Speldhurst Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School

Speldhurst Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School is a highly effective, friendly and welcoming school where pupils love to learn. Inspectors found extremely high expectations, excellent behaviour and a rich curriculum that helps pupils achieve very well across a wide range of subjects. Pupils feel safe, are confident to make mistakes, and benefit from strong personal development, sport, music, drama and a nurturing ethos. Reading is central to the school’s work, and pupils with SEND or from disadvantaged backgrounds are well supported and achieve strongly. The school was judged outstanding in all key areas. Staff are knowledgeable, teaching is consistent, and the curriculum is carefully sequenced from Reception through Year 6. Safeguarding arrangements are effective. This was the school’s first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic and its first section 5 inspection since 2014; since September 2024, schools no longer receive an overall effectiveness grade. No specific weaknesses are flagged in the report. The school’s values, caring ethos and high aspirations underpin its success, and leaders continue to refine the curriculum and support staff development to sustain excellence.

Strengths

• Extremely high expectations for pupils’ achievement in and out of the classroom
• Pupils behave very well and classrooms are happy, focused places
• Rich, carefully crafted curriculum with a wide range of opportunities
• Strong personal development, including diversity, faith, online safety and healthy lifestyles
• High-profile sport and arts, including drama, music and an impressive orchestra
• Excellent support for pupils’ social and emotional needs and well-being
• Disadvantaged pupils and pupils with SEND achieve well
• Reading sits at the heart of learning, with expert phonics teaching and effective support
• Knowledgeable staff benefit from strong professional development and consistent teaching
• Curriculum is well sequenced from Reception into Year 1 and through to Year 6
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective
• Nurturing environment where pupils feel safe and confident to make mistakes

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 Speldhurst Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School attended 96.0% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 3.8% 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 Speldhurst 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 Speldhurst Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School had 20.8 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 8.8% 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, 7.5% of pupils at Speldhurst Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 1.4% 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 Speldhurst Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School received £6,071 and spent £6,142 for each of its 212 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £48,000 (£227 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 Tunbridge Wells · Kent local authority: places and applications

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

The latest Ofsted rating for Speldhurst Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School is Outstanding, from an inspection in March 2025.

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

Speldhurst Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School was last inspected in March 2025.

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

Speldhurst Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School has 212 pupils on roll.

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

Speldhurst Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

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

In 2025, 81% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Speldhurst Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School?

Speldhurst Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School is at Langton Road, Speldhurst, Tunbridge Wells, Kent, TN3 0NP.