Bidborough Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School
Spring Lane, Bidborough, Tunbridge Wells, TN3 0UE
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Voluntary controlled school
- Ages
- 4 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Headteacher
- Mrs Julie Burton
- Diocese
- Diocese of Rochester
- Constituency
- Tunbridge Wells
- Setting
- Urban: Further from a major town or city
- Capacity
- 210
- Pupils on roll
- 200
- URN
- 118598
- Local authority
- Kent
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01892529333
About this school
Bidborough Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School is a Church of England voluntary controlled primary school in Tunbridge Wells. It teaches children aged 4 to 11 and has 200 pupils on roll.
You can read Ofsted's latest judgement for the school below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Numbers and a report only go so far, so visit in person before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Confirmed by a short inspection, not a full one
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 10 November 2022, where inspectors confirmed the school remains Good. The school's last full inspection took place before September 2019, so its area grades are not part of Ofsted's current published data. Older reports are on the school's Ofsted page.
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 30 | 30 | 29 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 70% | 77% | 79% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 13% | 20% | 3% |
| Expected standard in reading | 80% | 87% | 93% |
| Expected standard in maths | 70% | 80% | 83% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 77% | 77% | 86% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 109.0 | 109.0 | 110.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 105.0 | 107.0 | 105.0 |
| Reading progress | +2.40 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +1.40 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -0.30 | - | - |
Progress measures ended nationally after the 2022/23 school year, when the key stage 1 assessments they were based on were stopped. Blank progress figures in later years are not missing school data.
Trends over time
How Bidborough Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Kent average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 70% | 58.3% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 77% | 60.2% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 79% | 60.8% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 5% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.6% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 3.7% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 207 |
| 2023/24 | 205 |
| 2024/25 | 197 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Bidborough Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School compares
Bidborough Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School ranked 69th of 427 primary schools in Kent for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 86% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 91% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 79% | 3.7% | 5.1% | 200 | — |
| Southborough CofE Primary School | 73% | 5.3% | 15.5% | 631 | 1.0 miles |
| Speldhurst Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School | 81% | 4% | 6.1% | 212 | 1.4 miles |
| St Augustine's Catholic Primary School | 56% | 4.7% | 20.1% | 241 | 1.7 miles |
| St Matthew's High Brooms Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School | 59% | 6.9% | 49% | 293 | 1.7 miles |
| St John's Church of England Primary School | 70% | 3.6% | 10.6% | 633 | 1.8 miles |
Results reflect each school's cohort as much as its teaching, and free school meals share is context, not a judgement. Small gaps between neighbouring schools are rarely meaningful on their own.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 5.08%
- English as an additional language
- 11.2%
- Overall absence
- 3.66%
- Persistent absence
- 5.56%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Southborough CofE Primary School1.0 miles
Primary · Tunbridge Wells
-
Speldhurst Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School1.4 miles
Primary · Tunbridge Wells
-
St Augustine's Catholic Primary School1.7 miles
Primary · Tunbridge Wells
-
St Matthew's High Brooms Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School1.7 miles
Primary · Tunbridge Wells
-
St John's Church of England Primary School1.8 miles
Primary · Tunbridge Wells
Other schools in Tunbridge Wells
Bidborough Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School ranks 4th of the 23 ranked primary schools in Tunbridge Wells.
- Bishops Down Primary and Nursery School Primary
- Broadwater Down Primary School Primary
- Claremont Primary School Primary
- Fordcombe Church of England Primary School Primary
- Frant Church of England Primary School Primary
- Groombridge St Thomas' Church of England Primary School Primary
- Lamberhurst St Mary's CofE (Voluntary Controlled) Primary School Primary
- Langton Green Primary School Primary
- Pembury School Primary
- Rusthall St Paul's CofE Primary School Primary
- Skinners' Kent Primary School Primary
- Skinners' Temple Grove Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does Bidborough Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School teach?
- Bidborough Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School teaches children aged 4 to 11. It is a primary school in Tunbridge Wells.
- Who is the headteacher of Bidborough Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School?
- The headteacher of Bidborough Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School is Mrs Julie Burton, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Bidborough Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Bidborough Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How big is Bidborough Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School?
- Bidborough Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School has 200 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 11.
- Is Bidborough Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School full?
- Bidborough Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School has capacity for 210 pupils and 200 on roll (95%), so it is close to full. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Bidborough Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School a faith school?
- Yes. Bidborough Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School is designated Church of England, in the Diocese of Rochester.
- Does Bidborough Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records Bidborough Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School as having no nursery classes.
- How have Bidborough Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 70% in 2022/23 and 79% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Bidborough Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School rank locally?
- Bidborough Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School ranked 69th of 427 primary schools in Kent for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 86% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 91% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Bidborough Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School's absence rate?
- Bidborough Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School's overall absence rate is 3.7% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Bidborough Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Bidborough Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School's key stage results are shown in the results section on this page, with the last three years so you can see the trend rather than a single year.
School details come from the Department for Education's Get Information About Schools register. Inspection outcomes come from Ofsted, and exam results from the Department for Education's school performance service. This page was last updated on 30 June 2026.