The Willows Primary School

West Berkshire · RG14 7SJ

General information Primary School · 2-11 years Who goes here 337 pupils, 24.6% FSM

Educational attainment Ofsted report card

Parent score Rate this school No reviews yet - be the first SEN 16.6% on SEN support Behaviour 5.7% absence rate Staff 18.8% turnover Financials £6,945 per pupil Environment Buildings and facilities

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The Willows Primary School

General Information

Address: Pyle Hill, Newbury, RG14 7SJ – View on map
Phone: 0163542155
Website: Visit school website
Headteacher: Miss Jo MacArthur
Age range: 2-11 years
Demand for places (Reception, September 2026): 37 families put it first for 53 places – 7 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 8 · 2024 9 · 2025 7 · 2026 7
Sixth form: No
Intake: Mixed
Religious character: Does not apply
Nursery provision: Yes

Who goes here

337 pupils out of 450 places Plenty of room

Pupils eligible for free school meals: 80
% eligible for free school meals: 24.6%
Pupil mix: 5 in 10 (more mixed than the West Berkshire average)
English as an additional language: 19% (England 22%)

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Teacher turnover: 18.8% a year (West Berkshire 19.2%, typical in England 13.9%)
Where they went: about 82% moved to another school, 18% 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 West Berkshire: suspensions by reason

Suspensions for sexual misconduct: 2 (0.2 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.2)
Permanent exclusions for sexual misconduct: 0
Suspensions for bullying: 6 (0.5 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.2)
Suspensions for abuse against sexual orientation or gender identity: 2 (0.2 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 West Berkshire, 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: 5.7%
Persistently absent pupils: 14.2%
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: 16.6%
Pupils with an EHC Plan: 4.2%
Data year: 2025/26

Most common needs - SEN Support

Autistic spectrum disorder: 24 pupils
Speech, language and communications needs: 19 pupils
Moderate learning difficulty: 4 pupils
Specific learning difficulty: 3 pupils
Physical disability: 2 pupils

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Speech, language and communications needs: 5 pupils
Moderate learning difficulty: 3 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 3 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 1 pupil
Multi-sensory impairment: 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 February 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 Strong standard
Attendance and behaviour Expected standard
Personal development and wellbeing Strong standard
Early years Strong standard
Leadership and governance Strong standard

Before this, under the old system, Ofsted rated the school Good (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.

Year 6 SATs results

Met the expected standard in reading, writing & maths: 66% (England 62%)
Reached the higher standard: 12% (England 8%)
Compared with the area: 9 percentage points above the West Berkshire average (57%)
Compared with schools with similar pupils: As expected (3-year average 64% against an expected 64%)
3-year average (expected standard): 64%
Expected standard by subject: Reading 81% · Writing 69% · Maths 85% · Grammar, punctuation & spelling 86%
Average test scores: reading 107, maths 107
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 schoolWest Berkshire 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 9 percentage points above the West Berkshire average (57%).

Year 6 SATs: joint 15th of 52 junior and primary schools in the area

=12The Ilsleys Primary School67%
=15Kennet Valley Primary School66%
=15The Willows Primary School66%
=17Falkland Primary School65%
=17Hungerford Primary School65%

