Marsh Gibbon CofE Primary School

Marsh Gibbon CofE Primary School is a small Church of England primary school that pupils describe as joyful and nurturing, with strong relationships and a clear sense of community. Since the previous inspection, leaders have made effective improvements to the curriculum, strengthened support for pupils with SEND, and maintained effective safeguarding. Pupils achieve well, attend regularly, and are very well prepared for secondary school. Behaviour is exemplary, and pupils have highly positive attitudes to learning. Personal development is a notable strength: pupils take part in leadership roles, benefit from trips and visitors, and develop a strong understanding of safety, diversity and British values. Reading is taught effectively, and pupils who need extra help catch up well. Staff feel supported, and parents value the school’s inclusive ethos. The main area for improvement is that recent curriculum refinements are not yet fully embedded across all subjects. In some subjects, teachers’ subject knowledge and teaching approaches are strong, but this is not consistent everywhere, so pupils’ learning is uneven across the curriculum. Leaders should continue to strengthen teaching across all subjects.

Strengths

• Pupils feel safe, known and celebrated in a joyful and nurturing school.
• Behaviour is exemplary in lessons and around the school.
• Pupils have highly positive attitudes to learning and manage their emotions well.
• The curriculum has been carefully reviewed and is more logically sequenced across subjects.
• Reading is taught effectively, with well-trained staff and strong support for pupils who need extra help.
• Support for pupils with SEND has been strengthened, with effective work with parents and precise adaptation of the curriculum.
• Personal development is broad and enriched through trips, visitors, workshops and leadership opportunities.
• Attendance is above the national average, with very few pupils regularly absent.
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective.
• Leaders manage change well, considering staff workload and well-being.

Areas for Improvement

• Curriculum refinements are not yet fully embedded in all subjects.
• The depth and consistency of teachers’ subject knowledge and pedagogical skills vary across subjects, so pupils’ learning is uneven.
• Leaders should maintain emphasis on strengthening teaching across all subjects.

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 Marsh Gibbon CofE Primary School attended 96.2% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 6.3% 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 Marsh Gibbon CofE Primary 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 Marsh Gibbon CofE Primary School had 17.2 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 3.3% 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, 12.7% of pupils at Marsh Gibbon CofE Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 3.3% 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 Marsh Gibbon CofE Primary School received £6,626 and spent £6,906 for each of its 150 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £44,000 (£295 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

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What is Marsh Gibbon CofE Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Marsh Gibbon CofE Primary School is Good, from an inspection in September 2025.

When was Marsh Gibbon CofE Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Marsh Gibbon CofE Primary School was last inspected in September 2025.

How many pupils does Marsh Gibbon CofE Primary School have?

Marsh Gibbon CofE Primary School has 150 pupils on roll.

What age range does Marsh Gibbon CofE Primary School cover?

Marsh Gibbon CofE Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

What are Marsh Gibbon CofE Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 71% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Marsh Gibbon CofE Primary School?

Marsh Gibbon CofE Primary School is at Castle Street, Marsh Gibbon, Bicester, Oxfordshire, OX27 0HJ.