Herne Bay Junior School, Herne Bay
Data last updated 11 Sept 2026
Location
Estimated admission likelihood based on school density and oversubscription data
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 1 year agoOverall
Quality of Education
Behaviour & Attitudes
Personal Development
Leadership & Management
Ofsted Insights
What This School Does Well
Herne Bay Junior School creates a welcoming environment where most pupils are respectful and keen to learn. The school takes great care of pupils' well-being and mental health, offering valuable outdoor learning experiences through forest visits that build confidence and teamwork skills. Staff are well-supported by leaders who are considerate of their workload and well-being.
Key Strengths
- Pupils build positive relationships with staff and peers, and are respectful of different cultures and religions - most have positive attitudes to learning
- Well-resourced classrooms and swift identification of pupils needing additional support, including those with SEND
- Strong personal development through forest visits, teamwork opportunities, and well-considered reflection activities that support spiritual development
- Effective support systems including the 'thrive room' and early morning sports club that have improved attendance and punctuality for some pupils
Areas for Improvement
- Lessons do not always focus clearly on the specific knowledge pupils need to learn, leading to incomplete understanding
- Teachers' checks on learning sometimes fail to identify misconceptions and gaps, and important knowledge is not revisited in enough detail
- Some phonics teaching lacks the expertise needed to support early readers in decoding words accurately
- Some poor behaviour, including discriminatory language, continues despite support and action being taken
- Persistent absence remains high for some pupils despite recent improvements
Safeguarding
Safeguarding arrangements are effective overall, with clear systems and an open culture, but expertise around some aspects is less secure and the curriculum could be more preventative in helping pupils consider risks they may face.
Extracurricular Activities
Forest visits, art ambassadors programme, sports leaders, house captains, play leaders, early morning sports club
Herne Bay Junior School is a junior school in Kent with 384 pupils aged 7-11. The school has ambitious curriculum plans but is not consistently achieving its goals, with inspectors finding that the quality of education and behaviour and attitudes both require improvement.
At a Glance
45.3%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
72 responsesSource: Ofsted Parent View - % who strongly agree or agree
Primary Performance (KS2)
Academic year 2025/26KS2 Results (% meeting expected standard)
Reading has declined from 63% to 56%. Maths has declined from 58% to 40%. Writing has declined from 55% to 49%.
Class Sizes
27.9
Avg class size
27.9
KS2
14
Total classes
3 classes with more than 30 pupils
2024/25 academic year
Getting There
Train Stations
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Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
74%
Available places
371 pupils
500 capacity
129 spare places available
Area Demand Pressure - Herne Bay
Based on MHCLG housing supply data for Herne Bay
Admissions Demand - Kent
Places available
19,144
Applications
16,524
Got 1st preference
90.6%
Got preferred school
98.5%
Primary admissions across Kent (2025/26)
Inspection History(9)
House Prices
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SEN Provision
How many pupils have special educational needs, what types of support the school provides, and how it compares to similar schools.
Pupil Demographics
The school's pupil mix - ethnicity breakdown, free school meals eligibility, and English as an additional language. Useful context when evaluating school fit.
Teachers & Staff
Teacher qualification rates, pupil-to-teacher ratio, staff turnover, and salary data. Shows how well-resourced and stable the school's workforce is.
School Funding
Annual funding per pupil, total budget, pupil premium grants, and how the school's resources compare to similar schools nationally.
Pupil Absence2024/25
7.21569%
Overall absence
22.70531%
Persistent absence
414
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
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Secondary Schools Nearby
Secondary schools pupils are likely to move to
Herne Bay Junior School
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