Gillingham St Michael's Church of England Primary Academy
The Boundaries, Geldeston Road, Gillingham, Beccles, NR34 0HTOpen in maps (opens in a new tab)
Gillingham St Michael's Church of England Primary Academy is a primary school in Beccles for ages 4 to 11. It is one of the 453 schools in Norfolk. It ranks 3rd of 9 primary schools in Beccles. Its latest Ofsted rating is Good, from an inspection in March 2024.
Ofsted inspection
Inspected 5 March 2024, report published 29 April 2024
- Overall effectiveness
- Good
- Quality of education
- Good
- Behaviour and attitudes
- Good
- Personal development
- Good
- Leadership and management
- Good
- Early years provision
- Good
- Safeguarding
- Met
What Ofsted said
From the inspection on 5 March 2024
Pupils enjoy coming to school. They look forward to activities such as professional pizza making and singing joyfully in assemblies. Everyone is friendly and supportive. Pupils include each other in their play at breaktime and lunchtime. 'Playground buddies' help to support this effectively. Pupils trust that they can share any worries with teachers. They know that the adults will help them resolve these. This all helps pupils to be happy and safe. Pupils achieve well. There are high expectations about what they should learn. Staff provide the support pupils need to realise these expectations. For example, pupils who need it get additional support with reading in the afternoon. However, on occasions, planned learning does not capture pupils' interest well enough, so they do not build knowledge as well as they might. Pupils learn about tolerance and respect in personal, social and health education (PSHE). They apply what they learn and are accepting of each other's differences. Pupils value the broad range of enrichment opportunities. They compete in sporting and science competitions against other schools and have won awards for their sportsmanship. They have meaningful opportunities to develop their leadership and teamwork skills through the student council and house captain roles.
What the school should improve
- Teachers sometimes plan activities that are less effective at grasping and building on pupils' interests. Where this is the case, pupils can lose focus on activities because staff do not check well enough how effectively these activities are supporting their learning. As a result, some pupils do not secure important knowledge as well as they might. The school needs to ensure that staff receive further training to address this so that all learning engages pupils and that they retain and secure important knowledge consistently well.
Exam results
SATs results (key stage 2), 2024/25
10 pupils took the tests
Pupil numbers and mix
41 pupils on roll, with places for 60
Schools near Gillingham St Michael's Church of England Primary Academy
| School | Distance | Ofsted | Results |
|---|---|---|---|
| St Benet's RC Primary School and Nursery | 1 mile | Report card: Needs attention to expected standard | 38% met the expected standard |
| The Albert Pye Community Primary School | 2 miles | Ofsted: Good | 82% met the expected standard |
| Ravensmere Infant School | 2 miles | Ofsted: Good | Not published |
| Beccles Primary Academy | 2 miles | Ofsted: Good | 50% met the expected standard |
| Ellingham VC Primary School | 3 miles | Ofsted: Good | 30% met the expected standard |
School details
- School type
- Academy converter
- Sector
- Academy
- Trust
- THE DIOCESE OF NORWICH EDUCATION AND ACADEMIES TRUST
- Age range
- 4 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Nursery classes
- No
- Headteacher
- Heather Brand
- Phone
- 01502713425
- Address
- The Boundaries, Geldeston Road, Gillingham, Beccles, NR34 0HT
- Local authority
- Norfolk
- URN
- 141778
School details from Get Information about Schools, 17 September 2026. Ofsted outcomes published to 31 August 2026. Exam results for 2024/25 from the Department for Education. Pupil mix from the school census, 2025/26.