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Outdoor learning is not an occasional enrichment here, it is built into how pupils learn and how they spend unstructured time. Forest School sessions are led by a qualified Level 3 Forest School Leader, with a curriculum emphasis on safe tool use, den building, and supported risk-taking as part of wider development. Alongside this, the OPAL approach reshapes playtimes so pupils use natural, found, and donated resources to create their own play, including den-making materials.
Academically, the published Key Stage 2 picture is strong. 84% of pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and mathematics combined, compared with an England average of 62%. At the higher standard, 35% reached greater depth across reading, writing and maths, well above the England average of 8%. The school is ranked 2,808th in England and 2nd in Alton for primary outcomes (FindMySchool ranking based on official data), placing it above England average and comfortably within the top 25% of schools in England.
Leadership is clear. The headteacher is Julia Woodhouse.
The school’s stated motto, In happiness, we thrive, signals a clear priority: pupils should feel secure, included, and ready to learn before academic ambition can properly land. The core values are Curiosity, Resilience and Respect, with an explicit mission focus on wellbeing, inclusion, kindness, and learning inside the classroom and outside in nature. This matters because it gives staff and pupils shared language for behaviour, relationships, and learning habits. In practice, it tends to produce a calm baseline where expectations can be high without feeling impersonal.
The outdoor strand is unusually well-articulated for a state primary. Forest School is framed as regular provision rather than a one-off activity, with child-led sessions in a natural environment and structured teaching about caring for self, others, and the planet. The detail is specific enough to be meaningful for parents: the programme references den building, rope swings, hammocks, and tool use such as palm drills and secateurs, all alongside explicit safety and risk education. For pupils, the implication is confidence through doing, plus a legitimate route for children who learn best with movement and practical problem-solving.
Play is treated as a learning lever rather than dead time. OPAL is described as a whole-school approach that gives pupils freedom to explore imaginative play using resources gathered from the environment and community donations, with the stated intent of improving play for all pupils and supporting readiness to learn in the classroom. It is a small detail with a big effect: breaktimes can make or break the day for many children, particularly those who find classroom learning demanding.
The Key Stage 2 outcomes indicate consistently strong attainment across the core, with particular strength in the combined reading, writing and mathematics measure.
84% met the expected standard in reading, writing and mathematics combined, compared with an England average of 62%.
At the higher standard, 35% achieved greater depth across reading, writing and maths, compared with the England average of 8%.
Reading is a strength point in the published breakdown: 88% met the expected standard in reading, and 45% achieved the higher score in reading.
Mathematics is similarly strong: 79% met the expected standard in maths, and 36% achieved the higher score.
Grammar, punctuation and spelling (GPS) outcomes also read well: 76% met the expected standard, and 33% achieved the higher score.
In ranking terms, the school is ranked 2,808th in England and 2nd in Alton for primary outcomes (FindMySchool ranking based on official data). That places performance above England average and comfortably within the top 25% of schools in England.
What this usually means for families is twofold. First, pupils are likely to leave Year 6 with secure core skills, which matters for confidence at secondary transition. Second, the proportion reaching the higher standard suggests the school is not only bringing pupils to the expected benchmark, it is also stretching a meaningful share beyond it, particularly in reading.
England ranks and key metrics (where available)
Reading, Writing & Maths
84%
% of pupils achieving expected standard
The curriculum intent is framed around links between subjects, using topics, hooks and questions to help pupils connect knowledge across areas. The advantage of this approach is retention and meaning-making: pupils do not learn facts in isolation, they revisit ideas in new contexts. That tends to support both vocabulary development and longer-term recall, especially when teaching deliberately includes recap and retrieval.
A second notable feature is the way outdoor learning is used as an academic support, not only as wellbeing provision. Forest School is described as supporting early engineering skills through planning, measuring, building, and solving problems in play. When done well, that becomes a practical route into the habits that underpin later STEM learning: persistence, testing ideas, and explaining choices.
Support for Year 6 is visible in the enrichment structure. In Spring Term 2026, the after-school programme includes a Year 6 Maths SATs Revision Club alongside broader clubs for Years 1 to 6. For some children this is reassuring, it keeps consolidation in-school and avoids heavy reliance on private tutoring. For others, it is a signal that Year 6 will feel structured and goal-oriented, which is positive if your child thrives on routine.
Transition is treated as a process rather than a single event, and the school outlines support for both the start and end of the primary journey.
For Reception entry, staff visit a child’s nursery or pre-school setting before they start, and the transition plan includes multiple school visits and a staggered start, with the class team also describing a home visit at the beginning of the year. The practical implication is a softer landing for children who are anxious about new routines, and better information-sharing for children with speech, language, or emotional regulation needs.
For secondary transfer, the school identifies two key feeder secondary schools, Amery Hill and Eggar’s, and describes taster days and curriculum-linked opportunities with both as part of an Alton cluster arrangement. There is also a plan for additional visits for children who may find transition harder, plus structured staff-to-staff handover of key information. For parents, this is the difference between transition as admin and transition as pastoral work.
This is a Hampshire local authority (LA) coordinated admissions process for Reception, which means families apply through the council rather than directly to the school.
