St John's Church of England Voluntary Aided First School, Frome

St John’s Church of England Voluntary Aided First School in Frome is currently rated as requiring improvement overall, following its recent inspection. While the school offers a welcoming and nurturing environment where pupils enjoy learning, the quality of education has been deemed inconsistent. Despite some areas of the curriculum being well-developed, particularly in mathematics and art, there remains significant work to ensure that all pupils are adequately prepared for their next educational steps. Furthermore, the recent changes in leadership and the pace of improving practices have contributed to these challenges.

Strengths

• Pupils enjoy attending and show eagerness to learn.
• The school environment is welcoming and nurturing.
• Strong relationships between staff and pupils promote safety and support.
• Positive behaviour and attitudes are evident among most pupils.
• Effective personal development programs are in place.
• Community involvement enriches pupils' learning experiences.

Areas for Improvement

• The curriculum does not consistently ensure all pupils are ready for the next stage in their learning.
• Some subjects, particularly in English beyond phonics, are underdeveloped.
• Expectations for pupil achievement are not consistently high.
• Support for pupils with SEND lacks precision and effectiveness in some areas.
• Inconsistent quality of reading support affects pupil fluency and confidence.

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 St John's Church of England Voluntary Aided First School, Frome attended 93.4% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 24.6% 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, 2.0% of pupils at St John's Church of England Voluntary Aided First School, Frome 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 St John's Church of England Voluntary Aided First School, Frome had 20.1 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 16.0% 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, 21.6% of pupils at St John's Church of England Voluntary Aided First School, Frome were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 1.6% 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 St John's Church of England Voluntary Aided First School, Frome received £8,530 and spent £8,234 for each of its 185 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £193,000 (£1,041 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 Frome · Somerset local authority: places and applications

What is St John's Church of England Voluntary Aided First School, Frome's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for St John's Church of England Voluntary Aided First School, Frome is Requires Improvement, from an inspection in June 2024.

When was St John's Church of England Voluntary Aided First School, Frome last inspected by Ofsted?

St John's Church of England Voluntary Aided First School, Frome was last inspected in June 2024.

How many pupils does St John's Church of England Voluntary Aided First School, Frome have?

St John's Church of England Voluntary Aided First School, Frome has 185 pupils on roll.

What age range does St John's Church of England Voluntary Aided First School, Frome cover?

St John's Church of England Voluntary Aided First School, Frome for pupils aged 4 to 9.

Where is St John's Church of England Voluntary Aided First School, Frome?

St John's Church of England Voluntary Aided First School, Frome is at Christchurch Street East, Frome, Somerset, BA11 1QG.