Belfield Community School

Belfield Community School is a warm, inclusive primary school where pupils are happy, respectful and proud of their community. Inspectors found the school performs well across all inspected areas, with particularly strong support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities, including those with complex needs. Pupils who join at different points in the year, many of whom speak English as an additional language, are welcomed quickly and supported to settle in. Reading is a priority, behaviour is calm and orderly, and pupils benefit from a thoughtful personal development programme that prepares them well for life beyond school. The curriculum has been strengthened so that key knowledge and vocabulary are clearer, and staff appreciate leaders' consideration of workload. However, improvements are more recent in some subjects than others. In a small number of subjects, assessment does not reliably show whether pupils have secured and deepened their knowledge, opportunities for pupils to recall prior learning are sometimes limited, and quality assurance of recently refined curriculums is not consistently effective. As a result, pupils' learning is occasionally uneven in these subjects. This was the school's first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic, and it has seen several staffing changes, including a new headteacher and a larger leadership team. The governing body contributes strongly, safeguarding is effective, and attendance is improving. Overall, the school is performing well, with clear areas for further refinement in assessment, recall and consistent curriculum implementation.

Strengths

• Pupils are happy, respectful and proud of their school.
• The school warmly welcomes pupils who join at different times of the year, including many who speak English as an additional language.
• Pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities are identified quickly and supported well, with complex needs met exceptionally well.
• Pupils typically achieve well and are suitably prepared for secondary school.
• Behaviour is calm and orderly, and pupils follow the school's rules well.
• Pupils take on roles of responsibility, including school councillors, eco ninjas and well-being ambassadors.
• The governing body makes a strong contribution to leadership.
• The curriculum sets out important knowledge and vocabulary clearly and builds pupils' understanding of the locality.
• Reading is a priority, and pupils develop positive attitudes to a wide range of books and poetry.
• Phonics is typically delivered well, and pupils who find reading challenging receive effective support.
• Kindness is central, and pupils build warm, trusting relationships with staff.
• Attendance is monitored closely, and persistent absence has declined in recent years.
• The personal development offer is carefully considered and gives pupils a diverse range of experiences.
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective.

Areas for Improvement

• In a small number of subjects, assessment approaches do not reliably check whether pupils have secured and deepened intended knowledge.
• In some subjects, teachers do not provide enough opportunities for pupils to recap, rehearse and recall previous learning.
• Quality assurance of recently refined curriculums in a small number of subjects is not as effective as it could be.
• Curriculum implementation is sometimes inconsistent in these subjects, leading to uneven pupil learning.

Admissions: local authority offers data from the Department for Education. A school is oversubscribed when at least 5% of the families who put it first were not offered a place, and undersubscribed when everyone who put it first got in but 10% or more of its places were unfilled in the Department's school capacity survey (the latest survey is used for entry years it does not cover). Places: Department for Education, School capacity, from local authorities' annual survey as at 1 May. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024–25); the survey was not run in 2020. Places include sixth form places. Forecasts are the local authority's own for the school's planning area, an area it uses to plan places that is not the school's catchment area. The forecast starts from a head count in 2025; the dashed line is the Department's estimate of places in that area, including those the authority has firm plans for. Planned places are cumulative, and only those with firm plans are counted.

In 2024–25 pupils at Belfield Community School attended 93.1% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 21.4% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 13.0%).

Sessions missed

Pupils persistently absent

Source: Department for Education, Pupil absence in schools in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Persistent absence means missing 10% or more of sessions; severe absence means 50% or more. No figures were published for 2019/20.

In 2024–25, 1.8% of pupils at Belfield Community School were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). No pupils were permanently excluded.

Pupils suspended at least once

Source: Department for Education, Suspensions and permanent exclusions in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). A pupil can be suspended more than once, so suspensions per 100 pupils can be higher than the share of pupils suspended. Very small numbers are hidden by the DfE. Exclusion figures dropped in 2020 and 2021 because of school closures.

In 2025–26 Belfield Community School had 17.9 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 23.1% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 15.7%).

Pupils per teacher

Teachers who left the school within a year

Source: Department for Education, School workforce in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Pupils per teacher counts full-time-equivalent pupils and teachers. Turnover is the share of a year's teachers (full-time equivalent) who were not at the school the following year, whether they moved to another school or left state-funded teaching. Turnover and sickness figures run one year behind the ratios. Sick leave is the share of teachers who took at least one day in the year, so it swings widely at small schools, where a few teachers can make it 0% or 100%. The national figures are for all state schools of the same type.

In 2025–26, 16.6% of pupils at Belfield Community School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 5.6% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

Pupils by main type of need

Source: Department for Education, Special educational needs in England (the 2025–26 school census). SEN support is extra help in school without an EHC plan. National figures are for all state-funded primary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2025–26 Belfield Community School received £7,833 and spent £7,608 for each of its 411 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £377,000 (£918 per pupil).

Income per pupil

Spending per pupil

Source: Department for Education, Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool. Each year is the one the financial year ends in (2024 is 2023–24).

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Rochdale · Rochdale local authority: places and applications

What is Belfield Community School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Belfield Community School is Good, from an inspection in May 2025.

When was Belfield Community School last inspected by Ofsted?

Belfield Community School was last inspected in May 2025.

How many pupils does Belfield Community School have?

Belfield Community School has 429 pupils on roll.

What age range does Belfield Community School cover?

Belfield Community School for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are Belfield Community School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 49% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Belfield Community School?

Belfield Community School is at Samson Street, Belfield, Rochdale, Lancashire, OL16 2XW.