Ofsted: Good emoji_events #21 in Medway public Top 31% UK

Balfour Junior School

verifiedData: DfE 2024/25–2025/26 · Ofsted

personMrs Zoe Mayston

corporate_fareBEYOND SCHOOLS TRUST

location_onChatham, ME4 6QX

language Visit Website phone 1634843833

verified

Ofsted

Good

Inspected 2018

groups

Students

480

school

Expected Standard

71%

cake

Age Range

7-11

summarize

Balfour Junior School is a Academy converter primary school in Chatham, serving ages 7-11. Rated Good by Ofsted. Ranks in the top 31% of primary schools nationally.

article

School Summary

Balfour Junior School is an academy converter in Chatham, Medway, admitting pupils aged 7-11. It is part of BEYOND SCHOOLS TRUST. The school has approximately 480 pupils on roll, of whom 32% are eligible for free school meals.

In 2025, 71% of pupils met the expected standard in Reading, Writing and Maths combined, with 14% achieving the higher standard. The school ranks #21 of 56 primaries in Medway and #4,227 of 14,143 nationally.

Ofsted last inspected the school in 2018. The school's current overall rating is Good.

The pupil-to-qualified-teacher ratio is 26.2:1. There are no current teaching vacancies.

In the 2024/25 academic year, there were no permanent exclusions. The average suspension rate was 0.5 per 1,000 pupils per term.

verified Source: DfE 2024/25–2025/26 · Ofsted

Academic Performance

verified Data: UK Gov 2024/25

school

Primary Performance Trends (KS2)

2025

R/W/M Expected Standard

71%

LA 59%

Reading79% LA 71%

Writing79% LA 71%

Maths84% LA 69%

Read SS

106

Maths SS

108

GPS SS

106

Progress (0 = national avg)

Read

Write

Maths

2024

R/W/M Expected Standard

65%

LA 61%England 61%

Reading73% LA 72% · Eng 74%

Writing78% LA 72% · Eng 72%

Maths80% LA 71% · Eng 73%

Read SS

105

Maths SS

107

GPS SS

106

Progress (0 = national avg)

Read

Write

Maths

2023

R/W/M Expected Standard

50%

LA 56%England 60%

Reading68% LA 68% · Eng 73%

Writing61% LA 71% · Eng 71%

Maths65% LA 66% · Eng 73%

Read SS

104

Maths SS

103

GPS SS

103

Progress (0 = national avg)

-1.2

Read

LA -1.3

-2.3 to 0.0

-1.5

Write

LA -0.6

-2.6 to -0.4

-1.4

Maths

LA -1.5

-2.5 to -0.4

2019

R/W/M Expected Standard

67%

LA 63%England 65%

Reading77% LA 69% · Eng 73%

Writing84% LA 76% · Eng 78%

Maths84% LA 76% · Eng 79%

Read SS

106

Maths SS

107

GPS SS

106

Progress (0 = national avg)

0.2

Read

LA -0.5

-0.9 to 1.3

-1.4

Write

LA -0.1

-2.4 to -0.3

0.6

Maths

LA -0.3

-0.4 to 1.6

2018

R/W/M Expected Standard

72%

LA 63%

Reading79% LA 72%

Writing81% LA 79%

Maths83% LA 73%

Read SS

105

Maths SS

106

GPS SS

107

Progress (0 = national avg)

-0.6

Read

LA -0.8

-1.7 to 0.5

-1.7

Write

LA 0.1

-2.7 to -0.7

0.8

Maths

LA -0.5

-0.2 to 1.8

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Report Archive

22 May 2024

Inspection Report

picture_as_pdf Download PDF

05 December 2018

Inspection Report

picture_as_pdf Download PDF

06 January 2017

Inspection Report

picture_as_pdf Download PDF

Inspection Report

Inspection History

3 Evaluations

2018-12-05

None Legacy

No Judgement

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

Development

Leadership

2015-10-14

Requires Improvement S5 Reinspection Visit 1 Legacy

Good

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Good

2013-09-24

None EIF

Requires improvement

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Good

Wellbeing, SEN & Pastoral Care

gavel

Behaviour & Discipline (Suspensions & Exclusions)

Official Department for Education (DfE) data. Suspensions measure temporary removals due to behavior, while exclusions represent permanent removals.

Suspension Rate

0.0%per term

sentiment_satisfied Below Average (Good)

National average: 0.8% for this term (primary).

Pupils Suspended 1+ Times

0.0%(0 pupils)

Spring term 2025

Represents the proportion of unique students suspended at least once in this term.

Permanent Exclusions

0pupils

verified Excellent (Zero)

National average: 1.225% of pupils excluded per term.

Pastoral Context: In the Spring term of 2025, this school served a headcount of 480 pupils. During this period, there were 0 temporary suspensions. The school's suspension rate was 0.0%, which is below the termly national average of 0.8%.

