Anstey First School

Anstey First School is a very small first school, with 44 pupils on roll, inspected in April 2026. Safeguarding standards are met. Inspectors found the school at expected standard for achievement, attendance and behaviour, curriculum and teaching, early years, and leadership and governance. Pupils generally achieve well from their starting points, benefit from an ambitious broad curriculum, and learn to read early through a structured phonics programme. Behaviour is calm, respectful and orderly, and pupils feel safe and cared for in a nurturing school community. Two areas need attention. Inclusion is not yet consistent: support for disadvantaged pupils and pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities is uneven, needs are not always identified clearly, support plans lack precise targets and progress checks, and lesson adaptations and additional adult use vary. Oversight of alternative provision is also at an early stage. Personal development and wellbeing is the other area needing attention: the PSHE and relationships curriculum has recently been rewritten and is not yet consistently taught, so some pupils have had little PSHE and are unsure what it covers. Leadership is a notable strength. New leaders have swiftly understood the school’s priorities, staff feel well led and supported, and governors are experienced and committed. The school is well placed to improve, but leaders should rapidly embed the new PSHE programme and strengthen identification, targeted training and oversight of alternative provision so all pupils, especially those with barriers to learning, receive precise and consistent support.

Strengths

• Ambitious and broad curriculum with a shared lesson approach
• Strong early reading through a structured phonics programme
• Mathematics teaching focused on number sense and times-table fluency
• Wider curriculum organised around big questions and big ideas
• Calm, respectful and orderly pupil behaviour
• Positive, purposeful routines and play across age groups
• Effective early years provision that builds communication, language and number
• Attendance prioritised with quick follow-up and support for pupils who struggle
• Pupils feel safe, cared for and listened to
• New leaders have swiftly identified strengths and priorities
• Governors are experienced, committed and hold leaders to account
• Staff report the school is well led and managed, with protected wellbeing
• Strong parental engagement and communication
• Effective transition work prepares pupils for the next phase
• Pupil premium funding supports wider access and wellbeing

Areas for Improvement

• Support for disadvantaged pupils and pupils with SEND is not yet consistent
• Pupils’ needs are not always identified clearly
• Support plans are not always precise, with targets too broad or unclear
• Plans do not always show how staff will check progress
• Lesson adaptations vary, and additional adults are not always used effectively
• Some pupils do not secure key knowledge as quickly as they could
• Oversight of alternative provision lacks a clear quality-checking process
• Leaders have limited assurance that alternative provision meets pupils’ needs
• The PSHE and relationships curriculum is not delivered consistently or well organised
• The new PSHE programme is not yet embedded and teaching is uneven
• Some pupils have not learned PSHE for some time and are unsure what it includes
• Pupils do not yet build knowledge over time about relationships, health and growing up
• Published absence and persistent absence rates are above national averages

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 Anstey First School attended 92.2% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 24.0% 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 Anstey First 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 Anstey First School had 9.6 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 25.0% 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, 20.5% of pupils at Anstey First School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 5.1% 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 Anstey First School received £15,658 and spent £16,517 for each of its 35 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £46,000 (£1,333 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 Buntingford · Hertfordshire local authority: places and applications

What is Anstey First School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Anstey First School is Needs attention, from an inspection in June 2026.

When was Anstey First School last inspected by Ofsted?

Anstey First School was last inspected in June 2026.

How many pupils does Anstey First School have?

Anstey First School has 39 pupils on roll.

What age range does Anstey First School cover?

Anstey First School for pupils aged 2 to 9.

Where is Anstey First School?

Anstey First School is at Anstey, Buntingford, Hertfordshire, SG9 0BY.