Colburn Community Primary School

Colburn Community Primary School is a welcoming, happy community primary where pupils feel safe, behave well and take pride in their learning. Inspectors found reading is at the heart of the curriculum, phonics is taught consistently and pupils read well. Mathematics support is improving, pupils with SEND are identified and supported effectively, and personal development is strong through trips, leadership roles, the school council and sporting opportunities. Leadership is well regarded by staff, governors understand the school’s strengths and priorities, and work to improve attendance is having an effect. Safeguarding is effective. The main areas for improvement are the wider curriculum and early years. In some foundation subjects, important knowledge is not mapped out in manageable enough steps, so some pupils do not remember as much as they should. In early years, provision is caring and well resourced, but the curriculum is not implemented consistently across all areas, and learning activities and adult interactions do not always build children’s understanding with enough depth. As a result, children are not as well prepared for Year 1 as they could be. This was a graded inspection in September 2024 and no overall effectiveness grade was issued under the arrangements then in place. The school had previously been judged to require improvement.

Strengths

• Pupils are polite, self-controlled and feel safe; bullying is rare and handled effectively.
• Reading is central to the curriculum, with consistently effective phonics and well-matched books.
• Assessment and catch-up support help pupils learn to read well.
• Mathematics support is improving through specialist staff and good use of assessment.
• Pupils with SEND receive timely, effective support and teachers adapt learning successfully.
• Personal development is broad, including trips, residential experiences, school council, leadership roles and sport.
• Behaviour routines and a focus on social and emotional development help pupils behave well.
• Attendance is improving following analysis and positive action.
• Staff value leaders’ workload management and professional development.
• Governors understand strengths, development areas and statutory responsibilities and hold leaders to account.
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective.
• Early years children are well cared for in a spacious, supportive environment.

Areas for Improvement

• In some foundation subjects, important knowledge is not mapped out in manageable steps, so pupils remember less.
• The wider curriculum needs further refinement so pupils learn well across all subjects.
• The early years curriculum is not implemented consistently across all areas of learning.
• Early years learning activities and adult interactions do not consistently build children’s understanding with sufficient depth.
• Children in early years are not prepared for key stage one as well as they could be.

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 Colburn Community Primary School attended 93.5% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 18.8% 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, 1.5% of pupils at Colburn Community 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 Colburn Community Primary School had 16.8 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 10.9% 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, 20.8% of pupils at Colburn Community 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 Colburn Community Primary School received £7,706 and spent £7,936 for each of its 202 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £224,000 (£1,112 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 Catterick Garrison · North Yorkshire local authority: places and applications

What is Colburn Community Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Colburn Community Primary School is Good, from an inspection in November 2024.

When was Colburn Community Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Colburn Community Primary School was last inspected in November 2024.

How many pupils does Colburn Community Primary School have?

Colburn Community Primary School has 202 pupils on roll.

What age range does Colburn Community Primary School cover?

Colburn Community Primary School for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are Colburn Community Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 36% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Colburn Community Primary School?

Colburn Community Primary School is at Colburn Lane, Colburn, Catterick Garrison, North Yorkshire, DL9 4LS.