Ferring C of E Primary School

Ferring C of E Primary School has shown notable improvement since its last inspection, now achieving a good overall effectiveness rating. The school provides a welcoming environment where pupils thrive, exhibiting strong relationships with staff and wholesome community engagement. The curriculum is well-structured, enabling pupils to build knowledge progressively from early years through to key stage 2, contributing to the strong performance in reading and other subjects. However, there are some areas that still require attention, including ensuring all subject leaders are equipped to support their teams effectively, especially in subjects where teacher knowledge is currently less secure.

Strengths

• Pupils develop quickly in confidence and well-being due to strong staff relationships.
• The curriculum is clearly structured, helping pupils understand what they need to learn.
• Leadership has raised aspirations and effectively focused on curriculum improvements.
• Strong emphasis on early reading ensures pupils learn quickly and enjoy reading.
• Governance provides effective support and challenge to school leaders.
• Positive community atmosphere with pupils actively involved in responsibilities.

Areas for Improvement

• Some subjects lack fully developed teacher knowledge, leading to gaps in pupil understanding.
• Inexperienced subject leaders are not yet able to provide timely support to their staff.

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 Ferring C of E Primary School attended 94.7% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 11.9% 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 Ferring C of E 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 Ferring C of E Primary School had 20.5 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 23.4% 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, 12.4% of pupils at Ferring C of E Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 3.0% 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 Ferring C of E Primary School received £6,957 and spent £6,653 for each of its 169 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £36,000 (£214 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 Worthing · West Sussex local authority: places and applications

What is Ferring C of E Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Ferring C of E Primary School is Good, from an inspection in December 2022.

When was Ferring C of E Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Ferring C of E Primary School was last inspected in December 2022.

How many pupils does Ferring C of E Primary School have?

Ferring C of E Primary School has 169 pupils on roll.

What age range does Ferring C of E Primary School cover?

Ferring C of E Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

What are Ferring C of E Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 70% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Ferring C of E Primary School?

Ferring C of E Primary School is at Sea Lane, Ferring, Worthing, West Sussex, BN12 5DU.