The Sele First School

The Sele First School is performing well with an overall effectiveness rating of 'Good'. The school has a nurturing environment where pupils thrive, displaying positive behaviour and engagement in their learning. The new headteacher has implemented positive changes that focus on the well-being of the school community and have led to improvements in curriculum planning. However, the school is still addressing challenges related to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on learning outcomes, particularly in phonics, and aims to enhance its curriculum to encompass cultural diversity more effectively.

Strengths

• High expectations from teachers for all pupils including those with special educational needs.
• Pupils enjoy a variety of activities and demonstrate positive behaviour.
• Strong therapeutic support for pupils with emotional needs.
• Curriculum subjects are well-sequenced and enhance learning through hands-on experiences.
• Effective leadership with a focus on staff well-being and collaboration.

Areas for Improvement

• Variability in phonics learning progress across year groups.
• Inconsistent implementation of the new behaviour policy leading to low-level disruptions.
• Limited opportunities for pupils to learn about cultural diversity.

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 The Sele First School attended 95.0% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 10.6% 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, 1.0% of pupils at The Sele First 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 The Sele First School had 18.9 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 10.5% 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, 16.4% of pupils at The Sele First School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 2.6% 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 The Sele First School received £7,349 and spent £7,274 for each of its 372 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £21,000 (£55 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 Hexham · Northumberland local authority: places and applications

What is The Sele First School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for The Sele First School is Good, from an inspection in September 2022.

When was The Sele First School last inspected by Ofsted?

The Sele First School was last inspected in September 2022.

How many pupils does The Sele First School have?

The Sele First School has 390 pupils on roll.

What age range does The Sele First School cover?

The Sele First School for pupils aged 3 to 9.

Where is The Sele First School?

The Sele First School is at The Sele, Hexham, Northumberland, NE46 3QZ.