Birch Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School

Birch Church of England Voluntary-Aided Primary School has been assessed as good overall, with outstanding features in behavior and attitudes and personal development. The pupils enjoy their time at school, benefitting from a wide-ranging curriculum that prepares them well for the transition to secondary education. The strong support from staff enhances students' well-being, leading to exceptional behavior and a positive school environment. While senior leaders are committed to continuous improvement, some areas such as the teaching of phonics and curriculum monitoring could see further development to enhance educational outcomes.

Strengths

• Pupils are happy, engaged, and enjoy learning.
• Exceptional behavior and positive relationships among pupils and staff.
• Strong teamwork among senior leaders and staff.
• Effective curriculum planning supporting pupil understanding.
• High priority given to reading and enjoyment of literature.
• Pupils are well-prepared for the next stage in their education.

Areas for Improvement

• Some phonics teaching does not meet individual pupil needs effectively.
• Monitoring of the curriculum is underdeveloped in some areas.
• Limited opportunities for the SENCo to observe lesson delivery.

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 Birch Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School attended 95.1% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 11.8% 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 Birch Church of England Voluntary Aided 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 Birch Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School had 21.0 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 16.9% 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, 12.1% of pupils at Birch Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 0.0% 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 Birch Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School received £6,931 and spent £7,051 for each of its 124 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £57,000 (£463 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 Colchester · Essex local authority: places and applications

What is Birch Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Birch Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School is Good, from an inspection in March 2025.

When was Birch Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Birch Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School was last inspected in March 2025.

How many pupils does Birch Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School have?

Birch Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School has 124 pupils on roll.

What age range does Birch Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School cover?

Birch Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School for pupils aged 5 to 11.

What are Birch Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 55% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Birch Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School?

Birch Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School is at School Hill, Birch, Colchester, Essex, CO2 0LZ.