Wateringbury Church of England Primary School, Maidstone

Requires Improvement
Primary
Voluntary aided school
Mixed
Church of England
Ages 411

Data last updated 11 Sept 2026

Location

Very likely (~1.5km)Possible (~2.1km)Unlikely (~2.7km)Confidence: high

Estimated admission likelihood based on school density and oversubscription data

Key Information

DfE GIAS
Head:Miss Debbie Johnson
Pupils:134 / 210 capacity
LA:Kent
Phone:01622812199
Address:147 Bow Road, Wateringbury, Maidstone, ME18 5EA
Admissions:Not applicable
Status:open

Ofsted Rating

Ofsted · 1 year ago
-

Overall

Good

Quality of Education

Good

Behaviour & Attitudes

Outstanding

Personal Development

Good

Leadership & Management

Good

Early Years

Inspected 1 July 2025View full report
URN:118632
UKPRN:10078476
Diocese:Diocese of Rochester
Constituency:Tonbridge
Urban/Rural:Larger rural: Nearer to a major town or city

Ofsted Insights

What This School Does Well

Your child will thrive in this warm, caring school where they learn key values like acceptance and fairness by living them every day. Teachers have high expectations and provide clear explanations, helping even pupils with additional needs achieve well. The school goes far beyond the classroom with exceptional activities, clubs and enrichment opportunities that help every child develop their skills and talents.

Key Strengths

  • Exceptional personal development with excellent enrichment activities including an annual arts festival and wide range of clubs
  • Strong reading programme with systematic phonics teaching that helps pupils become confident, fluent readers quickly
  • Clear curriculum from Reception to Year 6 with teachers explaining learning well and addressing misconceptions
  • Pupils with SEND supported effectively through accurate identification of barriers to learning
  • Positive behaviour and relationships throughout the school, with pupils showing high levels of courtesy and care for others

Areas for Improvement

  • Checks on pupils' spelling and use of key vocabulary are not precise enough, so inaccurate spelling is not always corrected
  • The curriculum for pupils with historic gaps in learning does not introduce new content quickly enough, so they are not catching up fast enough
  • Staff need more consistent expertise in checking and correcting pupils' spelling and use of subject-specific vocabulary

Safeguarding

Safeguarding arrangements are effective and the school has created a positive culture that puts pupils' interests first.

Extracurricular Activities

Arts festival, wide array of clubs, reading sessions, physical and mental health activities

Wateringbury Church of England Primary School has made rapid improvement since its last inspection and is now rated Good. The school provides a warm, caring environment where pupils embody key values and feel secure and happy.

At a Glance

27.6%

Free School Meals

No

Boarding

No

Nursery

No

Sixth Form

No

Special Measures

What Parents Think

53 responses
Would recommend96%
Child is happy98%
Well taught98%
Good progress91%
Feels safe100%
Well behaved96%
Bullying dealt with13%
Kept informed100%
Handles concerns70%
Wider development100%

Source: Ofsted Parent View - % who strongly agree or agree

Primary Performance (KS2)

Academic year 2025/26

KS2 Results (% meeting expected standard)

2024
2025
Reading+8ppMaths+8ppWriting+6pp

Reading has improved from 71% to 79%. Maths has improved from 71% to 79%. Writing has improved from 77% to 83%.

Class Sizes

26.4

Avg class size

22.5

Infant (KS1)

31.0

KS2

5

Total classes

1 class with more than 30 pupils

2024/25 academic year

Getting There

Train Stations

Wateringbury Rail Station (entrance)
64m · 1 min walk

Bus Stops

Railway Station (adj)
34m · 1 min walk
Glebe Meadow (opp)
402m · 7 min walk
Village Hall (o/s)
489m · 8 min walk
The Wateringbury (adj)
608m · 10 min walk
Valley Court (adj)
802m · 13 min walk
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Capacity & Demand

School Occupancy

64%

Available places

134 pupils

210 capacity

76 spare places available

Area Demand Pressure - Maidstone

High pressure
New homes approved:3,562
Projected new pupils:891

Based on MHCLG housing supply data for Maidstone

Admissions Demand - Kent

Low demand0.86x oversubscription

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)

1 July 2025
Quality of EducationGood
Behaviour & AttitudesGood
Personal DevelopmentOutstanding
Leadership & ManagementGood
Early YearsGood
7 March 2023
Requires ImprovementReport
Quality of EducationRequires Improvement
Behaviour & AttitudesGood
Personal DevelopmentGood
Leadership & ManagementRequires Improvement
Early YearsGood
8 November 2017
Leadership & ManagementGood

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.

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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.

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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.

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School Funding

Annual funding per pupil, total budget, pupil premium grants, and how the school's resources compare to similar schools nationally.

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Pupil Absence
2024/25

6.92372%

Overall absence

21.56863%

Persistent absence

153

Enrolments

Authorised4.90781%
Unauthorised2.01591%
Persistent (10%+)21.56863%
Severe (50%+)1.30719%

Absence trend

4.29263%
18/19
3.88788%
20/21
7.51698%
21/22
6.52749%
22/23
6.55804%
23/24
6.92372%
24/25
Overall absence rate

Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.

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