Parkside Community Primary School, Borehamwood
Parkside Community Primary School is a primary school for pupils aged 2 to 11 in Borehamwood. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in January 2020. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in March 2025 did not change this grade. Its 2025 Key Stage 2 results were the 5th-highest of the 10 schools in Borehamwood with published results, and 8,749th of 14,452 across England. It was 57% full in 2025.
- SATs results
- In line with England
- Ofsted
- Good (2020)
- 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 Hertfordshire (the council where you live). Offers on 16 April.
Data last updated 26 Oct 2026
Parkside Community Primary School in detail
Results
In 2025, 74% of Year 6 pupils at Parkside Community Primary School reached the expected standard in reading and 74% in maths. At the average state primary the figures were 79% and 76% in Hertfordshire and 77% and 75% across England.
Results fell from 79% in reading and 76% in maths in 2024.
With small year groups, a few pupils can move these figures by several points.
Getting a place at Parkside Community Primary School
For September 2026 entry, 13 families put Parkside Community Primary School as their first choice and 48 named it as one of their preferences, for 14 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 Parkside Community Primary School
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to Parkside Community Primary School are Meryfield Primary School (0.4 miles, Good, 71% reading, 67% maths); Woodlands Primary School (0.5 miles, Good, 72% reading, 86% maths); Cowley Hill School (0.5 miles, Good, 81% reading, 84% maths); and St Teresa Catholic Primary School (0.8 miles, Good, 70% reading, 77% maths).
Parkside Community Primary School's 2025 results were higher than 2 of these 4 schools.
Meryfield Primary SchoolWoodlands Primary SchoolCowley Hill SchoolSt Teresa Catholic Primary School
What parents say
17 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about Parkside Community Primary School (as of September 2025): 88% would recommend the school, 100% say their child is happy there and 0% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.
The strongest agreement was that they are kept well informed about progress (100%); the weakest, that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (0%).
Who goes there
43.2% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well above the average state school (25%), and 39% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
The largest ethnic groups are White British (41%), Black (14%) and Mixed (8%).
In 2026, 22 pupils (10.3%) received SEN support and 14 (6.6%) 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.
Staffing
Parkside Community Primary School had 7 teachers in 2026, one for every 31 pupils: fewer teachers per pupil than a typical primary school, at about one for every 20.
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Elstree & Borehamwood Rail Station, about 1.2 miles away in a straight line.
16 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Aycliffe Road (near), 90 metres away.
The area around the school
In August 2026, police recorded 226 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, anti-social behaviour and drug offences. That is well above the typical figure around schools in Hertfordshire (138), as is usual near a town centre.
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, Parkside Community Primary School issued 5 suspensions, 2 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.
Secondary schools nearby
The secondary schools closest to Parkside Community Primary School are Hertswood Academy (0.7 miles), Elstree Screen Arts Academy (1.1 miles) and Yavneh College (1.2 miles).
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; DfE school workforce census; 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 January 2020, 6 years ago, longer than Ofsted's usual 4-year cycle: the school may have changed since.
Overall
Quality of Education
Behaviour & Attitudes
Personal Development
Leadership & Management
Early Years
Latest (ungraded) inspection: Standards have been maintained.
Ofsted Insights
From Ofsted's March 2025 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
Parkside creates a happy, supportive community where children love learning and develop strong relationships with staff. The school excels at teaching reading and writing, with tailored support ensuring all pupils keep up and gain confidence. Beyond academics, the school enriches children's lives through cultural celebrations, trips, sports, music and leadership opportunities that help them grow into confident, compassionate individuals.
Key Strengths
- Strong emphasis on reading with pupils developing a love of books from an early age
- Excellent support for pupils who need to catch up, helping them become fluent readers
- Well-planned enriching experiences including trips, residential stays and cultural celebrations
- High-quality teaching of phonics in early years with consistent adult reinforcement
- Structured curriculum in subjects like history and geography that builds knowledge year on year
Areas for Improvement
- In some subjects like geography and history, teachers need clearer focus on subject-specific skills to help pupils develop these skills more consistently
- Learning tasks in a few subjects sometimes lack clear subject-specific focus
Safeguarding
Safeguarding arrangements are effective with a strong culture that puts pupils' interests first.
