St Mary's Church of England Voluntary Aided Junior School, Basingstoke

Ofsted's report card from its 6 January 2026 inspection grades St Mary's Church of England Voluntary Aided Junior School on 6 areas: 3 strong standard and 3 expected standard. Report cards replaced single-word judgements in November 2025, on a five-point scale from exceptional to urgent improvement.

Attendance and behaviour - Strong standard. "Leaders take every opportunity to promote the importance of pupils attending school regularly."

Inclusion - Strong standard. "Leaders promote a school culture where diversity is celebrated and every pupil is valued."

Personal development and wellbeing - Strong standard. "Leaders ensure that the carefully crafted personal development programme is woven across all areas of school life to develop these aspects of learning."

Achievement - Expected standard. "Overall, pupils achieve well."

Curriculum and teaching - Expected standard. "Leaders have put in place a suitably broad, ambitious and well-sequenced curriculum that builds pupils' knowledge over time."

Leadership and governance - Expected standard. "Leaders make decisions in the best interests of all pupils, particularly those who are disadvantaged, pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities, or those face other barriers to learning."

Safeguarding standards were met.

Ofsted's next steps for the school: "• Leaders need to further develop staff expertise in checking pupils' understanding in lessons so that pupils' misconceptions can be identified and addressed consistently so that they deepen their knowledge and understanding. • Leaders should continue to embed the school's approach to writing to help address gaps in some pupils' writing knowledge".

From the headteacher's welcome: "We are proud to be a voluntary aided church school in the Dioceses of Winchester and have strong links with our parish church of St Mary's. The school originally started in the Bolton Chapel of the church in 1865 and to this day remains at the heart of the village community."

The school runs a breakfast club and after-school care, from £5.00 per session.

Coming up: an open day on Wednesday 4 November 2026 at 9.30am, an open day on Thursday 5 November 2026 and an open day on Friday 6 November 2026. Check the school's website before you go, as dates can change.

In 2025, 85% of Year 6 pupils at St Mary's Church of England Voluntary Aided Junior School reached the expected standard in reading and 78% in maths. At the average state primary the figures were 77% and 75% in Hampshire and 77% and 75% across England.

Results rose from 75% in reading and 77% in maths in 2024.

Across Hampshire, 93% of families were offered their first-choice primary school for 2026 entry, and 99% were offered one of the schools they named.

In 2026, families in Hampshire lodged 254 appeals against primary school offers; 146 reached a hearing and 8 succeeded (5.5% of those heard).

The nearest other state primary schools to St Mary's Church of England Voluntary Aided Junior School are Old Basing Infant School (0.1 miles, Good); Great Binfields Primary School (1 mile, Good, 85% reading, 81% maths); Rucstall Primary School (1.6 miles, Outstanding, 90% reading, 97% maths); and Four Lanes Community Junior School (1.6 miles, Good, 80% reading, 58% maths).

St Mary's Church of England Voluntary Aided Junior School's 2025 results were higher than 1 of these 3 schools.

163 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about St Mary's Church of England Voluntary Aided Junior School (as of April 2026): 98% would recommend the school, 97% say their child is happy there and 81% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.

The strongest agreement was that their child feels safe (99%); the weakest, that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (81%).

8.1% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well below the average state school (25%), and 7.8% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.

The largest ethnic groups are White British (74%), Mixed (8%) and Asian (7%).

In 2026, 34 pupils (9.5%) received SEN support and 15 (4.2%) 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 a moderate learning difficulty.

The nearest railway station is Basingstoke Rail Station, about 1.9 miles away in a straight line.

9 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Belle Vue Road (n-bound), 160 metres away.

Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood St Mary's Church of England Voluntary Aided Junior School stands in is among the 10% least deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.

In August 2026, police recorded 41 crimes within a mile of the school, most often anti-social behaviour, violence and sexual offences and shoplifting. That is well below the typical figure around schools in Hampshire (72).

In 2024/25, St Mary's Church of England Voluntary Aided Junior School issued 14 suspensions, 4 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.