Churchwood Primary School
Church-in-the-Wood Lane, St Leonards-on-Sea, TN38 9PB
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 2 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- THE PIONEER ACADEMY
- Headteacher
- Mr Rob Smith
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Sponsor
- The Pioneer Academy
- SEN provision
- ASD - Autistic Spectrum Disorder
- Constituency
- Hastings and Rye
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 215
- Pupils on roll
- 241
- URN
- 141261
- Local authority
- East Sussex
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01424852326
About this school
Churchwood Primary School is a primary academy in St Leonards-on-Sea. It teaches children aged 2 to 11 and has 241 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
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
- Good
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Good
- Personal development
- Outstanding
- Leadership and management
- Good
- Early years
- 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 | 29 | 29 | 28 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 34% | 34% | 46% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Expected standard in reading | 48% | 55% | 68% |
| Expected standard in maths | 55% | 41% | 46% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 52% | 48% | 54% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 101.0 | 99.0 | 102.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 102.0 | 98.0 | 97.0 |
| Reading progress | -3.30 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -2.50 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -1.50 | - | - |
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 Churchwood 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 | East Sussex average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 34% | 54.8% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 34% | 56.2% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 46% | 57.6% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 7.6% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 8.1% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 7.4% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 245 |
| 2023/24 | 262 |
| 2024/25 | 242 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Churchwood Primary School compares
Churchwood Primary School ranked 113th of 131 primary schools in East Sussex for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 17% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 21% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 46% | 7.4% | 40.9% | 241 | — |
| Hollington Primary School | 35% | 9% | 64.6% | 264 | 0.5 miles |
| Robsack Wood Primary School | 60% | 6% | 28.4% | 404 | 0.6 miles |
| Mulberry Silverdale Primary | 60% | 6.8% | 24.1% | 618 | 0.8 miles |
| Ark Little Ridge Primary Academy | 73% | 4.2% | 23.6% | 435 | 1.0 miles |
| Mulberry West St Leonards Primary | 60% | 6.2% | 31.9% | 417 | 1.1 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)
- 40.89%
- English as an additional language
- 4.1%
- Overall absence
- 7.44%
- Persistent absence
- 25.39%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Hollington Primary School0.5 miles
Primary · St. Leonards-on-Sea
-
Robsack Wood Primary School0.6 miles
Primary · St Leonards-on-Sea
-
Mulberry Silverdale Primary0.8 miles
Primary · St Leonards-On-Sea
-
Ark Little Ridge Primary Academy1.0 miles
Primary · St Leonards-on-Sea
-
Mulberry West St Leonards Primary1.1 miles
Primary · St Leonards-on-Sea
Other schools in St Leonards-on-Sea
Churchwood Primary School ranks 7th of the 7 ranked primary schools in St Leonards-on-Sea.
- Ark Little Ridge Primary Academy Primary
- Mulberry Silverdale Primary Primary
- Mulberry West St Leonards Primary Primary
- Robsack Wood Primary School Primary
- St Leonards Church of England Primary Academy Primary
- St Mary Star of the Sea Catholic Primary School Primary
- St Paul's Church of England Academy Primary
- Mulberry Academy St Leonards Secondary
- Lansdowne Children's Centre Other types
- New Horizons School (Part of the Sabden Multi Academy Trust) Academies
- Saxon Mount School Academies
- Claremont School Independent schools
Common questions
- What year groups does Churchwood Primary School teach?
- Churchwood Primary School teaches children aged 2 to 11. It is a primary school in St Leonards-on-Sea.
- Who is the headteacher of Churchwood Primary School?
- The headteacher of Churchwood Primary School is Mr Rob Smith, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Churchwood Primary School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Churchwood 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 Churchwood Primary School?
- Churchwood Primary School has 241 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 2 to 11.
- Is Churchwood Primary School full?
- Churchwood Primary School has capacity for 215 pupils and 241 on roll (112%), 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 Churchwood Primary School a faith school?
- No. Churchwood Primary School has no designated religious character.
- Does Churchwood Primary School have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records Churchwood Primary School as having nursery classes.
- Who runs Churchwood Primary School?
- Churchwood Primary School is part of THE PIONEER ACADEMY. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- What SEN provision does Churchwood Primary School have?
- The schools register lists Churchwood Primary School's special educational needs provision as: ASD - Autistic Spectrum Disorder. Contact the school to discuss how it would support a particular child.
- How have Churchwood Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 34% in 2022/23 and 46% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Churchwood Primary School rank locally?
- Churchwood Primary School ranked 113th of 131 primary schools in East Sussex for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 17% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 21% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Churchwood Primary School's absence rate?
- Churchwood Primary School's overall absence rate is 7.4% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Churchwood Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Churchwood 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 7 July 2026.