Swaffham Meadow Primary School
4 Sporle Road, Swaffham, PE37 7HL
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Academy sponsor led
- Ages
- 4 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Roman Catholic
- Trust
- SAPIENTIA EDUCATION TRUST
- Headteacher
- Mr Darryl James
- Admissions policy
- Non-selective
- Sponsor
- Sapientia Education Trust
- Constituency
- South West Norfolk
- Setting
- Larger rural: Further from a major town or city
- Capacity
- 210
- Pupils on roll
- 61
- URN
- 151217
- Local authority
- Norfolk
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01760721330
About this school
Swaffham Meadow Primary School is a Roman Catholic primary academy in Swaffham. It teaches children aged 4 to 11 and has 61 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. 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
- Inadequate
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Requires improvement
- Personal development
- Good
- Leadership and management
- Requires improvement
- Early years
- Requires improvement
- Safeguarding
- Effective
Ofsted placed the school in a category of concern: serious weaknesses.
This inspection took place when the school was registered as Sacred Heart Catholic Voluntary Aided Primary School (URN 147290).
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2024/25 |
|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 15 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% |
| Expected standard in reading | 27% |
| Expected standard in maths | 13% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 47% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 98.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 94.0 |
How Swaffham Meadow Primary School compares
Swaffham Meadow Primary School ranked 265th of 265 primary schools in Norfolk for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 0% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 6% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 0% | 10.8% | 38.2% | 61 | — |
| Heartwood CofE VC Primary & Nursery School | 38% | 5% | 31.9% | 241 | 0.3 miles |
| Swaffham CofE Primary Academy | 41% | 5.6% | 29.7% | 215 | 0.7 miles |
| Sporle Church of England Primary Academy | 38% | 5.5% | 32.9% | 83 | 2.3 miles |
| Necton VA Primary School | 58% | 5.8% | 32.1% | 198 | 3.7 miles |
| Castle Acre Church of England Primary Academy | 33% | 4.9% | 26.4% | 86 | 3.9 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.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 38.2%
- English as an additional language
- 10.1%
- Overall absence
- 10.78%
- Persistent absence
- 37.5%
Location
Nearby schools
-
Heartwood CofE VC Primary & Nursery School0.3 miles
Primary · Swaffham
-
Swaffham CofE Primary Academy0.7 miles
Primary · Swaffham
-
Sporle Church of England Primary Academy2.3 miles
Primary · King's Lynn
-
Necton VA Primary School3.7 miles
Primary · Swaffham
-
Castle Acre Church of England Primary Academy3.9 miles
Primary · King's Lynn
Other schools in Swaffham
- Heartwood CofE VC Primary & Nursery School Primary
- Necton VA Primary School Primary
- Swaffham CofE Primary Academy Primary
- The Nicholas Hamond Academy Secondary
- Fred Nicholson School Special schools
- OneSchool Global UK - Swaffham Campus Independent schools
Recorded changes at this school
- School name changed from Sacred Heart Catholic Primary School, Swaffham to Swaffham Meadow Primary School recorded 3 Sep 2026
Common questions
- What year groups does Swaffham Meadow Primary School teach?
- Swaffham Meadow Primary School teaches children aged 4 to 11. It is a primary school in Swaffham.
- Who is the headteacher of Swaffham Meadow Primary School?
- The headteacher of Swaffham Meadow Primary School is Mr Darryl James, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Swaffham Meadow Primary School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Swaffham Meadow 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 Swaffham Meadow Primary School?
- Swaffham Meadow Primary School has 61 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 11.
- Is Swaffham Meadow Primary School full?
- Swaffham Meadow Primary School has capacity for 210 pupils and 61 on roll (29%), 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 Swaffham Meadow Primary School a faith school?
- Yes. Swaffham Meadow Primary School is designated Roman Catholic.
- Is Swaffham Meadow Primary School a selective school?
- No. Swaffham Meadow Primary School is recorded as non-selective in the schools register.
- Does Swaffham Meadow Primary School have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records Swaffham Meadow Primary School as having no nursery classes.
- Who runs Swaffham Meadow Primary School?
- Swaffham Meadow Primary School is part of SAPIENTIA EDUCATION TRUST. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How does Swaffham Meadow Primary School rank locally?
- Swaffham Meadow Primary School ranked 265th of 265 primary schools in Norfolk for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 0% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 6% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Swaffham Meadow Primary School's absence rate?
- Swaffham Meadow Primary School's overall absence rate is 10.8% in the latest published census.
- What are Swaffham Meadow Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Swaffham Meadow 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 3 September 2026.