For September 2026 Reception entry, Hampshire’s published main round timetable states:
Applications open: 01 November 2025
Deadline for applications: 15 January 2026
National offer day: 16 April 2026
Waiting list established: 30 April 2026
As of 27 January 2026, the on-time deadline (15 January 2026) has passed, so families who have not applied should check the council’s late application process and the school’s current availability position.
Demand indicators suggest this is not a low-pressure intake. The recorded figures show 74 applications for 52 offers in the relevant Reception entry route, which is around 1.42 applications for each offered place. The intake is marked as oversubscribed. Families should treat admission as competitive and plan accordingly, including having realistic alternative schools on the preference list.
Open events for the 2026 Reception intake were scheduled in the autumn term, with tour dates listed across late September, October, and November for the September 2026 starters. If you are looking ahead to a later cohort, expect open events to run in broadly the same early autumn window, and check the school’s admissions pages for the current year’s dates.
Tip: If you are shortlisting and comparing several local primaries, the FindMySchool Map Search is useful for sense-checking practical travel time and day-to-day logistics before you commit to a preference order.
Applications
74
Total received
Places Offered
52
Subscription Rate
1.4x
Apps per place
Pastoral support is described with both universal and targeted layers. The school explicitly references a mental health and wellbeing structure that ranges from whole-school universal support through to additional and targeted support, including small-group work and differentiated interventions where needed.
A concrete strand is ELSA (Emotional Literacy Support Assistant) support. The school describes a trained ELSA, operating with supervision led by a qualified educational psychologist, delivering bespoke programmes for individuals or small groups. Areas include emotional awareness, self-esteem, anger management, social and friendship skills, social communication difficulties, and bereavement and family break-up. For families, this matters because it signals in-school capacity to respond early, before worries become entrenched patterns.
The most recent external assessment aligns with this direction of travel: Ofsted’s March 2025 inspection graded all key areas as Good, including early years provision.
The enrichment offer is more specific than many primary schools publish. Clubs vary by term, but the Spring Term 2026 programme includes Drama, Football, Science Club, Dodgeball, Dance, Drawing Club, Lego Club, and Fencing, plus a Year 6 Maths SATs Revision Club. The mix matters because it is not only sport and arts, there is visible STEM and structured academic support alongside creative choices.
Lunchtime clubs also add texture. Lunchtime Gardening Club runs on most Tuesdays and Thursdays, with places limited to a small group on a rota due to demand. This kind of club tends to appeal to children who want calm, hands-on activity at break, and it is often a strong fit for pupils who do not enjoy noisy playground play.
Swimming is built into the curriculum in Year 5, delivered at Alton Sports Centre during the summer term. The school reports that by the time Year 6 pupils left in July 2023, 81% could swim competently over at least 25 metres. That is a useful practical outcome for parents, since water safety and confidence are hard to build without consistent provision.
Finally, the physical environment is actively used. A Music Room is referenced as the base for Breakfast Club, which runs early each school day. Small details like named rooms and structured use of space usually correlate with smoother routines, especially for younger pupils.
The core school day runs from doors opening at 08:40, with registration at 08:50, and the school day ending at 15:15. Breakfast Club runs from 07:45 to 08:40 and is based in the Music Room, with a stated cost of £5 per session.
After-school childcare is provided by an external wraparound provider, with care available up to 18:00 and an earlier pick-up option available. Registration and booking are handled directly with the provider rather than via the school.
This is a state school with no tuition fees. Families should still budget for typical extras such as uniform, trips, and optional clubs, plus any paid wraparound or instrumental lessons where applicable.
Competition for places. The most recent admissions figures recorded show 74 applications for 52 offers for Reception entry, and the route is marked oversubscribed. Have realistic alternatives on your preference list.
Outdoor learning is a major feature. Forest School includes supported risk-taking and tool use as part of regular provision. This suits many children brilliantly, but families who prefer a strongly classroom-centred approach may want to explore how often outdoor learning runs for each year group.
Wraparound is partly external. Breakfast Club is school-run, but after-school childcare is delivered by an external provider with separate registration and booking.
Key deadlines move quickly. For September 2026 entry, the main round application deadline was 15 January 2026, which is already past as of 27 January 2026.
The Butts Primary School combines strong academic outcomes with a deliberate approach to wellbeing, play, and outdoor learning. Families looking for high attainment without a narrow focus on the classroom should find the balance appealing, particularly given the depth of provision in Forest School, OPAL play, and structured support such as ELSA. Best suited to local families who want a high-performing primary with practical, hands-on learning as part of everyday school life, and who are prepared for competitive admissions.
The published Key Stage 2 outcomes are strong, with 84% meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and mathematics combined, above the England average of 62%. The most recent inspection (March 2025) graded all key areas as Good, including early years.
Reception admissions are coordinated by Hampshire, and allocation is typically driven by the published oversubscription criteria and available places rather than a simple single catchment boundary. Families should check the council’s admissions guidance for how distance, siblings, and other priorities apply in the relevant year.
Yes. Breakfast Club runs from 07:45 to 08:40, and after-school childcare is available up to 18:00 via an external wraparound provider (with separate registration and booking).
The school identifies Amery Hill and Eggar’s as two key feeder secondary schools and describes structured transition activities and additional support for children who may find the move harder.
Hampshire’s main round timetable lists the deadline as 15 January 2026, with offers notified on 16 April 2026.
Get in touch with the school directly
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