View Historical Disciplinary Records (2017–2025)keyboard_arrow_down

Year / Term	Headcount	Suspensions	Susp. Rate	Nat. Avg
2024/25 (Spring term)	480	0	0.0%	0.8%
2024/25 (Autumn term)	479	5	1.0%	0.9%
2023/24 (Summer term)	474	2	0.4%	0.8%
2023/24 (Spring term)	474	0	0.0%	0.7%
2023/24 (Autumn term)	472	1	0.2%	0.8%
2022/23 (Summer term)	481	0	0.0%	0.7%
2022/23 (Spring term)	480	2	0.4%	0.6%
2022/23 (Autumn term)	474	2	0.4%	0.6%
2021/22 (Summer term)	478	0	0.0%	0.5%
2021/22 (Spring term)	469	4	0.9%	0.5%
2021/22 (Autumn term)	473	1	0.2%	0.5%
2020/21 (Summer term)	470	6	1.3%	0.4%
2020/21 (Spring term)	464	1	0.2%	0.1%
2020/21 (Autumn term)	466	3	0.6%	0.4%
2019/20 (Summer term)	471	0	0.0%	0.0%
2019/20 (Spring term)	471	0	0.0%	0.4%
2019/20 (Autumn term)	472	1	0.2%	0.6%
2018/19 (Summer term)	470	0	0.0%	0.4%
2018/19 (Spring term)	474	0	0.0%	0.5%
2018/19 (Autumn term)	477	0	0.0%	0.5%
2017/18 (Summer term)	476	0	0.0%	0.5%
2017/18 (Spring term)	475	0	0.0%	0.4%
2017/18 (Autumn term)	471	0	0.0%	0.5%
2016/17 (Summer term)	474	0	0.0%	0.4%
2016/17 (Autumn term)	473	0	0.0%	0.5%

Source: DfE Suspensions and Permanent Exclusions in England. Data represents termly statistics as published by the Department for Education.

accessibility_new

psychology_alt

Supported Special Educational Needs (SEN)

Primary areas of need currently supported by the school. A high number often indicates specialized internal units or high staff experience in these areas.

Speech, Language & Communication 37 pupils

Social, Emotional & Mental Health 8 pupils

Other Difficulty/Disability 6 pupils

Autistic Spectrum Disorder 5 pupils

Moderate Learning Difficulty 3 pupils

Physical Disability 3 pupils

Specific Learning Difficulty 2 pupils

Multi-Sensory Impairment 1 pupils

health_and_safety

Parent View on Pastoral Care

Results from the official Ofsted Parent View survey, reflecting direct parent sentiment regarding the school environment.

My child is happy at this school.

94.0%Positive

My child feels safe at this school.

94.0%Positive

My child has been bullied and the school dealt with the bullying quickly and effectively.

17.0%Positive

View All Survey Responseskeyboard_arrow_down

The school makes sure its pupils are well behaved.

strongly agree51%

agree45%

strongly disagree2%

don't know3%

The school makes me aware of what my child will learn during the year.

strongly agree63%

agree26%

disagree9%

don't know2%

When I have raised concerns with the school they have been dealt with properly

strongly agree38%

agree23%

disagree5%

strongly disagree3%

don't know2%

not applicable29%

Does your child have special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND)?

yes22%

no78%

My child has special educational needs and/or disabilities, and the school gives them the support they need to succeed.

strongly agree50%

agree21%

disagree7%

strongly disagree14%

dont know7%

The school has high expectations for my child.

strongly agree48%

agree46%

don't know6%

My child does well at this school.

strongly agree57%

agree40%

don't know3%

The school lets me know how my child is doing.

strongly agree51%

agree40%

disagree8%

strongly disagree2%

There is a good range of subjects available to my child at this school.

strongly agree63%

agree31%

disagree3%

don't know3%

My child can take part in clubs and activities at this school.

strongly agree71%

agree25%

disagree3%

don't know2%

The school supports my child's wider personal development.

strongly agree57%

agree25%

disagree3%

strongly disagree3%

don't know12%

I would recommend this school to another parent.

yes92%

no8%

Top Primary Schools in Medway

Other highly-ranked schools in the same local authority

View all arrow_forward

Napier Community Primary and Nursery Academy

Good

location_on Gillingham, ME7 4HG

emoji_events #1 in LA

St Margaret's at Troy Town CofE Voluntary Controlled Primary School

Good

location_on Rochester, ME1 1YF

emoji_events #2 in LA

Thames View Primary School

Good

location_on Gillingham, ME8 7DX

emoji_events #3 in LA

Horsted Junior School

Good

location_on Chatham, ME5 9TF

emoji_events #4 in LA

Walderslade Primary School

Good

location_on Chatham, ME5 8BJ

emoji_events #5 in LA

Oaklands School

Good

location_on Chatham, ME5 0QS

emoji_events #6 in LA

View all schools in Medway arrow_forward

School Summary

Academic Performance

Primary Performance Trends (KS2)

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Inspection History

Admissions Insight

How Places Are Allocated

Distance to School

School Capacity

Students & School Environment

School Size

Language Diversity

Inclusive Support

Attendance

Ethnicity Breakdown

Wellbeing, SEN & Pastoral Care

Behaviour & Discipline (Suspensions & Exclusions)

Supported Special Educational Needs (SEN)

Parent View on Pastoral Care

My child is happy at this school.

My child feels safe at this school.

My child has been bullied and the school dealt with the bullying quickly and effectively.

The school makes sure its pupils are well behaved.

The school makes me aware of what my child will learn during the year.

When I have raised concerns with the school they have been dealt with properly

Does your child have special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND)?

My child has special educational needs and/or disabilities, and the school gives them the support they need to succeed.

The school has high expectations for my child.

My child does well at this school.

The school lets me know how my child is doing.

There is a good range of subjects available to my child at this school.

My child can take part in clubs and activities at this school.

The school supports my child's wider personal development.

I would recommend this school to another parent.

Funding & Staffing

School Funding Allocation

Funding Breakdown

Staffing

Teacher Turnover

Top Primary Schools in Medway

Napier Community Primary and Nursery Academy

St Margaret's at Troy Town CofE Voluntary Controlled Primary School

Thames View Primary School

Horsted Junior School

Walderslade Primary School

Oaklands School