John Ray Junior School

Braintree · CM7 1HL

General information Junior School · 7-11 years Who goes here 439 pupils, 30.3% FSM

Parent score Rate this school No reviews yet - be the first SEN 20.3% on SEN support Behaviour 5.5% absence rate Staff 13.4% turnover Financials £5,227 per pupil Environment Buildings and facilities

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John Ray Junior School

General Information

Address: Notley Road, Braintree, CM7 1HL – View on map
Phone: 01376324107
Website: Visit school website
Headteacher: Miss Karen Harrison
Age range: 7-11 years
Sixth form: No
Intake: Mixed
Religious character: Does not apply
Nursery provision: No

Who goes here

439 pupils out of 432 places At or near capacity

Pupils eligible for free school meals: 133
% eligible for free school meals: 30.3%
Pupil mix: 5 in 10 (more mixed than the Braintree average)
English as an additional language: 17% (England 22%)

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Teacher turnover: 13.4% a year (Braintree 16.1%, typical in England 13.9%)
Where they went: about 74% moved to another school, 26% 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.

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 Essex: suspensions by reason

Suspensions for sexual misconduct: 28 (0.2 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.2)
Permanent exclusions for sexual misconduct: 0
Suspensions for bullying: 17 (0.1 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.2)
Suspensions for abuse against sexual orientation or gender identity: 7 (0.1 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 Essex (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: 14.1%
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: 20.3%
Pupils with an EHC Plan: 3.2%
Data year: 2025/26

Most common needs - SEN Support

Social, emotional and mental health: 32 pupils
Speech, language and communications needs: 20 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 17 pupils
Moderate learning difficulty: 6 pupils
Other difficulty or disability: 6 pupils

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Autistic spectrum disorder: 7 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 4 pupils
Speech, language and communications needs: 2 pupils
Physical 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

Good 2020 report

About this Ofsted rating

Ofsted changed how it rates schools in the last couple of years, so ratings from different years aren't always on the same scale - that's why we show the year alongside every rating.

Year 6 SATs results

Met the expected standard in reading, writing & maths: 62% (England 62%)
Reached the higher standard: 6% (England 8%)
Compared with the area: in line with the Braintree average (62%)
Compared with schools with similar pupils: Below (3-year average 58% against an expected 64%)
3-year average (expected standard): 58%
Expected standard by subject: Reading 76% · Writing 72% · Maths 72% · Grammar, punctuation & spelling 72%
Average test scores: reading 105, maths 103
Based on: 108 Year 6 pupils, 2024/25

View the School Context Comparator – how this school's SATs results compare with schools teaching similar pupils.

SATs results over time

This schoolBraintree averageEngland↗ Improving Up 7 percentage points since 2022/23. In 2024/25 this school was in line with the Braintree average (62%).

Year 6 SATs: joint 23rd of 45 junior and primary schools in the area

#22White Court School64%
=23Bocking Primary School62%
=23John Ray Junior School62%
=25Beckers Green Primary School60%
=25Holy Trinity Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Halstead60%

Click to see the full ranking

Year 6 SATs ranking

Junior and primary schools in this area, ranked by the % of Year 6 pupils meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths (official DfE results, 2024/25). Schools with the same result share a place (shown as =). In small schools one or two children can move a school several places, so treat close positions as roughly equal.

Rank School Score

#1Wethersfield CofE VC Primary School88%
=2Shalford Primary School87%
=2St Andrew's Church of England Primary School, Great Yeldham87%
#4Hatfield Peverel St Andrew's Junior School84%
#5St Francis Catholic Primary School, Braintree83%
#6St Andrew's Church of England Primary School, Halstead82%
#7Cressing Primary School79%
#8Ridgewell Church of England Primary School77%
=9Lyons Hall School73%
=9White Notley Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School73%
=11Feering Church of England Primary School72%
=11Kelvedon St Mary's Church of England Primary Academy72%
=11Witham Oaks Academy72%
#14Steeple Bumpstead Primary School71%
=15de Vere Primary School70%
=15Holy Family Catholic Primary School70%
#17St Peter's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Coggeshall68%
=18Chipping Hill Primary School67%
=18Rivenhall Church of England Primary School67%
=18St Giles' Church of England Primary School67%
#21Notley Green Primary School66%
#22White Court School64%
=23Bocking Primary School62%
=23John Ray Junior School62%
=25Beckers Green Primary School60%
=25Holy Trinity Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Halstead60%
=25St Andrew's Bulmer Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School60%
=28St Margaret's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School Toppesfield57%
=28Terling Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School57%
#30Great Bradfords Junior School56%
=31John Bunyan Primary School and Nursery55%
=31St Peter's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, Sible Hedingham55%
#33Earls Colne Primary School and Nursery54%
#34St Michael's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School52%
#35Howbridge Church of England Junior School51%
#36St John the Baptist Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School Pebmarsh50%
=37Elm Hall Primary School48%
=37Rayne Primary and Nursery School48%
=37Richard de Clare Community Academy48%
#40Stisted Church of England Primary Academy47%
=41Great Bardfield Primary School45%
=41Silver End Academy45%
#43Templars Academy42%
#44Gosfield Community Primary School35%
#45Colne Engaine Church of England Primary School28%

View full Ofsted inspection report

3rd of 4 junior schools in Braintree for Ofsted rating

#1Great Bradfords Junior SchoolGood
#2Howbridge Church of England Junior SchoolGood
#3John Ray Junior SchoolGood
#4Witham Oaks AcademyGood

Click to see the full ranking

Ofsted Rating ranking

Based on real Ofsted ratings (via official DfE data) for schools on the same four-word grading scale.

Rank School Score

#1Great Bradfords Junior SchoolGood
#2Howbridge Church of England Junior SchoolGood
#3John Ray Junior SchoolGood
#4Witham Oaks AcademyGood

Financials

Spending per pupil: £5,227 (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.

5th of 5 junior schools in Braintree for spending per pupil

#3Witham Oaks Academy£5,956
#4Howbridge Church of England Junior School£5,779
#5John Ray Junior School£5,227

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

#1Hatfield Peverel St Andrew's Junior School£6,800
#2Great Bradfords Junior School£6,692
#3Witham Oaks Academy£5,956
#4Howbridge Church of England Junior School£5,779
#5John Ray Junior School£5,227

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

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