Bawdeswell Community Primary School
Foxley Road, Bawdeswell, Dereham, NR20 4RR
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 5 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- SYNERGY MULTI ACADEMY TRUST
- Headteacher
- Ms Jennie Sage
- Sponsor
- Synergy Multi Academy Trust
- Constituency
- Mid Norfolk
- Setting
- Smaller rural: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 105
- Pupils on roll
- 85
- URN
- 143949
- Local authority
- Norfolk
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01362688282
About this school
Bawdeswell Community Primary School is a primary academy in Dereham. It teaches children aged 5 to 11 and has 85 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
- 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 | 10 | 9 | 11 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 40% | 22% | 18% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 10% | 0% | 9% |
| Expected standard in reading | 60% | 78% | 73% |
| Expected standard in maths | 40% | 44% | 36% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 60% | 44% | 27% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 102.0 | 105.0 | 105.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 99.0 | 97.0 | 99.0 |
| Reading progress | -0.70 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +0.50 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -2.50 | - | - |
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 Bawdeswell 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 | Norfolk average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 40% | 49.1% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 22% | 49.1% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 18% | 52.7% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 8.4% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 5.7% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 6.3% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 86 |
| 2023/24 | 85 |
| 2024/25 | 90 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Bawdeswell Community Primary School compares
Bawdeswell Community Primary School ranked 262nd of 266 primary schools in Norfolk for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 5% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 33% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 18% | 6.3% | 32.2% | 85 | — |
| Lyng Church of England Primary Academy | 81% | 3.7% | 13.8% | 87 | 2.5 miles |
| Foulsham Primary School Academy | 44% | 6.5% | 32.4% | 61 | 2.6 miles |
| Swanton Morley VC Primary School | 21% | 5% | 20.2% | 174 | 2.9 miles |
| North Elmham Church of England Primary Academy & Nursery | 33% | 7.9% | 33.3% | 60 | 3.4 miles |
| Reepham Primary School | 77% | 4.8% | 11.6% | 235 | 3.7 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.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 32.22%
- English as an additional language
- 1.1%
- Overall absence
- 6.3%
- Persistent absence
- 11.76%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Lyng Church of England Primary Academy2.5 miles
Primary · Norwich
-
Foulsham Primary School Academy2.6 miles
Primary · Dereham
-
Swanton Morley VC Primary School2.9 miles
Primary · Dereham
-
North Elmham Church of England Primary Academy & Nursery3.4 miles
Primary · Dereham
-
Reepham Primary School3.7 miles
Primary · Norwich
Other schools in Dereham
Bawdeswell Community Primary School ranks 12th of the 12 ranked primary schools in Dereham.
- Brisley Church of England Primary Academy Primary
- Dereham Church of England Infant and Nursery Academy Primary
- Dereham Church of England Junior Academy Primary
- Dereham, Toftwood Community Junior School Primary
- Foulsham Primary School Academy Primary
- Grove House Infant and Nursery School Primary
- Hockering Church of England Primary Academy Primary
- King's Park Infant School, Dereham Primary
- Mattishall Primary School Primary
- North Elmham Church of England Primary Academy & Nursery Primary
- Scarning Voluntary Controlled Primary School Primary
- St Mary's Community Primary School, Beetley Primary
Common questions
- What year groups does Bawdeswell Community Primary School teach?
- Bawdeswell Community Primary School teaches children aged 5 to 11. It is a primary school in Dereham.
- Who is the headteacher of Bawdeswell Community Primary School?
- The headteacher of Bawdeswell Community Primary School is Ms Jennie Sage, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Bawdeswell Community Primary School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Bawdeswell 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 big is Bawdeswell Community Primary School?
- Bawdeswell Community Primary School has 85 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 5 to 11.
- Is Bawdeswell Community Primary School full?
- Bawdeswell Community Primary School has capacity for 105 pupils and 85 on roll (81%), 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 Bawdeswell Community Primary School a faith school?
- No. Bawdeswell Community Primary School has no designated religious character.
- Does Bawdeswell Community Primary School have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records Bawdeswell Community Primary School as having no nursery classes.
- Who runs Bawdeswell Community Primary School?
- Bawdeswell Community Primary School is part of SYNERGY MULTI ACADEMY TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Bawdeswell Community Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 40% in 2022/23 and 18% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Bawdeswell Community Primary School rank locally?
- Bawdeswell Community Primary School ranked 262nd of 266 primary schools in Norfolk for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 5% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 33% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Bawdeswell Community Primary School's absence rate?
- Bawdeswell Community Primary School's overall absence rate is 6.3% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Bawdeswell Community Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Bawdeswell 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 10 July 2026.