St Michael's Church of England Controlled Infant School

St Michael's is a warm and welcoming infant school where pupils feel safe, happy and well supported. Inspectors found positive relationships, high expectations for behaviour and a broad, interesting curriculum. Pupils are enthusiastic learners, respectful and kind, and achievement is improving, especially in reading. Reading is a clear priority and is taught well from Reception, with effective support for pupils who need extra help. Pupils with SEND are identified well and teaching is adapted successfully, including for those with education, health and care plans. Attendance is improving, and personal development is supported through a wide range of opportunities and responsibilities. The school's main areas for development are in curriculum delivery. In a few subjects, teachers do not check carefully enough what pupils know and can do, and teaching sometimes provides too little practice of new skills, particularly writing, so a minority of pupils develop gaps. In some subjects, activity choices do not match the intended learning well enough, which means pupils do not always recall key information over time. This was the school's first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic and its first section 5 inspection since 2015. It had previously been exempt after being judged outstanding, and, like other schools inspected from September 2024, it did not receive an overall effectiveness grade. Safeguarding arrangements are effective.

Strengths

• Warm, welcoming community where pupils feel safe and happy
• Positive relationships between pupils and adults
• Strong emphasis on school values, including perseverance
• Pupils are enthusiastic, respectful and kind
• Broad and interesting curriculum that promotes a love of learning
• Reading is prioritised and taught well from the start
• Effective support helps pupils who need extra reading practice catch up
• Teachers identify SEND and adapt teaching successfully
• Clear routines and high expectations support good behaviour
• Attendance is improving through personalised support
• Wide range of personal development opportunities and pupil responsibilities
• Governors provide effective support and challenge
• Staff value workload and wellbeing support
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective

Areas for Improvement

• In a few subjects, teachers do not check carefully enough what pupils know and can do
• Teaching sometimes gives pupils insufficient practice of new skills, particularly writing
• A minority of pupils develop gaps in their learning
• Some activity choices do not match intended learning outcomes
• In some subjects, pupils do not recall key information over time

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 St Michael's Church of England Controlled Infant School attended 95.3% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 9.9% 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, 0.4% of pupils at St Michael's Church of England Controlled 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 St Michael's Church of England Controlled Infant School had 28.1 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 46.0% 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, 24.6% of pupils at St Michael's Church of England Controlled Infant School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 4.2% 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 St Michael's Church of England Controlled Infant School received £6,906 and spent £6,857 for each of its 264 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £93,000 (£352 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 Aldershot · Hampshire local authority: places and applications

What is St Michael's Church of England Controlled Infant School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for St Michael's Church of England Controlled Infant School is Good, from an inspection in May 2025.

When was St Michael's Church of England Controlled Infant School last inspected by Ofsted?

St Michael's Church of England Controlled Infant School was last inspected in May 2025.

How many pupils does St Michael's Church of England Controlled Infant School have?

St Michael's Church of England Controlled Infant School has 264 pupils on roll.

What age range does St Michael's Church of England Controlled Infant School cover?

St Michael's Church of England Controlled Infant School for pupils aged 5 to 7.

Where is St Michael's Church of England Controlled Infant School?

St Michael's Church of England Controlled Infant School is at 48 Park Road, Aldershot, Hampshire, GU11 3PU.