Alconbury CofE Primary School

Alconbury C of E Primary is a welcoming, calm and purposeful school. Pupils feel safe, behave well and make positive progress; parents are overwhelmingly positive and staff feel supported. The school has a strong shared vision and a broad, ambitious curriculum, with reading at its heart and effective support for pupils with SEND. Personal development is a particular strength: pupils access a wide range of clubs, trips and leadership roles, and are well prepared for secondary school. Early years provision is strong, behaviour is grounded in clear values, and governors provide supportive challenge. Safeguarding arrangements are effective. This was the school’s first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic; it is a Church of England voluntary controlled school led by co-headteachers and part of the Diocese of Ely. The main concern is that curriculum implementation is not yet consistently strong. Some tasks, activities and resources do not closely match the intended curriculum or pupils’ starting points and needs, and some staff would benefit from further training to deliver the curriculum for pupils with SEND. Recent curriculum improvements also need time to embed.

Strengths

• Welcoming, friendly and polite pupils who behave well and engage positively with learning
• Calm and purposeful atmosphere with clear, fairly applied behaviour expectations
• Broad and ambitious curriculum that builds knowledge and skills as pupils move through the school
• Reading taught well from early years, with timely support and books matched to pupils’ sounds
• Effective identification and support for pupils with SEND, with regular review and adjustment
• Strong personal development offer, including an impressive range of clubs, trips and leadership roles
• Pupils are well prepared for secondary school and understand diversity and community
• Early years provision helps children settle quickly and become independent learners
• Governors know the school and community well and provide supportive professional challenge
• Parents are overwhelmingly happy and staff feel listened to, cared for and appreciated
• Effective safeguarding arrangements

Areas for Improvement

• Some curriculum tasks do not align closely enough with the intended curriculum
• Activities and resources are not always adapted to pupils’ different starting points or needs
• Recent curriculum improvements need time to embed
• Some staff would benefit from further training to deliver the curriculum to pupils with SEND

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 Alconbury CofE Primary School attended 96.5% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 6.6% 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, 1.0% of pupils at Alconbury 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 Alconbury CofE Primary School had 23.2 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 14.1% 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, 17.4% of pupils at Alconbury CofE Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 4.8% 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 Alconbury CofE Primary School received £7,273 and spent £7,218 for each of its 207 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £73,000 (£351 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 Huntingdon · Cambridgeshire local authority: places and applications

What is Alconbury CofE Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Alconbury CofE Primary School is Good, from an inspection in January 2025.

When was Alconbury CofE Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Alconbury CofE Primary School was last inspected in January 2025.

How many pupils does Alconbury CofE Primary School have?

Alconbury CofE Primary School has 207 pupils on roll.

What age range does Alconbury CofE Primary School cover?

Alconbury CofE Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

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

In 2025, 68% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Alconbury CofE Primary School?

Alconbury CofE Primary School is at School Lane, Alconbury, Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, PE28 4EQ.