Southwood Primary School

Barking and Dagenham · RM9 5LT

General information Primary School · 3-11 years Who goes here 593 pupils, 28.9% FSM

Parent score Rate this school No reviews yet - be the first SEN 19.6% on SEN support Behaviour 5.9% absence rate Staff 8.2% turnover Financials £8,094 per pupil Environment Buildings and facilities

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Southwood Primary School

General Information

Address: Keppel Road, Dagenham, RM9 5LT – View on map
Phone: 02082704915
Website: Visit school website
Headteacher: Mr Scott Halliwell
Age range: 3-11 years
Demand for places (Reception, September 2026): 56 families put it first for 57 places – 10 for every 10 places. Every one of them was offered a place. No places went to families living outside the council area. Children putting it first, for every 10 places: 2023 10 · 2024 10 · 2025 9 · 2026 10
Sixth form: No
Intake: Mixed
Religious character: Does not apply
Nursery provision: Yes

Who goes here

593 pupils out of 630 places

Pupils eligible for free school meals: 164
% eligible for free school meals: 28.9%
Pupil mix: 8 in 10 (similar to the Barking and Dagenham average)
English as an additional language: 59% (England 22%)

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Teacher turnover: 8.2% a year (Barking and Dagenham 13.8%, typical in England 13.9%) Low turnover
Where they went: about 23% moved to another school, 77% 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 Barking and Dagenham: suspensions by reason

Suspensions for sexual misconduct: 1 (0.0 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.2)
Permanent exclusions for sexual misconduct: 0
Suspensions for bullying: 1 (0.0 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 Barking and Dagenham, 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: 5.9%
Persistently absent pupils: 19.4%
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: 19.6%
Pupils with an EHC Plan: 2.7%
Data year: 2025/26

Most common needs - SEN Support

Speech, language and communications needs: 59 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 25 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 14 pupils
SEN support but no specialist assessment of type of need: 5 pupils
Moderate learning difficulty: 5 pupils

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Autistic spectrum disorder: 11 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 2 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 2023 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: 56% (England 62%)
Reached the higher standard: 7% (England 8%)
Compared with the area: 11 percentage points below the Barking and Dagenham average (67%)
Compared with schools with similar pupils: Below (3-year average 54% against an expected 62%)
3-year average (expected standard): 54%
Expected standard by subject: Reading 66% · Writing 76% · Maths 71% · Grammar, punctuation & spelling 68%
Average test scores: reading 103, maths 103
Based on: 59 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 schoolBarking and Dagenham averageEngland→ Broadly steady No clear rise or fall since 2022/23 (changes this small are normal from one year group to the next). In 2024/25 this school was 11 percentage points below the Barking and Dagenham average (67%).

Year 6 SATs: joint 39th of 43 junior and primary schools in the area

#38Dorothy Barley Junior Academy57%
=39Grafton Primary School56%
=39Southwood Primary School56%
#41Becontree Primary School53%
#42Rose Lane Primary School48%

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

=1Rush Green Primary School89%
=1St Margarets CofE Primary School89%
#3Riverside Primary School87%
#4Eastbury Community School84%
=5St Joseph's Catholic Primary School83%
=5The St Teresa Catholic Primary School83%
=5The Sydney Russell School83%
=8St Peter's Catholic Primary School79%
=8Warren Junior School79%
#10Manor Junior School78%
#11Henry Green Primary School77%
=12Beam Primary School76%
=12Monteagle Primary School76%
#14Goresbrook School75%
=15Ripple Primary School73%
=15Thomas Arnold Primary School, Rowdowns Road73%
=17Hunters Hall Primary School72%
=17John Perry Primary School72%
=17Richard Alibon Primary School with ARP for Cognitive and Learning Difficulties : SEN Base72%
#20Godwin Primary School71%
=21George Carey Church of England Primary School70%
=21Parsloes Primary School70%
=21The Leys Primary School70%
#24Northbury Primary School69%
=25St Joseph's Catholic Primary School67%
=25Thames View Junior School67%
=25William Ford CofE Junior School67%
=28St Vincent's Catholic Primary School66%
=28The James Cambell Primary School66%
#30Eastbrook School65%
#31Manor Primary School64%
=32Five Elms Primary School61%
=32William Bellamy Primary School61%
#34Valence Primary School60%
=35Gascoigne Primary School59%
=35Roding Primary School59%
#37Marsh Green Primary School58%
#38Dorothy Barley Junior Academy57%
=39Grafton Primary School56%
=39Southwood Primary School56%
#41Becontree Primary School53%
#42Rose Lane Primary School48%
#43Eastbury Primary School45%

