Denby Church of England Voluntary Aided First School

Denby Church of England Voluntary Aided First School is a small village school at the heart of its community and part of the Green Hills First Federation. It has a new headteacher in post since September 2022, a small pupil roll and very low proportions of pupils eligible for free school meals or with SEND compared with national averages. Inspectors found a happy, safe and inclusive school where pupils are proud of their school, behave well, attend regularly and benefit from strong relationships with staff and families. Safeguarding standards are met, and leadership is reflective, collaborative and well supported by governors and federation colleagues. Overall, the school is performing strongly, with attendance and behaviour identified as particular strengths. Pupils achieve well from their starting points, including disadvantaged pupils and those with special educational needs and/or disabilities. The curriculum is well designed, early reading and phonics are effective, early years provision is nurturing and purposeful, and inclusion is a clear priority. Pupils also benefit from a broad personal development offer, including enrichment, leadership opportunities and an emphasis on wellbeing and sustainability. The main areas for improvement are that teachers need to consistently identify and resolve pupils' misconceptions quickly so that pupils do not repeat mistakes, and the personal development curriculum should more consistently deepen pupils' understanding of different cultures, communities and protected characteristics. This would help ensure pupils are as well prepared as possible for life in modern Britain.

Strengths

• Attendance is consistently above national averages and persistent absence is below national averages, including for disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND.
• Pupils have highly positive attitudes to learning and classrooms are calm, focused and purposeful.
• Behaviour at social times is positive, with rare incidents of poor behaviour or bullying dealt with swiftly.
• Pupils make appropriate progress from their starting points, including disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND.
• Early reading and phonics are strong, helping most pupils become confident and fluent readers by the end of key stage 1.
• The curriculum is well designed, tailored to the school and supported by high expectations.
• Teaching adaptations generally help pupils with SEND and disadvantaged pupils access the same curriculum as their peers.
• Early years provision is nurturing, purposeful and built on positive relationships, with children well prepared for Year 1.
• Leaders have established a genuine culture of inclusion and identify pupils' needs accurately and quickly.
• Leadership is reflective, collaborative and effective, with parents speaking highly of the school.
• Governors understand their statutory duties, challenge leaders robustly and provide appropriate support.
• Pupils feel safe, valued and well supported, and they learn how to maintain healthy relationships and stay safe online.
• Pupils benefit from a wide range of clubs, trips, performances and responsibilities, with high participation in enrichment activities.
• The school promotes environmental sustainability and helps pupils understand how to contribute positively to their community.

Areas for Improvement

• Teachers do not always have the expertise to identify and resolve pupils' misconceptions swiftly, leading to repeated mistakes.
• There are inconsistencies in how well pupils' presentation and errors are corrected across the curriculum.
• Pupils' understanding of protected characteristics and wider world faiths and religions is less secure, so they are not as well prepared for life in modern Britain as they could be.
• There are some inconsistencies in early years practice around securing accurate letter formation.

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 Denby Church of England Voluntary Aided First School attended 96.0% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 6.1% 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, 0.0% of pupils at Denby Church of England Voluntary Aided First 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 Denby Church of England Voluntary Aided First School had 14.2 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 12.5% 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, 11.5% of pupils at Denby Church of England Voluntary Aided First School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 1.9% 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 Denby Church of England Voluntary Aided First School received £9,927 and spent £9,816 for each of its 52 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £2,000 (£42 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 Huddersfield · Kirklees local authority: places and applications

What is Denby Church of England Voluntary Aided First School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Denby Church of England Voluntary Aided First School is Expected standard, from an inspection in July 2026.

When was Denby Church of England Voluntary Aided First School last inspected by Ofsted?

Denby Church of England Voluntary Aided First School was last inspected in July 2026.

How many pupils does Denby Church of England Voluntary Aided First School have?

Denby Church of England Voluntary Aided First School has 52 pupils on roll.

What age range does Denby Church of England Voluntary Aided First School cover?

Denby Church of England Voluntary Aided First School for pupils aged 4 to 10.

Where is Denby Church of England Voluntary Aided First School?

Denby Church of England Voluntary Aided First School is at Goose Green, Upper Denby, Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, HD8 8UN.