St Mary's Bentworth Church of England Primary School

St Mary’s Bentworth is a very happy Church of England primary school where pupils behave exceptionally well, attend strongly and benefit from excellent early years and personal development provision. Pupils are calm, focused and kind, and most leave Year 6 with strong achievement in reading, writing and mathematics. The school is well led and governed, parents are overwhelmingly positive, and safeguarding arrangements are effective. This was its first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic, and under the current framework no overall effectiveness grade was awarded. The main area for improvement is the wider curriculum. In English, mathematics and some other subjects, the curriculum is well designed and builds knowledge carefully over time, but in some wider-curriculum subjects the school has not identified the precise knowledge pupils should learn. As a result, pupils’ learning does not build as strongly in those subjects. Provision for pupils with SEND is a notable strength: needs are identified quickly and learning is adapted well so that pupils access the full curriculum successfully.

Strengths

• Pupils are exceptionally well behaved, kind and considerate, and demonstrate the school’s values.
• Early years provision gives children an excellent start and children are very well cared for.
• Reading, writing and mathematics are well sequenced, and most pupils achieve strongly by Year 6.
• Pupils with SEND are identified quickly and access the full curriculum successfully alongside their peers.
• Personal development is very well considered, with strong British values, health and safety education.
• Pupils benefit from a wide range of music and sporting opportunities that are open to all.
• Attendance is very strong, and the school takes effective action when it is too low.
• Leadership and governance are effective, with robust quality assurance and positive parent views.
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective.

Areas for Improvement

• In some wider-curriculum subjects, the school has not identified the precise knowledge pupils need to learn.
• Pupils’ learning does not build as strongly over time in those wider-curriculum subjects.

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 Mary's Bentworth Church of England Primary School attended 96.9% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 2.1% 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 St Mary's Bentworth Church of England 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 St Mary's Bentworth Church of England Primary School had 20.6 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, 9.3% of pupils at St Mary's Bentworth Church of England Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 7.5% 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 Mary's Bentworth Church of England Primary School received £9,512 and spent £9,000 for each of its 107 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £129,000 (£1,203 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 Alton · Hampshire local authority: places and applications

What is St Mary's Bentworth Church of England Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for St Mary's Bentworth Church of England Primary School is Good, from an inspection in March 2025.

When was St Mary's Bentworth Church of England Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

St Mary's Bentworth Church of England Primary School was last inspected in March 2025.

How many pupils does St Mary's Bentworth Church of England Primary School have?

St Mary's Bentworth Church of England Primary School has 107 pupils on roll.

What age range does St Mary's Bentworth Church of England Primary School cover?

St Mary's Bentworth Church of England Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

What are St Mary's Bentworth Church of England Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 79% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is St Mary's Bentworth Church of England Primary School?

St Mary's Bentworth Church of England Primary School is at Church Street, Bentworth, Alton, Hampshire, GU34 5RE.