Watton Junior School

Breckland · IP25 6AL

General information Junior School · 7-11 years Who goes here 311 pupils, 28.9% FSM

Educational attainment Ofsted and results

Parent score Rate this school No reviews yet - be the first SEN 18.6% on SEN support Behaviour 5.9% absence rate Staff 20.4% turnover Financials £7,151 per pupil Environment Buildings and facilities

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Watton Junior School

General Information

Address: Brandon Road, Thetford, IP25 6AL – View on map
Phone: 01953881387
Website: Visit school website
Headteacher: Mr Liam Ambrose
Age range: 7-11 years
Intake: Mixed
Religious character: None
Nursery provision: No

Who goes here

311 pupils out of 300 places At or near capacity

Pupils eligible for free school meals: 90
% eligible for free school meals: 28.9%
Pupil mix: 6 in 10 (more mixed than the Breckland average)
English as an additional language: 41% (England 22%)

Staff

Teachers leaving each year

Teacher turnover: 20.4% a year (Breckland 20%, typical in England 13.9%)
Where they went: about 51% moved to another school, 49% 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 Norfolk: suspensions by reason

Suspensions for sexual misconduct: 26 (0.4 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.2)
Permanent exclusions for sexual misconduct: 0
Suspensions for bullying: 12 (0.2 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.2)
Suspensions for abuse against sexual orientation or gender identity: 5 (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 Norfolk (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: 5.9%
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: 18.6%
Pupils with an EHC Plan: 6.4%
Data year: 2025/26

Most common needs - SEN Support

Moderate learning difficulty: 38 pupils
Speech, language and communications needs: 10 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 8 pupils
Specific learning difficulty: 1 pupil
Autistic spectrum disorder: 1 pupil

Most common needs - EHC Plan

Moderate learning difficulty: 9 pupils
Speech, language and communications needs: 5 pupils
Social, emotional and mental health: 4 pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder: 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

No overall grade given 2025 report

About this Ofsted rating

Ofsted stopped giving single overall grades for a period between September 2024 and November 2025 - this school's most recent inspection falls in that window, so there's no single rating to show, even though it was inspected. The full report (linked below) still has the detail.

Year 6 SATs results

Met the expected standard in reading, writing & maths: 31% (England 62%)
Reached the higher standard: 1% (England 8%)
Compared with the area: 20 percentage points below the Breckland average (51%)
Compared with schools with similar pupils: Well below (3-year average 23% against an expected 62%)
3-year average (expected standard): 23%
Expected standard by subject: Reading 49% · Writing 40% · Maths 44% · Grammar, punctuation & spelling 46%
Average test scores: reading 100, maths 99
Based on: 68 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 schoolBreckland averageEngland↗ Improving Up 11 percentage points since 2022/23. In 2024/25 this school was 20 percentage points below the Breckland average (51%).

Year 6 SATs: 37th of 43 junior and primary schools in the area

=34Sporle Church of England Primary Academy38%
#36North Elmham Church of England Primary Academy & Nursery33%
#37Watton Junior School31%
#38St Mary's Community Primary School, Beetley28%
#39The Bishop's Church of England Primary Academy27%

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

#1Thomas Bullock Church of England Primary and Nursery Academy96%
#2Lyng Church of England Primary Academy81%
#3Rocklands Community Primary School79%
#4Yaxham Church of England Primary Academy76%
=5Garvestone Community Primary School70%
=5Redcastle Family School70%
#7Great Ellingham Primary School68%
#8Hockering Church of England Primary Academy67%
=9Great Hockham Primary School and Nursery65%
=9Old Buckenham Primary School65%
=11Kenninghall Primary School63%
=11Litcham School63%
#13Mundford Church of England Primary Academy60%
#14Dereham, Toftwood Community Junior School59%
=15Brisley Church of England Primary Academy58%
=15Garboldisham Church of England Primary Academy58%
=15Necton VA Primary School58%
=15Norwich Road Academy58%
=19Admirals Academy57%
=19Scarning Voluntary Controlled Primary School57%
=19Thompson Primary School57%
#22Dereham Church of England Junior Academy54%
=23Ashill Voluntary Controlled Primary School53%
=23Banham Primary School53%
#25St Peter and St Paul Church of England Primary Academy & Nursery52%
#26Queensway Junior Academy51%
#27Colkirk Church of England Primary Academy50%
#28Weeting Church of England Primary School47%
#29Mattishall Primary School45%
#30Narborough Church of England Primary Academy44%
#31Swaffham CofE Primary Academy41%
=32Drake Primary School40%
=32East Harling Primary School and Nursery40%
=34Heartwood CofE VC Primary & Nursery School38%
=34Sporle Church of England Primary Academy38%
#36North Elmham Church of England Primary Academy & Nursery33%
#37Watton Junior School31%
#38St Mary's Community Primary School, Beetley28%
#39The Bishop's Church of England Primary Academy27%
#40Parker's Church of England Primary Academy25%
#41Swanton Morley VC Primary School21%
#42Bawdeswell Community Primary School18%
#43Swaffham Meadow Primary School0%

View full Ofsted inspection report

Financials

Spending per pupil: £7,151 (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.

2nd of 5 junior schools in Breckland for spending per pupil

#1Queensway Junior Academy£9,126
#2Watton Junior School£7,151
#3Admirals Academy£6,040
#4Dereham, Toftwood Community Junior School£6,037

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

#1Queensway Junior Academy£9,126
#2Watton Junior School£7,151
#3Admirals Academy£6,040
#4Dereham, Toftwood Community Junior School£6,037
#5Dereham Church of England Junior Academy£6,003

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

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