Liss Infant School

Liss Infant School has improved since its previous inspection and is now judged good in all key areas: quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and early years provision. Pupils are happy and secure in a caring, kind school where expectations for achievement are high and behaviour is calm and positive. The broad, well-sequenced curriculum and stronger teaching, including much-improved phonics, help pupils build knowledge steadily, and children in Reception are well prepared for Year 1. Safeguarding is effective. The school is particularly strong in supporting pupils with SEND, including those in its specially resourced Kingfisher provision, and in creating a joyful early years environment. Governance has been considerably strengthened, staff feel positive, and leaders balance workload with improvement. However, a small minority of pupils still miss too much school because attendance strategies are not yet fully effective. There is also some variability in early reading teaching, which can slow how quickly some pupils apply phonics, and aspects of personal development—especially clubs and wider activities—are less developed than the academic curriculum. Context: This is a community infant school within the Federation of Liss Infant and Junior Schools, with a specially resourced provision for pupils with moderate learning difficulties; it was previously judged requires improvement. Inspectors identified attendance, consistency in phonics teaching and broader personal development as the main priorities.

Strengths

• Warm, caring and happy school culture
• High expectations for pupils’ achievement
• Broad, well-sequenced curriculum with clearly identified knowledge
• Much-improved phonics and effective support for pupils to catch up
• Calm lessons and positive behaviour, with a kind culture
• Strong support for pupils with SEND, including the Kingfisher provision
• Joyful early years provision that prepares children well for Year 1
• Effective safeguarding arrangements
• Strengthened governance and positive staff morale
• Pupils take on responsibilities and help each other

Areas for Improvement

• A small minority of pupils do not attend regularly enough and miss vital learning
• Some variability in the teaching of early reading and phonics
• Some aspects of personal development, including clubs and wider activities, are less developed

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 Liss Infant School attended 93.7% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 23.5% 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 Liss Infant 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 Liss Infant School had 21.3 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 33.3% 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, 23.5% of pupils at Liss Infant School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 11.8% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

The school has resourced provision with 8 pupils.

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 Liss Infant School received £10,709 and spent £11,151 for each of its 85 pupils. It ended the year with a deficit of £27,000 (-£312 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 Liss · Hampshire local authority: places and applications

What is Liss Infant School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Liss Infant School is Good, from an inspection in September 2025.

When was Liss Infant School last inspected by Ofsted?

Liss Infant School was last inspected in September 2025.

How many pupils does Liss Infant School have?

Liss Infant School has 85 pupils on roll.

What age range does Liss Infant School cover?

Liss Infant School for pupils aged 4 to 7.

Where is Liss Infant School?

Liss Infant School is at Hillbrow Road, Liss, Hampshire, GU33 7LQ.