Best primary schools in Berkshire
As in many parts of the country, the most popular Berkshire primary schools tend to have more applicants than places available, but the sheer quantity of good primary options should help avoid despair. In Berks, you are at the mercy of the catchment area. Or, to give their more formal name, designated admissions area. The majority of the primary schools in the county’s six LAs sit within their own little admissions areas. Living in this area gives you a head start when applying for a place at the school but don’t assume that your nearest school is the one where you have priority. These designated areas are a variety of odd shapes and rarely is the school bang in the centre. Maps and a wealth of other admissions information can be found on LA and school websites. And make sure to check out our article on primary school admissions to help you pick the right school.
Primary schools in Newbury
A mix of town and village schools provide lots of good options in West Berkshire. In Newbury itself, Robert Sandilands Primary School and Nursery stands out with its excellent Key stage 2 (KS2) scores and large grassy playing area. The highly rated Falkland Primary School in Wash Common at Newbury’s southern tip is routinely oversubscribed. St Joseph’s Catholic Primary is a popular primary particularly useful for RC families. Village schools to shortlist include Stockcross, Enborne C of E School, Hampstead Norreys C of E and The Ilsleys Primary School.
Primary schools in Reading
In villages to the west of Reading, technically in the West Berks LA, are Birch Copse Primary School and Theale C.E. Primary – both routinely posting above average KS2 results. St Paul’s Catholic Primary School, for Roman Catholic families, and All Saints Junior School both stand out in Tilehurst. Close to Reading University, Alfred Sutton Primary School is well-regarded. Genteel Caversham offers several highly-rated schools including The Heights Primary and Caversham Primary. Whiteknights Primary in the south part of Reading, near Asda, is famed for its academic focus, but note that it is technically in Wokingham LA.
Primary schools in Wokingham and villages east of Reading
In Shinfield, Alder Grove Church of England Primary School has the honour of being the most acutely oversubscribed school in the Wokingham LA. But Sonning Church of England Primary School, Hawkedon Primary School and Aldryngton Primary School are all shortlist material. Families based in Wokingham itself should take a look at Evensdons and The Hawthorns Primary School. St Dominic Savio Primary near Twyford is an impressive school but regular Mass-going is required for successful applicants.
Primary schools in Crowthorne and Sandhurst
Crowthorne Church of England Primary School is a perennially oversubscribed favourite, so take care to live nearby to be in with a chance of a place. Ditto Uplands Primary School and Nursery which is going great guns in Sandhurst.
Primary schools in Ascot, Windsor and Slough
South Ascot Village Primary School comes recommended, as does St Francis Catholic Primary School for practicing Catholic families. Ascot Heath Primary School, with its quintessentially Ascot address (at Rhododendron Walk), is held in high regard and Holy Trinity C of E Primary School stands out in Sunningdale. Cranbourne Primary School north of Ascot has the feel of a classic village primary school and posts solidly above-average KS2 results. Iqra Slough Islamic Primary School – will certainly not suit everyone (English is a second language for more than three quarters of the pupils here) but for Muslim families it is in a class of its own with extraordinary academic results.
Primary schools in Maidenhead and nearby villages
A surfeit of good options to choose from here. Top of the pops is Lowbrook Academy where stellar KS2 SATs results are sure to perpetuate its oversubscribed status. Other schools to shortlist are Holy Trinity C of E Primary School in Cookham, Cookham Dean C of E Primary School, Furze Platt Junior School and St Edmund Campion Catholic Primary School and Nursery (practicing Catholics get first dibs). Well-regarded Braywick Court School, just south of Maidenhead, tends to be one of the most oversubscribed primaries in the Windsor and Maidenhead LA.
State primary schools and through-schools for children with special educational needs in Berkshire
Some mainstream state primary schools offer designated places in resource bases for children with additional needs. These pupils can access both mainstream classes or a specialist cohort, if suitable.
EP Collier Primary School in Reading is a proudly diverse school with a resource base provision for speech and language needs for up to 12 pupils. Highwood Primary School, a successful state primary in Woodley, has The Grove, its own specialist provision for children with speech and language needs. Children integrate with mainstream classes as well as benefiting from specialist language teachers and NHS therapists.
With SEN education, in Berks as with other LAs, the divide between state and private schools outside is less defined. Thanks to EHCPs the majority, if not all, of the pupils at many special schools run by charities or private organisations currently have their places funded by the LAs.
North of Newbury on glorious Snelsmore Common, is The Mary Hare School, a residential independent school for pupils aged from 4 to 19 with hearing impairment. Children learn independence alongside a robust academic curriculum which, at the top end, includes A levels, T levels, BTECs and technical courses. Thames Valley School in Tilehurst is a special co-ed day school for 4-16-year-olds with autism and moderate learning needs.
For children with complex needs, The Avenue Special School in Tilehurst is a special state co-ed day school for 2 to 19 year-olds. All pupils have severe to moderate learning difficulties, and some have physical needs.
Set in beautiful grounds on the edge of Windsor Great Park. Queensmead House School in Windsor is a co-ed independent specialist day school, for 5-17s, run by the Witherslack Group, providing education to pupils with complex educational needs, communication difficulties and challenging behaviours.
Arbour Vale School in Slough is a co-ed state residential school catering for pupils from ages 2-19 with a range of complex needs including profound and multiple learning difficulties. The school promotes an engaging curriculum, with sport, art and science activities and encourages a love of reading. Children participate in community initiatives.
Priors Court School is a leading edge residential independent school in Hermitage for young people with autism and complex needs: one of a kind in the UK. Staff here are dedicated and have a wealth of specialist knowledge and experience. Pupils come from all over the UK, currently around 40 local authorities, and residential care runs for 38, 44 or 52 weeks. Tadley Court School in nearby Hampshire is for 4-19s with autism, social, emotional and behavioural difficulties. Run by the Aspris Group, it has an on-site therapy suite, extensive mental health and counselling expertise and liaises closes with CAMHS services.
Learn more about the SEND local offer at the six LAs – Bracknell Forest, Reading, Slough, West Berkshire, Windsor and Maidenhead, and Wokingham. Read the state secondary schools section for further information on special schools.