Witherley Church of England Primary School

Witherley Church of England Primary School is a small, close-knit village school that is performing well overall. Safeguarding requirements are met, and attendance and behaviour are particular strengths: pupils attend more often than average, persistent absence is very low, and pupils behave extremely well, feel safe and show excellent attitudes to learning. The school is inclusive and supportive, with strong pastoral care, effective leadership and governance, and an ambitious curriculum that helps most pupils, including disadvantaged pupils and pupils with SEND, achieve well from their starting points. Most areas of provision meet expectations. Achievement, curriculum and teaching, inclusion, leadership and governance, and personal development and wellbeing are all sound. Pupils are well prepared for secondary school, read fluently, and benefit from a wide range of enrichment and community activities. Leaders know the school well, have accurate improvement plans, and staff value the support they receive. The main area for improvement is early years. The early years curriculum is not designed closely enough around the knowledge and skills children need, and learning activities do not consistently have a clear purpose, particularly independent learning. In curriculum and teaching more broadly, staff occasionally do not use assessment checks effectively enough to adapt teaching or deepen learning. Leaders have already identified these priorities, and the report notes ongoing work to strengthen early years and responsive classroom practice.

Strengths

• Pupils' attendance is consistently above the national average and persistent absence is very low.
• Pupils display excellent attitudes to learning, high self-discipline and consistently good behaviour.
• Pupils feel safe, say bullying is not an issue, and know discrimination is not tolerated.
• Pupils achieve well overall, including disadvantaged pupils and pupils with SEND.
• Reading and phonics are taught effectively; pupils read with fluency and confidence.
• An ambitious, well-sequenced curriculum identifies key vocabulary and builds knowledge over time.
• Teaching is generally clear and purposeful, with effective modelling and routines.
• Pupils with SEND receive suitable adaptations and additional support to progress well.
• The school is inclusive and provides strong, tailored pastoral and emotional support.
• Leadership and governance are effective, with a clear vision and accurate improvement priorities.
• Staff feel well supported; leaders are mindful of workload and wellbeing.
• Personal development is rich, including pupil-led clubs, trips, charitable work and community events.
• Children in early years settle well, behave beautifully and are well supported in their wellbeing.
• Safeguarding standards are met, with an open culture of safeguarding.

Areas for Improvement

• Early years curriculum is not designed closely enough around the knowledge and skills children need to know and remember.
• Early years learning activities do not consistently have a clear purpose, especially independent learning activities.
• Staff do not always use checks on pupils' learning effectively enough to inform what to teach next.
• Opportunities to deepen pupils' learning are sometimes overlooked.
• Ensuring consistently responsive classroom practice for pupils' emerging needs remains an ongoing priority.
• Pupils' understanding of other cultures and religions is less secure and developed than in other topics.

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 Witherley Church of England Primary School attended 95.6% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 9.3% 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 Witherley 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 Witherley Church of England Primary School had 20.0 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 20.0% 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, 9.0% of pupils at Witherley Church of England Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 2.0% 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 Witherley Church of England Primary School received £7,072 and spent £7,323 for each of its 100 pupils. It ended the year with a deficit of £20,000 (-£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 Atherstone · Leicestershire local authority: places and applications

What is Witherley Church of England Primary School's Ofsted rating?

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

When was Witherley Church of England Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Witherley Church of England Primary School was last inspected in September 2026.

How many pupils does Witherley Church of England Primary School have?

Witherley Church of England Primary School has 100 pupils on roll.

What age range does Witherley Church of England Primary School cover?

Witherley Church of England Primary School for pupils aged 5 to 11.

What are Witherley Church of England Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 53% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Witherley Church of England Primary School?

Witherley Church of England Primary School is at Church Road, Witherley, Atherstone, Warwickshire, CV9 3NA.