Extracurricular Activities
Sports, Gaelic football, ukulele lessons, school councillor roles, cinema trips, museum visits, residential stays, Mental Health Week, anti-racism workshops, heritage celebrations with traditional dress and food, visits to places of worship
Parkside Community Primary School has maintained its good standards and provides a safe, nurturing environment where pupils thrive as happy and confident learners. The school has an ambitious, engaging curriculum with particular strengths in mathematics and English.
At a Glance
43.2%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
Yes
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
17 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 declined from 79% to 74% (2024 to 2025). Maths has remained stable at around 74% (2024 to 2025). Writing has remained stable at around 74% (2024 to 2025).
Class Sizes
23.6
Avg class size
23.7
Infant (KS1)
24.4
KS2
9
Total classes
2025/26 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby primary schools
Keep up with Parkside Community Primary School
Before and after school care
Clubs on Ofsted's childcare register at or near Parkside Community Primary School.
- Cool Kidz740m away · Not yet graded
Term dates
Parkside Community Primary School is a foundation school, so it sets its own term dates: check the school's website. As a guide, see Hertfordshire's term dates for its community schools.
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Parkside Community Primary School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Parkside Community Primary School is in Hertfordshire; for families living there:
- Hertfordshire's school travel policy: Read the home to school transport policy
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 20
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 5
- Children hurt
- 3
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 20 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 5 serious and 15 slight.
3 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 1 on foot and 2 in a vehicle or otherwise.
8 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 Hertfordshire is 9 (the median across 590 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 Parkside Community Primary School
Will you get a place at Parkside Community Primary School? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against Parkside Community Primary School's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for Parkside Community Primary School:
- The straight-line distance from your home to Parkside Community Primary School.
- We hold no last distance offered figures from Hertfordshire, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at Parkside Community Primary School for 2014 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in Hertfordshire 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
57%
Available places
215 pupils
378 places
163 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Borehamwood
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Borehamwood
Across Hertfordshire council
Places available
14,776
Applications
12,543
Got 1st preference
89.1%
Got preferred school
98.4%
All primary applications across Hertfordshire council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Every first choice offered
Inspection History(8)
Ungraded inspection: Standards have been maintained.
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
22
SEN Support
14
EHC Plans
16.9%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
213
Total Pupils
114
Boys
99
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
7
Teachers
30.4:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£54,516
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£6,187
Per pupil
£1597k
Total funding
£145k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
5.1%
Overall absence
14.6%
Persistent absence
198
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
Parkside Community Primary School
Questions parents ask about Parkside Community Primary School
What are SATs results like at Parkside Community Primary School?
Of the pupils at Parkside Community Primary School who took the 2025 Key Stage 2 assessments, 74% reached the expected standard in reading and 74% did so in maths.
What is Parkside Community Primary School's Ofsted rating?
Parkside Community Primary School's most recent Ofsted inspection, in March 2025, was ungraded, so it gave no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in January 2020, it was rated Good.
What is the catchment area for Parkside Community Primary School?
No fixed boundary. When Parkside Community Primary School is oversubscribed, Hertfordshire allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at Parkside Community Primary School?
Parkside Community Primary School was not full in 2025: it ran at 57% of its 378 places.
How big are the classes at Parkside Community Primary School?
Classes at Parkside Community Primary School average 23.6 pupils (2025/26).
How many pupils go to Parkside Community Primary School?
Parkside Community Primary School has around 213 pupils on roll. 43% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at Parkside Community Primary School?
5.1% of sessions were missed at Parkside Community Primary School in 2024/25. 14.6% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Parkside Community Primary School?
Apply through Hertfordshire's coordinated admissions process, naming Parkside Community 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 Parkside Community Primary School have a breakfast club or after-school club?
Ofsted's childcare register lists an out-of-school club within a kilometre of Parkside Community Primary School: Cool Kidz (740m away, registered, not yet graded). The school may also run its own clubs, which don't have to register with Ofsted.
How many road collisions happen near Parkside Community Primary School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 20 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 5 serious and 15 slight. 3 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 1 on foot and 2 in a vehicle or otherwise. 8 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 Hertfordshire is 9 (the median across 590 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Parkside Community Primary School?
Parkside Community Primary School is at Aycliffe Road, Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, WD6 4EP.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)