Puller Memorial, Church of England, Voluntary Aided Primary School

Puller Memorial is a small Church of England voluntary aided primary school where most aspects of provision are secure. Safeguarding standards are met, pupils feel safe and valued, behaviour is typically positive, and the school has a strong caring and inclusive ethos. Leaders and governors share a clear vision and have responded quickly to a period of instability, with effective support for pupils with SEND and a rich personal development offer including music, sport, forest school and visits. However, achievement and early years require attention. Pupils do not achieve as well as they should overall, key stage 2 outcomes vary across subjects, and disadvantaged pupils perform below national averages. Early years provision is affected by staffing inconsistency, sometimes activities lack clear purpose, and children do not always acquire the knowledge, skills or routines needed for Year 1. Some curriculum and assessment improvements are at an early stage, particularly checking what pupils know and remember and using that information to adapt teaching. The school is very small, with 55 pupils and a high proportion of pupils with EHC plans, and national comparisons are not always reliable because cohorts are tiny. The federation with Albury Primary School will dissolve when Albury closes in August 2026. Overall, this is a school with strong care, inclusion and community, but important work remains to improve outcomes and early years consistency.

Strengths

• Safeguarding standards are met and there is an open, positive culture of safeguarding.
• Pupils feel safe, valued and a strong sense of belonging in the school community.
• Pupils are polite, kind and typically show positive attitudes to learning.
• Behaviour is calm and caring, and bullying is rare.
• Attendance is improving because of leaders' high expectations and targeted support for families.
• The curriculum is broad and logically sequenced, and teachers have secure subject knowledge.
• Teachers know pupils extremely well and adapt support effectively.
• Pupils with SEND are identified quickly and generally learn successfully alongside their peers.
• Leaders work closely with external agencies to secure specialist support for pupils.
• Leaders and governors have a clear, ambitious vision and have acted quickly after instability.
• Governors are knowledgeable, supportive and appropriately challenging.
• Personal development is a priority, helping pupils build confidence, resilience and character.
• Pupils benefit from rich wider opportunities such as music, sport, forest school, church performances, visits and residentials.
• Pupils learn about diversity, tolerance, British values and respectful relationships.
• Phonics is usually well taught, and leaders' work has improved Year 1 phonics attainment.
• Staff enjoy working at the school and are supported with workload and wellbeing.
• Most parents are highly positive and value the school's inclusive, warm and welcoming community.

Areas for Improvement

• Pupils do not achieve as well as they should overall.
• At the end of key stage 2, outcomes show improvement in some subjects but not across all subjects.
• Disadvantaged pupils' outcomes are below national averages in reading, writing and mathematics.
• Some pupils are not as prepared as they should be for their next educational steps.
• In the early years, children do not achieve as well as they should.
• Inconsistent staffing in the early years has led to variable delivery and inconsistent routines.
• Early years activities do not always have a clear purpose or consistently benefit children's learning.
• Children's misconceptions and gaps in learning are sometimes not identified and addressed well enough.
• Early years provision does not always prepare children well for transition into Year 1.
• Some curriculum and teaching improvements are in the early stages of implementation.
• Teachers' checking of what pupils know and remember, and their use of that information, needs further development.

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 Puller Memorial, Church of England, Voluntary Aided Primary School attended 93.9% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 14.0% 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 Puller Memorial, 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 Puller Memorial, Church of England, Voluntary Aided Primary School had 9.5 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 32.2% 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, 17.8% of pupils at Puller Memorial, Church of England, Voluntary Aided Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 11.1% 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 2020–21 Puller Memorial, Church of England, Voluntary Aided Primary School received £7,543 and spent £7,840 for each of its 64 pupils. It ended the year with a deficit of £1,000 (-£10 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).

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All schools in Ware · Hertfordshire local authority: places and applications

What is Puller Memorial, Church of England, Voluntary Aided Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Puller Memorial, Church of England, Voluntary Aided Primary School is Needs attention, from an inspection in September 2026.

When was Puller Memorial, Church of England, Voluntary Aided Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Puller Memorial, Church of England, Voluntary Aided Primary School was last inspected in September 2026.

How many pupils does Puller Memorial, Church of England, Voluntary Aided Primary School have?

Puller Memorial, Church of England, Voluntary Aided Primary School has 45 pupils on roll.

What age range does Puller Memorial, Church of England, Voluntary Aided Primary School cover?

Puller Memorial, Church of England, Voluntary Aided Primary School for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are Puller Memorial, Church of England, Voluntary Aided Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 56% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Puller Memorial, Church of England, Voluntary Aided Primary School?

Puller Memorial, Church of England, Voluntary Aided Primary School is at High Cross, Ware, Hertfordshire, SG11 1AZ.