Barnsole Primary School
Barnsole Road, Gillingham, ME7 2JG
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy converter
- Ages
- 2 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Trust
- MARITIME ACADEMY TRUST
- Head of School
- Mr Jonathan Smales
- Nursery provision
- Has Nursery Classes
- Sponsor
- Maritime Academy Trust
- Constituency
- Gillingham and Rainham
- Setting
- Urban: Nearer to a major town or city
- Capacity
- 630
- Pupils on roll
- 609
- URN
- 144423
- Local authority
- Medway
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01634333400
About this school
Barnsole Primary School is a primary academy in Gillingham. It teaches children aged 2 to 11 and has 609 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Barnsole 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. 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
- 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 | 90 | 93 | 91 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 28% | 45% | 52% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 2% | 0% |
| Expected standard in reading | 54% | 57% | 65% |
| Expected standard in maths | 48% | 56% | 64% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 58% | 59% | 62% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 101.0 | 101.0 | 103.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 99.0 | 102.0 | 102.0 |
| Reading progress | -4.80 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -5.10 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -5.60 | - | - |
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 Barnsole 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 | Medway average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 28% | 56.2% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 45% | 60.6% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 52% | 59.8% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 6.5% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 6.5% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 6.6% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 671 |
| 2023/24 | 668 |
| 2024/25 | 665 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Barnsole Primary School compares
Barnsole Primary School ranked 47th of 57 primary schools in Medway for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 24% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 30% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 52% | 6.6% | 37.1% | 609 | — |
| Napier Community Primary and Nursery Academy | 84% | 5.3% | 33.2% | 597 | 0.2 miles |
| St Mary's Catholic Primary School | 57% | 4.7% | 17.4% | 450 | 0.4 miles |
| The Academy of Woodlands | 69% | 6.5% | 43.4% | 758 | 0.5 miles |
| Byron Primary School | 51% | 6.5% | 31.7% | 502 | 0.5 miles |
| Saxon Way Primary School | 62% | 6.8% | 44.1% | 396 | 0.5 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)
- 37.07%
- English as an additional language
- 18.8%
- Overall absence
- 6.58%
- Persistent absence
- 18.49%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Napier Community Primary and Nursery Academy0.2 miles
Primary · Gillingham
-
St Mary's Catholic Primary School0.4 miles
Primary · Gillingham
-
The Academy of Woodlands0.5 miles
Primary · Gillingham
-
Byron Primary School0.5 miles
Primary · Gillingham
-
Saxon Way Primary School0.5 miles
Primary · Gillingham
Other schools in Gillingham
Barnsole Primary School ranks 15th of the 18 ranked primary schools in Gillingham.
- Brompton-Westbrook Primary School Primary
- Burnt Oak Primary School Primary
- Byron Primary School Primary
- Deanwood Primary School Primary
- Fairview Community Primary School Primary
- Featherby Infant and Nursery School Primary
- Featherby Junior School Primary
- Hempstead Infant School Primary
- Hempstead Junior School Primary
- Napier Community Primary and Nursery Academy Primary
- Oasis Academy Skinner Street Primary
- Parkwood Primary School Primary
Common questions
- What ages does Barnsole Primary School teach?
- Barnsole Primary School teaches children aged 2 to 11. It is a primary school in Gillingham.
- Who is the head of school of Barnsole Primary School?
- The head of school of Barnsole Primary School is Mr Jonathan Smales, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Barnsole Primary School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Barnsole 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 Barnsole Primary School?
- Barnsole Primary School has 609 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 2 to 11.
- Is Barnsole Primary School full?
- Barnsole Primary School has capacity for 630 pupils and 609 on roll (97%), 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 Barnsole Primary School a faith school?
- No. Barnsole Primary School has no designated religious character.
- Does Barnsole Primary School have a nursery?
- Yes. The schools register records Barnsole Primary School as having nursery classes.
- Is Barnsole Primary School part of an academy trust?
- Barnsole Primary School is part of MARITIME ACADEMY TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Barnsole Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 28% in 2022/23 and 52% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Barnsole Primary School compare with other schools in Medway?
- Barnsole Primary School ranked 47th of 57 primary schools in Medway for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 24% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 30% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Barnsole Primary School's absence rate?
- Barnsole Primary School's overall absence rate is 6.6% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Barnsole Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Barnsole 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.