Runwell Community Primary School
Canewdon Gardens, Runwell, Wickford, SS11 7BJ
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 2 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- THE CHELMSFORD LEARNING PARTNERSHIP
- Headteacher
- Mrs Charlotte Castle
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Sponsor
- The Chelmsford Learning Partnership
- Constituency
- Maldon
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 420
- Pupils on roll
- 362
- URN
- 137054
- Local authority
- Essex
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01268735329
About this school
Runwell Community Primary School is a primary academy in Wickford. It teaches children aged 2 to 11 and has 362 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Runwell Community Primary School, and its latest judgement is set out 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
Ofsted did not give an overall grade. Between September 2024 and September 2025 inspections graded each area of a school's work without a single overall judgement, ahead of the move to report cards. How Ofsted report cards work
- Quality of education
- Good
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Requires improvement
- Personal development
- Good
- Leadership and management
- Good
- Early years
- Good
- 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 | 60 | 45 | 57 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 61% | 40% | 53% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 5% | 2% | 4% |
| Expected standard in reading | 67% | 69% | 79% |
| Expected standard in maths | 73% | 49% | 67% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 58% | 64% | 72% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 103.0 | 102.0 | 105.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 103.0 | 100.0 | 101.0 |
| Reading progress | -0.80 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +1.70 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -0.60 | - | - |
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 Runwell Community 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 | Essex average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 61% | 58.9% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 40% | 59.5% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 53% | 60.7% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 6.1% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 5.4% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5.3% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 404 |
| 2023/24 | 414 |
| 2024/25 | 419 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Runwell Community Primary School compares
Runwell Community Primary School ranked 299th of 388 primary schools in Essex for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 26% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 54% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 53% | 5.3% | 20.9% | 362 | — |
| The Wickford Church of England School | — | 3.9% | 10.5% | 135 | 0.7 miles |
| Wickford Primary School | 52% | 5.8% | 21.6% | 472 | 0.7 miles |
| Hilltop Infant School | — | 5% | 8.6% | 237 | 0.9 miles |
| Hilltop Junior School | 67% | 4.9% | 15.3% | 352 | 0.9 miles |
| North Crescent Primary School | 68% | 8.1% | 36.5% | 216 | 0.9 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
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 20.87%
- English as an additional language
- 3.8%
- Overall absence
- 5.28%
- Persistent absence
- 12.96%
Location
Nearby schools
-
The Wickford Church of England School0.7 miles
Primary · Wickford
-
Wickford Primary School0.7 miles
Primary · Wickford
-
Hilltop Infant School0.9 miles
Primary · Wickford
-
Hilltop Junior School0.9 miles
Primary · Wickford
-
North Crescent Primary School0.9 miles
Primary · Wickford
Other schools in Wickford
Runwell Community Primary School ranks 6th of the 7 ranked primary schools in Wickford.
- Abacus Primary School Primary
- Grange Primary School Primary
- Hilltop Infant School Primary
- Hilltop Junior School Primary
- North Crescent Primary School Primary
- Oakfield Primary School Primary
- St Luke's Park Primary School Primary
- The Wickford Church of England School Primary
- Wickford Primary School Primary
- Beauchamps High School Secondary
- The Bromfords School Secondary
- Castledon School Academies
Common questions
- What ages does Runwell Community Primary School teach?
- Runwell Community Primary School teaches children aged 2 to 11. It is a primary school in Wickford.
- Who is the headteacher of Runwell Community Primary School?
- The headteacher of Runwell Community Primary School is Mrs Charlotte Castle, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Runwell Community Primary School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Runwell Community 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 many pupils are at Runwell Community Primary School?
- Runwell Community Primary School has 362 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 2 to 11.
- Is Runwell Community Primary School full?
- Runwell Community Primary School has capacity for 420 pupils and 362 on roll (86%), so it has space against 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 Runwell Community Primary School a faith school?
- No. Runwell Community Primary School has no designated religious character.
- Does Runwell Community Primary School have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records Runwell Community Primary School as having nursery classes.
- Is Runwell Community Primary School part of an academy trust?
- Runwell Community Primary School is part of THE CHELMSFORD LEARNING PARTNERSHIP. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Runwell Community Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 61% in 2022/23 and 53% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Runwell Community Primary School compare with other schools in Essex?
- Runwell Community Primary School ranked 299th of 388 primary schools in Essex for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 26% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 54% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Runwell Community Primary School's absence rate?
- Runwell Community Primary School's overall absence rate is 5.3% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Runwell Community Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Runwell Community 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 1 July 2026.