Cheddington Combined School

Cheddington Combined School is a happy, ambitious primary school where pupils are eager to learn and attendance is high. Inspectors found the quality of education and early years provision to be good, behaviour and attitudes good, and personal development and leadership and management outstanding. Pupils benefit from an exciting, well-sequenced curriculum, strong reading provision, and a wide range of trips, clubs and performing arts opportunities. The school is highly ambitious for pupils, teaching is generally skilful, and pupils achieve well in national tests at the end of Year 6. Safeguarding arrangements are effective.

Strengths

• Pupils are happy, excited to learn and attend school regularly.
• Pupils behave well and routinely demonstrate the school's values.
• Personal development is exceptional, with pupils leading initiatives and contributing to the community.
• The curriculum is exciting, engaging and carefully mapped across subjects and year groups.
• Reading is high profile, with early reading support and a wide range of books.
• Teaching is generally skilful, and staff deepen pupils' knowledge effectively.
• Leadership is exemplary and has driven rapid, sustained improvement since the last inspection.
• Staff receive a well-designed professional development programme and feel valued and supported.
• School trips and clubs are precisely linked to the curriculum and broaden pupils' opportunities.
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective.

Areas for Improvement

• Early years activities are not always effective in helping children achieve the intended learning, leading to some gaps.
• Support and adaptation for pupils with SEND are not consistently precise enough, so some pupils develop gaps in knowledge.

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 Cheddington Combined School attended 96.3% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 5.6% 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, 0.5% of pupils at Cheddington Combined 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 Cheddington Combined School had 18.8 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 16.3% 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, 11.3% of pupils at Cheddington Combined School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 0.5% 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 Cheddington Combined School received £6,227 and spent £6,491 for each of its 195 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £160,000 (£820 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 Buckinghamshire · Buckinghamshire local authority: places and applications

What is Cheddington Combined School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Cheddington Combined School is Good, from an inspection in September 2025.

When was Cheddington Combined School last inspected by Ofsted?

Cheddington Combined School was last inspected in September 2025.

How many pupils does Cheddington Combined School have?

Cheddington Combined School has 195 pupils on roll.

What age range does Cheddington Combined School cover?

Cheddington Combined School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

What are Cheddington Combined School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 56% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Cheddington Combined School?

Cheddington Combined School is at High Street, Cheddington, Bedfordshire, LU7 0RG.