Somerset primary schools ranked based on SATs results

The Department of Education has released the figures after thousands of children took part in exams and completed their Key Stage 2 studies in the summer earlier this year.

In Somerset, 5,888 pupils were eligible to take part across the county’s 277 state-funded schools, including maintained schools, academies and free schools.

The average percentage of pupils achieving the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 61 per cent, while the average of pupils reaching a higher standard across the three subjects was nine per cent.

The DofE also reviews how male students compare against females.

Boys across the county ranked slightly below the expected standard average, at 56 per cent, while girls ranked higher than the average at 66 per cent. Similarly, 11 per cent of girls reached a higher standard, while only seven per cent of boys did.

Somerset ranked in joint second-last across the 15 South West regions, alongside Cornwall and Dorset, with the lowest score going to the Isle Of Scilly. However, the DofE stated the figures for the Isle of Scilly only include one school so should be ‘treated with caution’.

The highest ranking areas in the South West were Bournemouth, Bath and North East Somerset, and South Gloucestershire.

In Somerset, a small village primary school has topped the tabled for the second year running.

ACHIEVEMENTS: The top ten primary schools across Somerset, as based on the percentage of pupils reaching 'expected' marks in their summer SATs tests 

Stawley Primary School, near Wellington, is the only school in the county to have achieved 100 per cent of its pupils reaching the expected standard.

Jacqui Collier, headteacher said: “I am so proud of yet another fantastic set of achievements by our happy, caring children. These truly impressive results are a reflection of the dedication and hard work of our staff and children.

“The school benefits from small class sizes and a very experienced staff team who strive to constantly engage our children with their learning and extra-curricular activities in fun ways.

“Our focused approach to supporting each child individually to make the best progress possible for them has ensured that they have succeeded. The school has been taking part in several targeted improvement programmes including the 2018-20 Strategic School Improvement Fund Key Stage 2 Maths Improvement Programme supported by the Department of Education and an Accelerated Reader programme.”

PROUD: Stawley Primary School pupils 

The school says it sees success across a broad range of subjects, which features art, music and sports.

Ms Collier added: “We work hard to ensure that every pupil follows an individual programme of learning and enjoys a broad education with plenty of opportunity to engage in sport and extra- curricular activities.

“The school has had great success in sport and our kwik cricket team has been reigning small schools kwik cricket champions for seven years in a row. We have also been Small Schools girls kwik cricket, tag rugby and netball champions in recent years.

“Art and music also play a big part in our curriculum with many children learning to play musical instruments and all of our children producing some truly impressive artistic work.

“Staff and children have also taken part in the teachers rock youth choir and put on regular music and drama performances for parents. Other recent activities include a trip to Stonehenge and a visit to school by Sophie the Tyrannosaurus Rex as part of a dedicated workshop on dinosaurs and fossils.

“I would like to thank our staff, pupils, parents and governors for all their effort and support and look forward to continuing our success in coming years”

The village primary, which had 10 pupils at the end of KS2, also ranked the highest in the progress score for reading and for maths, achieving a 5.6 mark and 5.1 respectively.

The school with the highest progress sccore for writing was Abbas and Templecombe Church of England Primary School with 5.1.

Stawley was also joint top for the highest average mark in reading, scoring 111 alongside Norton Fitzwarren Primary School, near Taunton.

Kirsti Neilson, headteacher of Norton Fitzwarren Primary School, said: “We are extremely pleased with the results achieved as we pride ourselves on being a ‘reading school’ where reading for pleasure is at the heart of our education. “We recently won a completion where parents where asked to review reading at their child’s school. The winning review sums up our school perfectly.”

The review said: “Our school is special as its values are reflected in every day’s work of great teachers and committed, hardworking pupils. Everyone is looked after, encouraged to strive for the best, feels accepted no matter what their religion, nationality or ability is. And we love reading and creating our own stories.”

The highest average mark for maths was earned by Spaxton CofE Primary School, near Bridgwater, with a mark of 112.

Luke Perry, head of school at Spaxton Primary, explained how it’s harder to maintain a high percentage with a small number of students, but their individually-focus approach is effective.

He said: “We are very happy with our results and are exceedingly proud of the children who demonstrated their amazing skills in the year 6 SATs, especially in maths.

“As a small school, maintaining high results is a challenge as each child holds such a high percentage.

“Instead, we try our best to focus on the individuals and tailor our teaching to fit their needs. Our primary aim is to always provide our children with the skills needed to move forward.”

In terms of achieving higher marks than expected, Preston CofE Primary School, near Yeovil, topped the tables, with 35 per cent of its 60 pupils receiving higher grades than projected.

Click here to view the full list of schools across Somerset and their ranking

The schools can be ranked on a number of different factors, however, our table shows the 100 per cent of expected achievement from highest to lowest.

Somerset County Council was asked to comment on the county’s figures, and how it compares to the rest of the South West, but no one was available to respond.