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

=1Bradfield C.E. Primary School92%
=1Enborne C.E. Primary School92%
#3Theale C.E. Primary School89%
#4Yattendon C.E. Primary School80%
=5Robert Sandilands Primary School and Nursery77%
=5St Paul's Catholic Primary School77%
#7Birch Copse Primary School72%
#8St Finian's Catholic Primary School71%
#9Hampstead Norreys C.E. Primary School70%
=10Englefield C.E. Primary School69%
=10Springfield Primary School69%
=12Brightwalton C.E. Aided Primary School67%
=12Mortimer St Mary's C.E. Junior School67%
=12The Ilsleys Primary School67%
=15Kennet Valley Primary School66%
=15The Willows Primary School66%
=17Falkland Primary School65%
=17Hungerford Primary School65%
#19Purley CofE Primary School62%
=20Cold Ash St Mark's CE Primary School61%
=20Downsway Primary School61%
=22Hermitage Primary School60%
=22Shaw-cum-Donnington C.E. Primary School60%
#24Sulhamstead and Ufton Nervet School59%
=25Francis Baily Primary School58%
=25Westwood Farm Junior School58%
#27Whitelands Park Primary School57%
=28Pangbourne Primary School56%
=28Woolhampton C.E. Primary School56%
=30Curridge Primary School55%
=30Speenhamland School55%
=32Garland Junior School54%
=32St Nicolas C.E. Junior School54%
=32Stockcross C.E. School54%
=35Bucklebury C.E. Primary School53%
=35Fir Tree Primary School and Nursery53%
=37Calcot Junior School51%
=37Thatcham Park CofE Primary51%
=37The Winchcombe School51%
#40Burghfield St Mary's C.E. Primary School50%
#41Spurcroft Primary School49%
=42Aldermaston C.E. Primary School48%
=42Chieveley Primary School48%
=42Lambourn CofE Primary School48%
#45St Joseph's Catholic Primary School45%
#46Parsons Down Junior School39%
#47Long Lane Primary School38%
#48Welford and Wickham C.E. Primary School36%
#49Shefford C.E. Primary School33%
#50Kintbury St Mary's C.E. Primary School26%
#51Brimpton C.E. Primary School20%
#52Beenham Primary School0%

View full Ofsted inspection report

Financials

Spending per pupil: £6,945 (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.

28th of 47 primary schools in West Berkshire for spending per pupil

#26Sulhamstead and Ufton Nervet School£7,137
#27Enborne C.E. Primary School£7,084
#28The Willows Primary School£6,945
#29Fir Tree Primary School and Nursery£6,904
#30Hungerford Primary School£6,706

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

#1Beedon C.E. (Controlled) Primary School£19,851
#2Inkpen Primary School£13,916
#3Brimpton C.E. Primary School£11,685
#4Shefford C.E. Primary School£11,239
#5Beenham Primary School£11,037
#6Hampstead Norreys C.E. Primary School£10,959
#7Purley CofE Primary School£9,495
#8Stockcross C.E. School£9,394
#9Kintbury St Mary's C.E. Primary School£8,915
#10Shaw-cum-Donnington C.E. Primary School£8,623
#11Kennet Valley Primary School£8,557
#12Woolhampton C.E. Primary School£8,430
#13Lambourn CofE Primary School£8,314
#14Pangbourne Primary School£8,165
#15Brightwalton C.E. Aided Primary School£8,112
#16Curridge Primary School£8,084
#17Theale C.E. Primary School£7,940
#18Aldermaston C.E. Primary School£7,859
#19Bucklebury C.E. Primary School£7,788
#20Yattendon C.E. Primary School£7,766
#21Englefield C.E. Primary School£7,748
#22Highwood Copse Primary School£7,492
#23Hermitage Primary School£7,329
#24The Winchcombe School£7,156
#25Speenhamland School£7,149
#26Sulhamstead and Ufton Nervet School£7,137
#27Enborne C.E. Primary School£7,084
#28The Willows Primary School£6,945
#29Fir Tree Primary School and Nursery£6,904
#30Hungerford Primary School£6,706
#31Chieveley Primary School£6,659
#32St Joseph's Catholic Primary School£6,596
#33Springfield Primary School£6,565
#34Robert Sandilands Primary School and Nursery£6,564
#35Thatcham Park CofE Primary£6,408
#36Burghfield St Mary's C.E. Primary School£6,291
#37Birch Copse Primary School£6,276
#38Spurcroft Primary School£6,249
#39Bradfield C.E. Primary School£6,216
#40St Paul's Catholic Primary School£5,966
#41Long Lane Primary School£5,931
#42Downsway Primary School£5,872
#43Whitelands Park Primary School£5,869
#44Cold Ash St Mark's CE Primary School£5,825
#45St Finian's Catholic Primary School£5,680
#46Francis Baily Primary School£5,595
#47Falkland Primary School£5,564

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

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