Schools around here

St Botolph's Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School

Primary · Voluntary controlled school · Mixed · Suffolk

Back Hills, Nr Diss, IP22 1DW

Website 01379890181

80

headline score

Ranking (England)

—

No ranked results

Ofsted

Good

Graded 17/05/2023

Application demand

100%

1st preference success · Not oversubscribed

Attendance

94.3%

11.8% persistently absent

Above averageAround averageBelow averagecompared with the England average for state-funded schools.

At a glance

Pupils on roll

180

Capacity used

Has space

69%

259 places

GCSE rank (England)

—

KS2 rank (England)

—

Application demand

Primary entry · official council applications and offers

Not oversubscribed

100%

1st preference success rate

24 of 24 families who put it first got an offer

24

Places offered

34

Total applications

1.4

Applications per place

Preference (Sept 2025 entry)ApplicationsOffersSuccess
1st preference2424● 100%
2nd preference50● 0%
3rd preference30● 0%
Later preferences20● 0%
Total342471%

1st preference success by year

100%
2020
100%
2021
100%
2022
88%
2023
100%
2024
100%
2025

Suffolk lets families list 3 preferences. 7 applications came from outside the council area (3 offered). Source: Department for Education, school-level applications and offers. Offers are made on each school's admissions criteria (e.g. siblings, distance, faith), so check the school's policy.

Details

Type
Voluntary controlled school
Phase
Primary
Age range
4–11
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
Church of England
Sixth form
No
Nursery
No Nursery Classes
Boarding
No boarders
Headteacher
Mark Cobbold
Address
Back Hills, Botesdale, Nr Diss, IP22 1DW
Phone
01379890181
Local authority
Suffolk
Ward / constituency
Rickinghall · Waveney Valley
Area
Larger rural: Further from a major town or city
URN
124758

Pupils

MeasureSchoolLAEngland
Free school meals16%——
English as additional language5%——
SEN support9%——
54% boys (98)46% girls (82)

Local deprivation (IDACI quintile 2 of 5)

1 = least deprived area, 5 = most deprived. Context only.

180 pupils · 259 places. Intake figures describe the school's community — they aren't good or bad.

Ofsted inspections

  1. 23

    17 May 2023

    Full graded inspection

    Good overall effectiveness
    Early yearsGood
    Personal developmentGood
    Quality of educationGood
    Safeguarding effectiveYes
    Behaviour and attitudesGood
    Leadership and managementGood
View all Ofsted reports

Attendance

2024/2025 school year · 161 pupils

Attendance

94.3%

Share of sessions attended · England 94.5%

Overall absence

5.7%

Sessions missed, any reason · England 5.5%

Persistent absence

11.8%

Pupils missing 10%+ of school · England 14.6%

Severe absence

0.6%

Pupils missing 50%+ of school · England 2.3%

Unauthorised absence

1.8%

Absences the school didn't approve

Persistent absence by year

16%
20/21
29%
21/22
17%
22/23
10%
23/24
12%
24/25

Source: Department for Education, pupil absence by school (pupils aged 5–15). Lower absence is better. England figures are approximate 2023/24 averages.

Primary results (Key Stage 2)

MeasureSchoolLAEngland
Expected standard in reading, writing & maths80%——
Higher standard0%——
Reading progress——0.0
Writing progress——0.0
Maths progress——0.0

Primary results by subject (SATs)

Year 6 pupils meeting each standard, against England

Reading, writing & maths combined

Expected standard69%
+7% vs England
Higher standard0%
-8% vs England

Reading

Expected standard88%
+13% vs England
Higher standard50%
+17% vs England
Average score110
+4 vs England

Writing

Expected standard73%
+1% vs England
Greater depth0%
-13% vs England

Maths

Expected standard81%
+7% vs England
Higher standard27%
+1% vs England
Average score106
+1 vs England

Grammar, punctuation & spelling

Expected standard88%
+15% vs England
Higher standard38%
+8% vs England
Average score109
+4 vs England

Science

Expected standard73%
-9% vs England

England average · Scaled scores run 80–120 (100 = expected standard).

Primary results over time

692019772023802024692025

Expected standard (RWM) by year (2020 and 2021 exams were cancelled)

ResultSchoolEngland (approx.)
Expected standard (RWM)69%61%
Higher standard0%8%

House prices near the school

Typical sold prices (Land Registry) within 1 km, last 12 months.

Loading prices…

Key application dates

National deadlines in England. Apply through Suffolk council, not the school.

EntryDeadlineOffer day
Reception (primary)15 January16 April (or next working day)

Source: Get Information About Schools and the DfE school and college performance tables (2023-2024); Oxbridge figures from the University of Cambridge's admissions by UCAS apply centre (Oxford doesn't publish per-school figures). Read the method.