Herne Church of England Infant and Nursery School

Canterbury · CT6 7AH

General information Infant School · 3-7 years Who goes here 318 pupils, 14.1% FSM

Educational attainment Ofsted report card

Parent score Rate this school No reviews yet - be the first SEN 15.1% on SEN support Behaviour 5.5% absence rate Staff 9.4% turnover Financials £7,320 per pupil Environment Buildings and facilities

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Herne Church of England Infant and Nursery School

General Information

Address: Palmer Close, Herne, Herne Bay, CT6 7AH – View on map
Phone: 01227740793
Website: Visit school website
Headteacher: Mrs E Thomas-Friend
Age range: 3-7 years
Demand for places (Reception, September 2026): 126 families put it first for 90 places – 14 for every 10 places. 71% of them were offered a place. No places went to families living outside the council area. Children putting it first, for every 10 places: 2023 15 · 2024 12 · 2025 12 · 2026 14
Sixth form: No
Intake: Mixed
Religious character: Church of England
Nursery provision: Yes

Who goes here

318 pupils out of 270 places At or near capacity

Pupils eligible for free school meals: 38
% eligible for free school meals: 14.1%
Pupil mix: 2 in 10 (less mixed than the Canterbury average)
English as an additional language: 2% (England 22%)

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Teacher turnover: 9.4% a year (Canterbury 13.9%, typical in England 13.9%) Low turnover
Where they went: about 0% moved to another school, 100% left state schools altogether (retirement, other careers, independent schools, abroad)
Data years: 2022/23 to 2024/25 (average of 3 years, DfE school workforce census)

Teachers who moved school or left state schools in the year after each November, as a share of all the school's teachers. Some turnover is healthy – retirements, promotions, moving house. "Low turnover" means it's among the quarter of similar schools in England where teachers are most likely to stay.

Behaviour

Awaiting Data

About this Behaviour status

We've asked this school for real behaviour figures under Freedom of Information and haven't had a response yet.

Across Kent: suspensions by reason

Suspensions for sexual misconduct: 21 (0.2 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.2)
Permanent exclusions for sexual misconduct: 1
Suspensions for bullying: 32 (0.2 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.2)
Suspensions for abuse against sexual orientation or gender identity: 1 (0.0 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.0)
Data year: 2024/25 (DfE suspensions and exclusions statistics)

These are figures for all state primary schools in Kent (the council area this school is in), not this school's own – the government doesn't publish them school by school. A suspension can have up to three reasons. Most sexual harassment between pupils never leads to a suspension, so these figures show only part of the picture.

Attendance

Overall absence: 5.5%
Persistently absent pupils: 13.8%
Data year: 2024/25

About persistent absence

A pupil is counted as "persistently absent" if they miss 10% or more of their possible school sessions - roughly one day in every two weeks. Schools and Ofsted both pay close attention to this figure specifically, since it can highlight a pattern the overall absence rate alone might hide.

SEN

No dedicated Unit or Resourced Provision

SEN Unit and Resourced Provision

Most mainstream schools don't have a dedicated SEN Unit or Resourced Provision - it isn't a mark against a school that doesn't, just a different kind of setup than one that does.

Pupils on SEN Support: 15.1%
Pupils with an EHC Plan: 2.5%
Data year: 2025/26

Most common needs - SEN Support

Autistic spectrum disorder: 17 pupils
Other difficulty or disability: 8 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 7 pupils
Moderate learning difficulty: 6 pupils
SEN support but no specialist assessment of type of need: 5 pupils

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Autistic spectrum disorder: 4 pupils
Physical disability: 2 pupils
Specific learning difficulty: 1 pupil
Other difficulty or disability: 1 pupil

These figures show the makeup of the school.

About these SEND figures

These figures give a sense of the makeup of the school - they aren't a judgement on the quality of support provided.

Parent score - no reviews yet –

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Behaviour

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Openness

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Teaching Quality

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School Ethos

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Ability to Deal with Problems

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Headteacher Approval

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SafeguardingSafeguarding (parent rating)How parents rate the school on keeping children safe - how safe their child feels, and how well concerns are listened to and acted on. It's parents' experience, not an inspection result; Ofsted checks safeguarding separately.

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Wraparound CareWraparound Care (parent rating)How parents rate the school's breakfast and after-school clubs - availability, cost and quality. Only asked for infant, junior and primary schools, where it matters most for working parents.

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Would recommend –

Educational Attainment

Ofsted report card May 2026

Ofsted's new report cards grade each part of school life separately, instead of giving one overall word.

Safeguarding Met
Inclusion Strong standard
Curriculum and teaching Strong standard
Achievement Expected standard
Attendance and behaviour Expected standard
Personal development and wellbeing Strong standard
Early years Expected standard
Leadership and governance Expected standard

Before this, under the old system, Ofsted rated the school Outstanding (2021). The report card above replaces that grade.

How Ofsted report cards work

Since November 2025, Ofsted grades each area of a school on its own five-point scale, and no longer gives a single word like “Good” or “Outstanding”. Safeguarding (keeping children safe) is simply met or not met.

Exceptional The very best practice nationally
Strong standard Above what Ofsted expects
Expected standard What Ofsted expects of every school
Needs attention Some weaknesses the school needs to fix
Urgent improvement Serious weaknesses needing urgent action

“Expected standard” is a sound result – it's what Ofsted expects a good school to do. Report cards aren't directly comparable with the old single grades, which is why we don't turn them into one.

View full Ofsted inspection report

Financials

Spending per pupil: £7,320 (2024-25)

About this spending figure

A higher or lower position here isn't a sign of a better or worse school - schools have different needs and circumstances - but it can help reassure you that a school has sufficient funding behind your child's education.

4th of 4 infant schools in Canterbury for spending per pupil

#2St Alphege Church of England Infant School£7,740
#3Herne Bay Infant School£7,408
#4Herne Church of England Infant and Nursery School£7,320

Click to see the full ranking

Spending Per Pupil ranking

Based on official DfE financial return data (Consistent Financial Reporting / Academies Accounts Return) - not a ranking of school quality.

Rank School Score

#1Westmeads Community Infant School£7,759
#2St Alphege Church of England Infant School£7,740
#3Herne Bay Infant School£7,408
#4Herne Church of England Infant and Nursery School£7,320

View on the Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool (GOV.UK)

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