Bishop Cornish CofE VA Primary School

Bishop Cornish CofE VA Primary is a small Church of England primary school in the Diocese of Truro with 192 pupils, below the national average in size and with an above-average proportion of pupils receiving SEN support. Safeguarding standards are met, and the school's warm, nurturing ethos is a genuine strength: pupils feel safe, attend regularly, behave well overall, and benefit from a very strong personal development and wellbeing programme. Pupils build confidence, character and positive relationships, and most parents are supportive. The school also provides effective pastoral care for pupils with SEND, disadvantaged pupils and those known to social care, although academic support for these groups is not yet consistently effective. However, the quality of education is uneven and several important areas need attention. Outcomes at the end of Year 6 in reading, writing and mathematics are below national averages, and disadvantaged pupils achieve well below their peers nationally in reading and mathematics. Teaching is inconsistent, expectations are not always high enough, and assessment is not used well enough to address gaps or adapt learning. The curriculum is not securely sequenced in some subjects, and pupils sometimes move on before they are ready. Early years provision also has weaknesses, particularly in early reading, writing and mathematics and in outdoor learning. Leadership has correctly identified what needs to improve, and recent mathematics changes are beginning to have a positive impact, but curriculum, teaching and achievement have not improved quickly or precisely enough. Governors are committed to the school's ethos but have not provided sufficient challenge and support to secure sustained improvements. Overall, the school's care, personal development and safeguarding are strengths, but leaders must now ensure consistently effective teaching and curriculum so that all pupils, including disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND, achieve well.

Strengths

• Safeguarding standards are met, with an open culture in which concerns are identified and managed.
• Personal development and wellbeing provision is very strong and supports pupils' mental health, values and character.
• Pupils feel safe, build lasting friendships and know trusted adults will listen to them.
• Pupils generally behave well, conduct themselves maturely and take on roles to support younger pupils.
• Attendance is in line with national expectations, and persistent absence is reducing.
• Leaders have created a warm, welcoming and supportive ethos, with strong pastoral care.
• Pupils with SEND, disadvantaged pupils and pupils known to social care receive effective pastoral support.
• The school promotes equality, healthy relationships and responsible citizenship well.
• Pupils benefit from a wide range of enrichment, visits, clubs and residential experiences.
• Recent changes to the mathematics curriculum are supporting notable improvements in teaching.
• Early years children build secure relationships with adults, behave well and enjoy high-quality texts.
• Governors are committed to the school's ethos, and leaders know pupils well and are determined to improve.
• Pupils' personal, social and mental health needs are identified and supported from Reception to Year 6.

Areas for Improvement

• Pupils' outcomes at the end of Year 6 in reading, writing and mathematics are below the national average.
• Disadvantaged pupils achieve well below their peers nationally in reading and mathematics.
• Achievement is inconsistent across the curriculum, with pupils' prior knowledge not built on securely in some subjects.
• Teaching is inconsistent, and teachers' expectations are not always high enough.
• Some support staff are not deployed effectively to help pupils access the curriculum.
• Teachers do not consistently address basic errors in spelling, handwriting and number work.
• Teaching is not adapted sufficiently to meet pupils' needs, and pupils are sometimes moved on before they are ready.
• The curriculum in some subjects is not well sequenced from the early years to Year 6.
• Early years provision does not consistently develop children's early reading, writing and mathematics.
• Early years staff do not routinely correct letter formation or tackle early writing errors quickly.
• Children's language and mathematical talk are not developed sufficiently in the early years.
• Early years outdoor provision is limited and does not consistently extend children's learning.
• Teaching does not consistently match pupils' academic needs, limiting progress for some pupils.
• Leaders do not ensure barriers to learning are addressed quickly or that SEND strategies are applied consistently.
• Disadvantaged pupils' academic funding has only recently been used to support achievement, so impact is unclear.
• Leaders and governors have not secured necessary improvements to curriculum, teaching and achievement.
• Professional development does not focus sufficiently on improving teaching and raising achievement.
• Governors do not provide sufficient challenge and support to secure sustained improvements.
• Behaviour can falter when teaching is less effective.
• Some pupils lose focus in whole-class phonics sessions.

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 Bishop Cornish CofE VA Primary School attended 95.6% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 9.7% 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, 2.1% of pupils at Bishop Cornish CofE VA 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 Bishop Cornish CofE VA Primary School had 22.8 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 16.4% 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, 15.8% of pupils at Bishop Cornish CofE VA Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 4.1% 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 Bishop Cornish CofE VA Primary School received £7,797 and spent £7,813 for each of its 196 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £177,000 (£903 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 Saltash · Cornwall local authority: places and applications

What is Bishop Cornish CofE VA Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Bishop Cornish CofE VA Primary School is Needs attention, from an inspection in September 2026.

When was Bishop Cornish CofE VA Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Bishop Cornish CofE VA Primary School was last inspected in September 2026.

How many pupils does Bishop Cornish CofE VA Primary School have?

Bishop Cornish CofE VA Primary School has 196 pupils on roll.

What age range does Bishop Cornish CofE VA Primary School cover?

Bishop Cornish CofE VA Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

What are Bishop Cornish CofE VA Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 28% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Bishop Cornish CofE VA Primary School?

Bishop Cornish CofE VA Primary School is at Lynher Drive, Saltash, Cornwall, PL12 4PA.