Barley Hill Primary School, Thame
Barley Hill Primary School is a primary school for pupils aged 4 to 11 in Thame. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in April 2015. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in January 2025 did not change this grade. Its 2025 Key Stage 2 results were the 107th-highest of the 228 schools in Oxfordshire with published results, and 6,591st of 14,452 across England. It was 80% full in 2025.
- SATs results
- In line with England
- Ofsted
- Good (2015)
- Demand
- Every first choice offered
- Attendance
- In line with England
Reception applications for September 2027 close in 80 days
Deadline Friday 15 January 2027. Apply to Oxfordshire (the council where you live). Offers on 16 April.
Data last updated 27 Oct 2026
Barley Hill Primary School in detail
Barley Hill Primary School in its own words
The school runs a breakfast club from 7:30am and after-school care.
Coming up: an open day on Friday 6 November 2026 and an open day on Monday 9 November 2026. Check the school's website before you go, as dates can change.
All school open days in Oxfordshire
Wraparound care (school website)
Source: The school's own website
Results
In 2025, 80% of Year 6 pupils at Barley Hill Primary School reached the expected standard in reading and 77% in maths. At the average state primary the figures were 78% and 75% in Oxfordshire and 77% and 75% across England.
Results rose from 78% in reading and 72% in maths in 2024.
Getting a place at Barley Hill Primary School
For September 2026 entry, 43 families put Barley Hill Primary School as their first choice and 114 named it as one of their preferences, for 46 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. Every family who put it first was offered a place there for 2026 entry.
Admissions history and your chances at Barley Hill Primary School
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to Barley Hill Primary School are St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Thame (0.4 miles, Good, 77% reading, 70% maths); John Hampden Primary School (0.4 miles, Good, 83% reading, 83% maths); Long Crendon School (2.4 miles, Outstanding, 89% reading, 93% maths); and Haddenham St Mary's Church of England School (2.4 miles, Good).
Barley Hill Primary School's 2025 results were higher than 1 of these 3 schools.
St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, ThameJohn Hampden Primary SchoolLong Crendon SchoolHaddenham St Mary's Church of England School
What parents say
110 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about Barley Hill Primary School (as of September 2025): 82% would recommend the school, 89% say their child is happy there and 56% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.
The strongest agreement was that their child is happy at the school (89%); the weakest, that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (56%).
Who goes there
16.4% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well below the average state school (25%), and 4.8% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
The largest ethnic groups are White British (84%) and Mixed (7%).
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Haddenham & Thame Parkway Rail Station, about 2 miles away in a straight line.
8 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Cromwell Ave West HaR (nw-bound), 230 metres away.
The area around the school
Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood Barley Hill Primary School stands in is among the 20% least deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.
In August 2026, police recorded 83 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, anti-social behaviour and shoplifting. That is well above the typical figure around schools in Oxfordshire (52), as is usual near a town centre.
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, Barley Hill Primary School issued 17 suspensions, 3.4 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.
Sources: DfE school performance data (averages: state mainstream schools); DfE school-level applications and offers; council admissions booklets; DfE appeals statistics; Ofsted Parent View; DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); data.police.uk street-level crime; DfE exclusions statistics
Location
Every family who put it first was offered a place for 2026 entry, so distance did not limit places that year.
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 2 years agoThis judgement is from April 2015, 11 years ago, longer than Ofsted's usual 4-year cycle: the school may have changed since.
Overall
Latest (ungraded) inspection: Standards have been maintained.
Ofsted Insights
From Ofsted's January 2025 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
Barley Hill Primary School creates a warm, supportive environment where pupils enjoy learning and feel safe. The school has high expectations for all children, with particularly strong teaching in reading and mathematics. Children with additional needs are well-supported, and every pupil is encouraged to take on meaningful responsibilities and explore their talents through clubs and visits.
Key Strengths
- Well-sequenced curriculum that helps pupils build knowledge over time, particularly strong in English and mathematics
- Effective teaching of early reading with skilled phonics delivery and good support for struggling readers
- Pupils with SEND are identified quickly and supported well through provision like 'The Cloud' resource base
- Strong pupil behaviour and positive attitudes to learning, with effective support for attendance
- Rich range of enrichment activities and leadership opportunities that prepare pupils well for life beyond school
Areas for Improvement
- Teachers' checks on pupils' learning are sometimes ineffective and do not always identify errors and misconceptions
- Teachers occasionally start new learning before pupils are fully ready, which affects how well pupils build knowledge over time
Safeguarding
The arrangements for safeguarding are effective, with strong relationships between staff and pupils and clear systems for pupils to report worries and concerns.
Extracurricular Activities
Computing club, dance club, football club, house captain roles, values ambassador roles, visits to local zoos and Roman villas, sporting competitions in Thame League
Barley Hill Primary School has maintained its good standards and continues to provide effective education for its pupils. The school has high expectations, strong relationships, and a well-sequenced ambitious curriculum.
At a Glance
16.4%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
110 responsesSource: Ofsted Parent View, responses as at September 2025 - % who strongly agree or agree
Primary Performance (KS2)
Academic year 2024/25KS2 Results (% meeting expected standard)
Reading has remained stable at around 80% (2024 to 2025). Maths has improved from 72% to 77% (2024 to 2025). Writing has improved from 69% to 75% (2024 to 2025).
