Shincliffe CofE (Controlled) Primary School

Shincliffe CofE (Controlled) Primary School is a small Church of England primary in Durham with a low proportion of disadvantaged pupils and no resourced SEND provision. Safeguarding is met. The school is performing well overall: attendance and behaviour and personal development and wellbeing are particularly strong, while achievement, curriculum and teaching, early years, inclusion, and leadership and governance are secure at the expected standard. Pupils are happy, respectful and safe; they benefit from a calm, inclusive ethos, strong pastoral support, positive parental engagement, and a curriculum that builds foundational knowledge and broader experiences. Leaders have addressed areas from the previous inspection and have an accurate view of what still needs work. Attendance is high, including for pupils with SEND, and persistent absence has fallen sharply. Behaviour is a credit to the school, bullying and discrimination are rare, and pupils with additional needs are well included. Pupils typically achieve well, with outcomes comparing favourably to national figures and improvements over time in reading and mathematics, although published data shows wide disadvantaged-pupil attainment gaps in some combined measures based on small cohorts. The main areas for further development are ensuring that tasks are consistently well chosen so all pupils make progress in lessons, and embedding high-quality adult-child interactions in early years so they are consistently strong. The report also notes some minor variation in teaching quality, but leaders are already addressing this and have effective systems for staff development, governance and improvement.

Strengths

• High and improving attendance, including for pupils with SEND
• Sharp reduction in persistent absence through rigorous tracking and parent engagement
• Clear behaviour expectations modelled consistently by staff and pupils
• Pupils are highly respectful, polite and empathetic, including towards peers with additional needs
• Bullying and discrimination are rare and dealt with swiftly and effectively
• Tailored personal development programme with rich wider experiences and careers exposure
• Pupils develop secure understanding of healthy relationships, online safety and British values
• Strong inclusive culture with effective pastoral support and removal of participation barriers
• Pupils typically achieve well; published outcomes compare favourably with national figures
• Improvement over time in key stage 2 reading and mathematics outcomes
• Disadvantaged pupils and pupils with SEND typically make expected progress from starting points
• Secure phonics knowledge means reading is not typically a barrier to the wider curriculum
• Engaging, well-sequenced curriculum that helps pupils revisit and remember learning
• Support for pupils with gaps in basic skills helps them become less reliant on extra help
• Early years provides a supportive, inclusive environment where children are happy and well prepared for Year 1
• Effective leadership with accurate self-evaluation, openness to challenge and strategic staff development
• Governors understand their role and provide effective support and challenge
• Positive parental engagement has notable impact on attendance and school life
• Pupils feel safe, proud and valued, with warm staff-pupil relationships

Areas for Improvement

• Some variation in teaching quality, with tasks not always well chosen to help pupils make progress within lessons
• Adult-child interactions in early years vary in quality and systems to improve them are not yet embedded in routine practice
• Published data shows large disadvantaged-pupil attainment gaps in reading and combined measures, though cohorts are small and the report notes these pupils typically progress well from their starting points

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 Shincliffe CofE (Controlled) Primary School attended 96.5% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 2.9% 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 Shincliffe CofE (Controlled) 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 Shincliffe CofE (Controlled) Primary School had 22.2 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 0.0% 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, 10.8% of pupils at Shincliffe CofE (Controlled) 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 Shincliffe CofE (Controlled) Primary School received £6,660 and spent £6,649 for each of its 195 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £95,000 (£485 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 Durham · County Durham local authority: places and applications

What is Shincliffe CofE (Controlled) Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Shincliffe CofE (Controlled) Primary School is Expected standard, from an inspection in June 2026.

When was Shincliffe CofE (Controlled) Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Shincliffe CofE (Controlled) Primary School was last inspected in June 2026.

How many pupils does Shincliffe CofE (Controlled) Primary School have?

Shincliffe CofE (Controlled) Primary School has 195 pupils on roll.

What age range does Shincliffe CofE (Controlled) Primary School cover?

Shincliffe CofE (Controlled) Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

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

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

Where is Shincliffe CofE (Controlled) Primary School?

Shincliffe CofE (Controlled) Primary School is at Beal Walk, High Shincliffe, Shincliffe C of E Primary School, Durham, County Durham, DH1 2PN.