Terling Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School

Terling Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School is a small village primary that inspectors found to be performing securely overall, with all areas of provision meeting expected standards and safeguarding arrangements met. The school has been through leadership changes, staffing transitions and ongoing site work, but leaders have stabilised it and created a calm, purposeful and inclusive culture. Pupils feel safe, are well supported and benefit from a broad curriculum, with reading prioritised and a particularly strong start in the early years. Notable strengths include the early years provision, where children make a highly positive start and communication and language are developed well; effective support for pupils with SEND and other barriers to learning; strong pastoral care and personal development; and good attendance, with persistent absence below national averages. Staff morale is high, governance is increasingly strategic, and the school has a strong community feel. Leaders know the school’s priorities and are using assessment well to respond to gaps. There are still areas to improve. Pupils’ written work does not always match the depth of knowledge they can explain, with handwriting, presentation and writing conventions inconsistent. Behaviour is generally positive, but low-level disruption occurs in a few lessons and application of the behaviour policy is inconsistent. Adult support in lessons is not always precise enough to move learning forward, and disadvantaged pupils’ published outcomes are below national averages, particularly in mathematics. Leaders have already begun addressing some of these issues, including mathematics provision.

Strengths

• Early years provision gives children a highly positive start, with strong communication and language development.
• Pupils with SEND and those facing barriers to learning are well supported and access a broad curriculum.
• Pupils feel safe, listened to and part of a caring school community.
• Personal development is well planned, with extensive enrichment, pastoral support and leadership opportunities.
• Attendance is a priority and persistent absence is below national averages.
• Leaders have stabilised the school through turbulence and created a calm, purposeful culture.
• Governors know the school well and provide strong oversight and support.
• Staff morale is high and staff feel respected, valued and involved.
• The curriculum is broad and improvements help pupils know and remember more.
• Reading is prioritised from the start and pupils talk confidently about their learning.
• The school has strong community links, including community 'Do Days'.

Areas for Improvement

• Pupils’ written outcomes do not consistently reflect their verbal knowledge and understanding.
• Handwriting, presentation, punctuation and writing conventions are variable.
• Low-level disruption and excessive noise occasionally affect concentration in a small number of lessons.
• Application of the behaviour policy is inconsistent across the school.
• Adult intervention and feedback are not always precise enough to move pupils’ learning forward in every subject.
• Disadvantaged pupils’ outcomes are below national averages, with a particularly large gap in mathematics.
• Some national outcomes have been below national averages over time, though recent actions are beginning to have an impact.

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 Terling Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School attended 96.2% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 6.4% 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, 1.9% of pupils at Terling 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 Terling Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School had 18.3 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 50.0% 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, 17.2% of pupils at Terling 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 Terling Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School received £7,843 and spent £7,705 for each of its 99 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £181,000 (£1,825 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

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

The latest Ofsted rating for Terling Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School is Expected standard, from an inspection in October 2026.

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

Terling Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School was last inspected in October 2026.

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

Terling Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School has 99 pupils on roll.

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

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

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

In 2025, 57% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Terling Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School?

Terling Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School is at New Road, Terling, Chelmsford, Essex, CM3 2PN.