purley CofE Primary SchoolChurch of England1.4 miles85Report card 202625Compare
Long Lane Primary SchoolCouncil1.5 miles212Not inspected20Compare
Downsway Primary SchoolCouncil1.8 miles213Good 202343Compare
Westwood Farm Junior SchoolCouncil1.9 miles235Good 202242Compare
Westwood Farm Infant SchoolCouncil1.9 miles193Good 202329Compare
Birch Copse Primary SchoolCouncil2.6 miles420Outstanding 202496Compare
Park Lane Primary SchoolCouncil2.8 miles388Good 202345Compare

Compared with schools like it

Our score compares Whitchurch Primary 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.

Beats81%of schools with a similar mix of pupils
In the top quarter of its group. Its score of 92 is 17 points above the typical school in the group.
0Lowest of the group 1 · middle 75 · highest 100100

How the score was worked out

The score is out of 100. A 92 means that once everything below is added up, this school comes out ahead of 92% of primary schools in England. Results bounce around from year to year, especially in small schools, so we also show a likely range: 79 to 97. 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%above
+0.26
2025, 2024 and 2023 results; 20 pupils
Ofsted inspection20%in line
+0.01
Ofsted grade, 2.8 years old
Progress pupils make20%above
+0.20
DfE progress measure; 20 pupils
Direction of travel over five years10%in line
+0.00
results and attendance falling year on year
Attendance and behaviour10%above
+0.10
2024/25; 122 pupils
Results, allowing for the mix of pupils10%well above
+0.17
Attainment relative to schools with a similar intake; 20 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 Whitchurch Primary School a good school?

Yes, going by the figures. Whitchurch Primary School scores 92 out of 100. That is well above schools that take in a similar mix of pupils, and ahead of 81% of the 50 schools most like it in England. The score could fairly be anywhere from 79 to 97, so a few points either way between schools doesn't mean much.

What is Whitchurch Primary School's Ofsted rating?

Ofsted rated Whitchurch Primary School good at its last full inspection on 14 November 2023.

How good are Whitchurch Primary School's SATs results?

In summer 2025, 65% of Year 6 children reached the expected level in reading, writing and maths. Across England it was 63%. 25% went further and reached the higher level.

How many pupils does Whitchurch Primary School have?

136 pupils aged 4 to 11 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 140 places, so it is 97% full.

Is Whitchurch Primary School oversubscribed?

Often. Fewer than one place in twenty was empty in 2024/25, so popular year groups fill up.

What is attendance like at Whitchurch Primary School?

Pupils were in school 96.3% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 6% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

How big are the classes at Whitchurch Primary School?

The average class had 26.3 pupils in January 2026. Across England it was 25.4. 33% 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
Eastfield Lane, Whitchurch-on-Thames, Reading, RG8 7EJ
Telephone
0118 984 2347
Website
www.whitchurchprimary.org.uk
Headteacher
Mrs Nikki Blyth
Type of school
Council school (Community school, local authority maintained schools)
Phase
Primary school, ages 4-11
Gender
Mixed
Local authority
Oxfordshire
Ward
Kidmore End & Whitchurch
Constituency
Henley and Thame
Setting
Smaller rural: Nearer to a major town or city
URN
123009 · LAESTAB 9312208 · UKPRN 10047933

Where these figures come from