Class Sizes
28.4
Avg class size
28.2
Infant (KS1)
28.5
KS2
17
Total classes
1 class with more than 30 pupils
2025/26 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby primary schools
Latest from Barley Hill Primary School
Open Mornings for Reception intake September 2027 - Friday 6th November and Monday 9th November 9.30am - 11am
14 Sep 2026
E-Safety February 2026
2 Feb 2026
E-Safety January 2026
6 Jan 2026
E-Safety December 2025
1 Dec 2025
E-safety October 2025
11 Nov 2025
E-Safety November 2025
11 Nov 2025
From Barley Hill Primary School's website. School Signal is not affiliated with the school.
Social & online
Keep up with Barley Hill Primary School
Before and after school care
Clubs on Ofsted's childcare register at or near Barley Hill Primary School.
- S4A@ Barley Hill SchoolAt the school · Not yet graded
Term dates
Barley Hill Primary School is a community school, so its term dates are set by Oxfordshire. Training (INSET) days, when pupils are not in school, vary by school: check the school's own calendar.
2026 to 2027
- Autumn term: Wednesday 2 September to Friday 18 December 2026 (half term Monday 26 October to Friday 30 October 2026)
- Spring term: Monday 4 January to Thursday 25 March 2027 (half term Monday 15 February to Friday 19 February 2027)
- Summer term: Monday 12 April to Wednesday 21 July 2027 (half term Monday 31 May to Friday 4 June 2027)
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Barley Hill Primary School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Barley Hill Primary School is in Oxfordshire; for families living there:
- Oxfordshire's school travel policy: Free home to school travel assistance
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 14
- Fatal
- 1
- Serious
- 2
- Children hurt
- 1
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 14 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: 1 fatal, 2 serious and 11 slight.
1 child aged 0 to 15 was hurt: 1 on a bicycle.
2 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included.
The typical figure for schools in Oxfordshire is 5 (the median across 369 schools, same distance and years).
Serious and slight counts use the Department for Transport's severity adjustment, which allows for changes in how police forces record injuries; they are estimates, rounded to whole numbers. Distances are in a straight line. Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19), Open Government Licence v3.0.
Commute and house prices
Your chances of a place at Barley Hill Primary School
Will you get a place at Barley Hill Primary School? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against Barley Hill Primary School's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for Barley Hill Primary School:
- The straight-line distance from your home to Barley Hill Primary School.
- We hold no last distance offered figures from Oxfordshire, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at Barley Hill Primary School for 2014 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in Oxfordshire got their first choice, and how often appeals there succeed.
- The nearest state schools to your home, with Ofsted rating, demand and last distance offered where published.
- Key dates for September 2027 entry and how to apply.
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Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
80%
Available places
504 pupils
630 places
126 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Thame
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Thame
Across Oxfordshire council
Places available
8,615
Applications
6,903
Got 1st preference
94.0%
Got preferred school
99.3%
All primary applications across Oxfordshire council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Every first choice offered
Inspection History(8)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
93
SEN Support
19
EHC Plans
23.2%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
482
Total Pupils
250
Boys
232
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
27
Teachers
17.9:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£47,589
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£5,081
Per pupil
£2790k
Total funding
£121k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
5.8%
Overall absence
9.8%
Persistent absence
461
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
Secondary Schools Nearby
Secondary schools pupils are likely to move to
Barley Hill Primary School
Questions parents ask about Barley Hill Primary School
What are SATs results like at Barley Hill Primary School?
Of the pupils at Barley Hill Primary School who took the 2025 Key Stage 2 assessments, 80% reached the expected standard in reading and 77% did so in maths.
What is Barley Hill Primary School's Ofsted rating?
Barley Hill Primary School's most recent Ofsted inspection, in January 2025, was ungraded, so it gave no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in April 2015, it was rated Good.
What is the catchment area for Barley Hill Primary School?
No fixed boundary. When Barley Hill Primary School is oversubscribed, Oxfordshire allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at Barley Hill Primary School?
Barley Hill Primary School was not full in 2025: it ran at 80% of its 630 places.
How big are the classes at Barley Hill Primary School?
Classes at Barley Hill Primary School average 28.4 pupils (2025/26). 1 class has more than 30 pupils - infant classes are capped at 30 by law, with limited exceptions.
How many pupils go to Barley Hill Primary School?
Barley Hill Primary School has around 482 pupils on roll. 16% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at Barley Hill Primary School?
5.8% of sessions were missed at Barley Hill Primary School in 2024/25. 9.8% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Barley Hill Primary School?
Apply through Oxfordshire's coordinated admissions process, naming Barley Hill Primary School on your application. Applications for Reception places starting in September 2027 close on Friday 15 January 2027, and offers are made on Friday 16 April 2027.
Does Barley Hill Primary School have a breakfast club or after-school club?
Ofsted's childcare register lists an out-of-school club at the school: S4A@ Barley Hill School (registered, not yet graded). The school may also run its own clubs, which don't have to register with Ofsted.
What are Barley Hill Primary School's term dates?
Barley Hill Primary School is a community school, so its term dates are set by Oxfordshire. In 2026 to 2027: Autumn term: Wednesday 2 September to Friday 18 December 2026 (half term Monday 26 October to Friday 30 October 2026); Spring term: Monday 4 January to Thursday 25 March 2027 (half term Monday 15 February to Friday 19 February 2027); Summer term: Monday 12 April to Wednesday 21 July 2027 (half term Monday 31 May to Friday 4 June 2027).
How many road collisions happen near Barley Hill Primary School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 14 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: 1 fatal, 2 serious and 11 slight. 1 child aged 0 to 15 was hurt: 1 on a bicycle. 2 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included. The typical figure for schools in Oxfordshire is 5 (the median across 369 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Barley Hill Primary School?
Barley Hill Primary School is at Ludsden Grove, Thame, Oxfordshire, OX9 3DH.
Sources: Oxfordshire term dates; Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)