Taxal and Fernilee CofE Primary School

Taxal and Fernilee CofE Primary School continues to perform well, maintaining its status as a good school. Pupils enjoy attending school and are well cared for by a supportive staff. The school promotes positive relationships among students and encourages enthusiastic participation in learning and extracurricular activities. Parents express strong support for the school, indicating that children feel valued within the school community. The interim leadership team has been proactive in strengthening connections with the local community, which has further enhanced the school's reputation among families. Although the curriculum for core subjects like mathematics and English is strong, there are areas of concern regarding the sequencing and development of knowledge in subjects such as history and music. Leaders acknowledge the need for improvement in outlining clear learning objectives in these subjects to ensure that all pupils build their knowledge effectively over time. Despite these challenges, the school has shown strong commitment to supporting all pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), ensuring their achievement and inclusion in the learning environment.

Strengths

• Pupils enjoy coming to school and feel valued as part of the school community.
• The curriculum for mathematics and English is well-designed, promoting strong recall of prior learning.
• All staff are trained to deliver a new phonics scheme, effectively supporting pupils in their reading.
• Leaders are ambitious for pupils with SEND, providing adapted curriculums when necessary.
• Teachers uphold high expectations for pupil behavior and work ethic.
• The personal development curriculum is broad, covering various faiths and cultures.

Areas for Improvement

• The curriculum planning for subjects like history and music is underdeveloped and needs improvement.

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 Taxal and Fernilee CofE Primary School attended 95.9% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 5.1% 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, 1.5% of pupils at Taxal and Fernilee 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 Taxal and Fernilee CofE Primary School had 23.6 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 11.4% 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, 24.0% of pupils at Taxal and Fernilee CofE Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 2.1% 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 Taxal and Fernilee CofE Primary School received £6,493 and spent £6,766 for each of its 192 pupils. It ended the year with a deficit of £9,000 (-£45 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 High Peak · Derbyshire local authority: places and applications

What is Taxal and Fernilee CofE Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Taxal and Fernilee CofE Primary School is Good, from an inspection in July 2023.

When was Taxal and Fernilee CofE Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Taxal and Fernilee CofE Primary School was last inspected in July 2023.

How many pupils does Taxal and Fernilee CofE Primary School have?

Taxal and Fernilee CofE Primary School has 192 pupils on roll.

What age range does Taxal and Fernilee CofE Primary School cover?

Taxal and Fernilee CofE Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

What are Taxal and Fernilee CofE Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 79% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Taxal and Fernilee CofE Primary School?

Taxal and Fernilee CofE Primary School is at Reddish Road, Whaley Bridge, High Peak, Derbyshire, SK23 7DL.