Little Gaddesden Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School

Little Gaddesden Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School is a small, happy and calm school where pupils feel safe and achieve well across a broad curriculum. This was its first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic and its first section 5 inspection since 2014; it had previously been exempt from routine inspection because it was judged outstanding. Since September 2024, schools are no longer given an overall effectiveness grade, but the school was judged good in each key judgement and in early years provision. Safeguarding is effective. Pupils benefit from warm relationships, polite behaviour and a strong sense of community, with older pupils supporting younger ones. Leaders have built an ambitious and carefully sequenced curriculum, and pupils learn well in a wide range of subjects. Reading is a priority and phonics is taught effectively, with prompt support for pupils who fall behind. Pupils with SEND are held to high expectations and achieve well, attendance is strong, and personal development is promoted well through leadership roles, trips and clubs. Governors are knowledgeable and provide effective support and challenge. The main area for improvement is that in some subjects teachers do not always have the precise subject knowledge needed to deliver the curriculum as confidently and consistently as leaders intend, which sometimes limits how well pupils deepen or extend their understanding. The report also notes that pupils sometimes do not get enough opportunities to practise phonics sounds, although teachers identify and support those who fall behind quickly.

Strengths

• Pupils feel happy and safe in a close-knit school community
• Older pupils look after younger children at lunchtime
• Pupils achieve well across a wide range of subjects
• Staff have high expectations of pupils
• Frequent high-quality trips and events help embed learning
• Pupils behave well and lessons are rarely interrupted
• Pupils are polite, warm and can debate issues courteously
• A wide range of before- and after-school clubs supports pupils
• The curriculum is ambitious and carefully sequenced
• Early years children get off to a good start with wide vocabulary and challenging activities
• Reading is prioritised and phonics teaching is effective
• Pupils who fall behind in reading receive prompt, effective support
• Pupils with SEND learn the same curriculum as peers and achieve well
• Attendance is strong and persistent absence is very rare
• Pupils take on leadership and ambassadorial roles
• Pupils learn about democracy through Pupil Parliament elections
• Pupils know how to stay safe online and support their mental health
• Governors are knowledgeable, diligent and effective
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective

Areas for Improvement

• In some subjects, teachers lack the precise subject knowledge to implement the curriculum confidently and consistently
• Some pupils are not always supported to deepen or extend their understanding
• Pupils sometimes do not get enough opportunities to practise phonics sounds

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 Little Gaddesden Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School attended 97.2% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 0.0% 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, 2.0% of pupils at Little Gaddesden 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 Little Gaddesden Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School had 21.6 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 19.6% 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, 9.2% of pupils at Little Gaddesden Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 1.8% 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 Little Gaddesden Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School received £7,716 and spent £7,429 for each of its 106 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £75,000 (£704 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 Berkhamsted · Hertfordshire local authority: places and applications

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

The latest Ofsted rating for Little Gaddesden Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School is Good, from an inspection in November 2024.

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

Little Gaddesden Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School was last inspected in November 2024.

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

Little Gaddesden Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School has 109 pupils on roll.

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

Little Gaddesden Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School for pupils aged 3 to 11.

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

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

Where is Little Gaddesden Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School?

Little Gaddesden Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School is at Church Road, Little Gaddesden, Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire, HP4 1NX.