Bude Primary Academy - Infants, Bude
Bude Primary Academy - Infants is a primary school for pupils aged 2 to 7 in Bude, part of Aspire Academy Trust. It was rated Requires improvement at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in September 2022. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in January 2025 did not change this grade. It was 61% full in 2025.
- Ofsted
- Requires improvement (2022)
- Demand
- Every first choice offered
- Attendance
- In line with England
Reception applications for September 2027 close in 81 days
Deadline Friday 15 January 2027. Apply to Cornwall (the council where you live). Offers on 16 April.
Data last updated 26 Oct 2026
Bude Primary Academy - Infants in detail
Bude Primary Academy - Infants in its own words
Clubs and activities named on the school's website include football, rugby and hockey.
The school runs after-school care.
Clubs (school website)Wraparound care (school website)
Source: The school's own website
Getting a place at Bude Primary Academy - Infants
For September 2026 entry, 36 families put Bude Primary Academy - Infants as their first choice and 65 named it as one of their preferences, for 39 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 Bude Primary Academy - Infants
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to Bude Primary Academy - Infants are Bude Primary Academy - Juniors (0.1 miles, Requires improvement, 73% reading, 60% maths); Stratton Primary School (0.7 miles, Good, 65% reading, 68% maths); Marhamchurch CofE Academy (1.7 miles, Requires improvement, 69% reading, 69% maths); and Kilkhampton Junior and Infant School (3.7 miles, Good, 67% reading, 71% maths).
Bude Primary Academy - JuniorsStratton Primary SchoolMarhamchurch CofE AcademyKilkhampton Junior and Infant School
The trust
Bude Primary Academy - Infants is one of 38 schools run by Aspire Academy Trust, an academy trust.
What parents say
39 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about Bude Primary Academy - Infants (as of September 2025): 100% would recommend the school, 100% say their child is happy there and 100% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.
The strongest agreement was that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (100%); the weakest, that they are kept well informed about progress (90%).
Who goes there
5.6% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
In 2026, 26 pupils (20.6%) received SEN support and 1 (0.8%) had an education, health and care plan, against 16.2% and 4.6% at the average state school. The most common need among them is speech, language and communication needs.
Getting there
There is no railway, tram or Underground station within about three miles of Bude Primary Academy - Infants.
2 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Bude Junior School (n-bound), 190 metres away.
The area around the school
In August 2026, police recorded 65 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, criminal damage and arson and anti-social behaviour. That is well above the typical figure around schools in Cornwall (14), as is usual near a town centre.
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, Bude Primary Academy - Infants issued 3 suspensions, 2.4 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.
Sources: 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 agoOverall
Quality of Education
Behaviour & Attitudes
Personal Development
Leadership & Management
Early Years
Ofsted Insights
From Ofsted's January 2025 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
This school has transformed significantly and now offers a good education where children thrive both academically and socially. Reading is particularly strong, with excellent coaching for staff and carefully matched books that help children become confident, fluent readers. The school creates a warm, supportive environment where pupils are kind, well-behaved, and genuinely enjoy their learning.
Key Strengths
- Strong focus on reading with regular staff coaching, phonics screening results now in line with national averages, and pupils developing a genuine love of reading
- Well-structured curriculum with ambitious knowledge goals taught in logical order, with regular checks on pupil progress
- Strong staff subject knowledge and work closely matched to curriculum intent, helping pupils build knowledge effectively over time
- Excellent pupil behaviour and positive relationships, both in lessons and around school
- Close partnership with families, supporting their needs and ensuring good pupil attendance
Areas for Improvement
- Support for pupils with SEND remains at an early stage - not all staff have expertise to support all areas of need effectively, meaning some pupils do not receive precise support to learn well
- Staff do not consistently identify and address errors in pupils' writing, such as incorrect letter formation or punctuation, which causes pupils to repeat these mistakes
Safeguarding
Safeguarding arrangements are effective.
Extracurricular Activities
Range of clubs for pupils to develop their interests, school council, Trailblazer programme, weekly assemblies celebrating pupil achievements, breakfast provision
Bude Primary Academy - Infants has made significant positive changes since the last inspection and now provides a good quality of education. Pupils learn effectively across the curriculum in a happy, warm atmosphere where they are well-prepared for junior school.
At a Glance
23.8%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
39 responsesSource: Ofsted Parent View, responses as at September 2025 - % who strongly agree or agree
Class Sizes
25.2
Avg class size
25.2
Infant (KS1)
5
Total classes
2025/26 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby primary schools
Social & online
Keep up with Bude Primary Academy - Infants
Term dates
Bude Primary Academy - Infants is an academy, so it sets its own term dates: check the school's website. As a guide, see Cornwall's term dates for its community schools.
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Bude Primary Academy - Infants from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Bude Primary Academy - Infants is in Cornwall; for families living there:
- Cornwall's school travel policy: Home to School Travel Assistance Policy 2026/27
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 3
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 2
- Children hurt
- 1
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 3 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 2 serious and 1 slight.
1 child aged 0 to 15 was hurt: 1 on foot.
0 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 Cornwall is 3 (the median across 299 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 Bude Primary Academy - Infants
Will you get a place at Bude Primary Academy - Infants? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against Bude Primary Academy - Infants's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for Bude Primary Academy - Infants:
- The straight-line distance from your home to Bude Primary Academy - Infants.
- We hold no last distance offered figures from Cornwall, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at Bude Primary Academy - Infants for 2019 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in Cornwall 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
61%
Available places
129 pupils
210 places
81 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Bude
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Bude
Across Cornwall council
Places available
6,475
Applications
4,732
Got 1st preference
95.9%
Got preferred school
99.6%
All primary applications across Cornwall council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Every first choice offered
Inspection History(3)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
26
SEN Support
1
EHC Plans
21.4%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
126
Total Pupils
70
Boys
56
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
7
Teachers
18.0:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£54,346
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£5,941
Per pupil
£824k
Total funding
£35k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
5.7%
Overall absence
13.3%
Persistent absence
98
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
Bude Primary Academy - Infants
Questions parents ask about Bude Primary Academy - Infants
What is Bude Primary Academy - Infants's Ofsted rating?
Bude Primary Academy - Infants's most recent Ofsted inspection, in January 2025, was ungraded, so it gave no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in September 2022, it was rated Requires Improvement.
What is the catchment area for Bude Primary Academy - Infants?
No fixed boundary. When Bude Primary Academy - Infants is oversubscribed, Cornwall allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at Bude Primary Academy - Infants?
Bude Primary Academy - Infants was not full in 2025: it ran at 61% of its 210 places.
How big are the classes at Bude Primary Academy - Infants?
Classes at Bude Primary Academy - Infants average 25.2 pupils (2025/26).
How many pupils go to Bude Primary Academy - Infants?
Bude Primary Academy - Infants has around 126 pupils on roll. 24% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at Bude Primary Academy - Infants?
5.7% of sessions were missed at Bude Primary Academy - Infants in 2024/25. 13.3% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Bude Primary Academy - Infants?
Apply through Cornwall's coordinated admissions process, naming Bude Primary Academy - Infants 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.
How many road collisions happen near Bude Primary Academy - Infants?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 3 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 2 serious and 1 slight. 1 child aged 0 to 15 was hurt: 1 on foot. 0 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 Cornwall is 3 (the median across 299 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Bude Primary Academy - Infants?
Bude Primary Academy - Infants is at Broadclose Hill, Bude, Cornwall, EX23 8EA.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)