View full Ofsted inspection report

20th of 30 primary schools in Barking and Dagenham for Ofsted rating

#18Roding Primary SchoolGood
#19Rush Green Primary SchoolGood
#20Southwood Primary SchoolGood
#21St Joseph's Catholic Primary SchoolGood
#22St Joseph's Catholic Primary SchoolGood

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

#1Grafton Primary SchoolOutstanding
#2Beam Primary SchoolGood
#3Becontree Primary SchoolGood
#4Eastbury Primary SchoolGood
#5Five Elms Primary SchoolGood
#6Gascoigne Primary SchoolGood
#7George Carey Church of England Primary SchoolGood
#8Godwin Primary SchoolGood
#9Henry Green Primary SchoolGood
#10Hunters Hall Primary SchoolGood
#11John Perry Primary SchoolGood
#12Manor Primary SchoolGood
#13Marsh Green Primary SchoolGood
#14Parsloes Primary SchoolGood
#15Richard Alibon Primary School with ARP for Cognitive and Learning Difficulties : SEN BaseGood
#16Ripple Primary SchoolGood
#17Riverside Primary SchoolGood
#18Roding Primary SchoolGood
#19Rush Green Primary SchoolGood
#20Southwood Primary SchoolGood
#21St Joseph's Catholic Primary SchoolGood
#22St Joseph's Catholic Primary SchoolGood
#23St Margarets CofE Primary SchoolGood
#24St Peter's Catholic Primary SchoolGood
#25The James Cambell Primary SchoolGood
#26The Leys Primary SchoolGood
#27Thomas Arnold Primary School, Rowdowns RoadGood
#28Valence Primary SchoolGood
#29William Bellamy Primary SchoolGood
#30Rose Lane Primary SchoolRequires improvement

Financials

Spending per pupil: £8,094 (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.

21st of 35 primary schools in Barking and Dagenham for spending per pupil

#19Manor Primary School£8,289
#20William Bellamy Primary School£8,198
#21Southwood Primary School£8,094
#22The St Teresa Catholic Primary School£8,050
#23John Perry Primary School£7,987

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

#1Greatfields Primary School£20,200
#2Thomas Arnold Primary School, Rowdowns Road£9,454
#3Beam Primary School£9,414
#4Monteagle Primary School£9,349
#5St Joseph's Catholic Primary School£9,251
#6Valence Primary School£9,186
#7Five Elms Primary School£9,152
#8George Carey Church of England Primary School£8,879
#9St Peter's Catholic Primary School£8,872
#10Roding Primary School£8,857
#11Rose Lane Primary School£8,648
#12Godwin Primary School£8,546
#13Ripple Primary School£8,505
#14Becontree Primary School£8,447
#15Parsloes Primary School£8,438
#16Richard Alibon Primary School with ARP for Cognitive and Learning Difficulties : SEN Base£8,335
#17Northbury Primary School£8,328
#18St Vincent's Catholic Primary School£8,326
#19Manor Primary School£8,289
#20William Bellamy Primary School£8,198
#21Southwood Primary School£8,094
#22The St Teresa Catholic Primary School£8,050
#23John Perry Primary School£7,987
#24Hunters Hall Primary School£7,915
#25The Leys Primary School£7,902
#26St Joseph's Catholic Primary School£7,838
#27Rush Green Primary School£7,805
#28Marsh Green Primary School£7,696
#29Grafton Primary School£7,676
#30Henry Green Primary School£7,507
#31Gascoigne Primary School£7,448
#32Eastbury Primary School£7,430
#33The James Cambell Primary School£7,399
#34St Margarets CofE Primary School£7,096
#35Riverside Primary School£6,000

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

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