Reception Baseline Assessment

What is the reception baseline assessment?

The reception baseline assessment is a national assessment that is administered in reception classes in all primary, infant and first schools in England. This forms the baseline for primary progress measures, allowing schools to receive credit for the progress their pupils make throughout their time in primary school. 

Why has it been introduced?

Historically, a key measure of how well a primary school is serving its pupils is the progress that they make between the end of key stage 1 (year 2) and the end of key stage 2 (year 6). This allows the government to take account of the fact that schools face different challenges given their pupils’ starting points. The reception baseline assessment provides a snapshot of where pupils are when they arrive at school, enabling a new starting point to measure the progress that they make by the end of year 6. It also enables the Department for Education (DfE) to remove statutory end of key stage 1 assessments, as they are no longer the starting point for progress measures.

An information video for parents about the reception baseline assessment (RBA) can be found here.  This will provide information to help you, as parents, to understand a little more about what the assessment is, how it is carried out and why it was introduced