R A Butler Junior School
South Road, Saffron Walden, CB11 3DG
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 7 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- None
- Trust
- SAFFRON ACADEMY TRUST
- Executive Headteacher
- Emma Vincent
- Sponsor
- Saffron Academy Trust
- Constituency
- North West Essex
- Setting
- Urban: Further from a major town or city
- Capacity
- 384
- Pupils on roll
- 384
- URN
- 136328
- Local authority
- Essex
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01799523651
About this school
R A Butler Junior School is a primary academy in Saffron Walden. It teaches children aged 7 to 11 and has 384 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected R A Butler Junior School, and its latest judgement is set out below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Seeing a school for yourself shows what no page can, so arrange a visit before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Overall judgement at the last full inspection
This inspection took place under the previous framework, which gave a single overall grade. Ofsted now publishes report cards instead, so newer inspections of other schools will look different. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Outstanding
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Outstanding
- Personal development
- Outstanding
- Leadership and management
- Outstanding
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 90 | 94 | 95 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 73% | 80% | 82% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 24% | 29% | 33% |
| Expected standard in reading | 88% | 88% | 93% |
| Expected standard in maths | 86% | 87% | 93% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 88% | 84% | 91% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 109.0 | 109.0 | 110.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 107.0 | 109.0 | 109.0 |
| Reading progress | +2.00 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +0.50 | - | - |
| Maths progress | +0.70 | - | - |
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 R A Butler Junior 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 | Essex average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 73% | 58.9% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 80% | 59.5% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 82% | 60.7% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 4.5% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.5% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 3.1% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 365 |
| 2023/24 | 384 |
| 2024/25 | 384 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How R A Butler Junior School compares
R A Butler Junior School ranked 35th of 388 primary schools in Essex for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 90% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 98% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 82% | 3.1% | 12% | 384 | — |
| R A Butler Infant School | — | 3.3% | 9.2% | 271 | 0.0 miles |
| St Thomas More Catholic Primary School, Saffron Walden | 94% | 3.1% | 2.4% | 206 | 0.1 miles |
| St Mary's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School | 65% | 4.9% | 18.9% | 224 | 0.5 miles |
| Katherine Semar Infant School | — | 3.7% | 10.6% | 180 | 0.7 miles |
| Katherine Semar Junior School | 79% | 3.1% | 12.9% | 256 | 0.7 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.
Inspection history
- 8 May 2024
-
Ungraded inspection report23 November 2022
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 11.98%
- English as an additional language
- 15.4%
- Overall absence
- 3.05%
- Persistent absence
- 2.07%
Location
Nearby schools
-
R A Butler Infant School0.0 miles
Primary · Saffron Walden
-
St Thomas More Catholic Primary School, Saffron Walden0.1 miles
Primary · Saffron Walden
-
St Mary's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School0.5 miles
Primary · Saffron Walden
-
Katherine Semar Infant School0.7 miles
Primary · Saffron Walden
-
Katherine Semar Junior School0.7 miles
Primary · Saffron Walden
Other schools in Saffron Walden
R A Butler Junior School ranks 4th of the 11 ranked primary schools in Saffron Walden.
- Ashdon Primary School Primary
- Clavering Primary School Primary
- Debden Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary Academy Primary
- Great Chesterford Church of England Primary Academy Primary
- Great Sampford Community Primary School Primary
- Katherine Semar Infant School Primary
- Katherine Semar Junior School Primary
- R A Butler Infant School Primary
- Radwinter Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School Primary
- Rickling Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School Primary
- St Mary's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School Primary
- St Thomas More Catholic Primary School, Saffron Walden Primary
Common questions
- What ages does R A Butler Junior School teach?
- R A Butler Junior School teaches children aged 7 to 11. It is a primary school in Saffron Walden.
- Who is the executive headteacher of R A Butler Junior School?
- The executive headteacher of R A Butler Junior School is Emma Vincent, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has R A Butler Junior School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected R A Butler Junior 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 many pupils are at R A Butler Junior School?
- R A Butler Junior School has 384 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 7 to 11.
- Is R A Butler Junior School full?
- R A Butler Junior School has capacity for 384 pupils and 384 on roll (100%), so it is at or above its published capacity. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is R A Butler Junior School a faith school?
- No. R A Butler Junior School has no designated religious character.
- Does R A Butler Junior School have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records R A Butler Junior School as having no nursery classes.
- Is R A Butler Junior School part of an academy trust?
- R A Butler Junior School is part of SAFFRON ACADEMY TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have R A Butler Junior School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 73% in 2022/23 and 82% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does R A Butler Junior School compare with other schools in Essex?
- R A Butler Junior School ranked 35th of 388 primary schools in Essex for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 90% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 98% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is R A Butler Junior School's absence rate?
- R A Butler Junior School's overall absence rate is 3.1% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are R A Butler Junior School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, R A Butler Junior 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 2 July 2026.