Fittleworth CofE Village School

Fittleworth CofE Village School is a caring, inclusive primary school where pupils feel safe and happy, behave well and benefit from a strong personal development offer. Inspectors found notable strengths in behaviour and attitudes, personal development and early years provision, including a nurturing Reception environment, effective support for pupils with SEND, good attendance work and a broad range of activities that build confidence and responsibility. Safeguarding arrangements are effective. However, the quality of education and leadership and management require improvement. The school is ambitious, but curriculum improvements since the previous inspection have not been implemented consistently across subjects. In some subjects, pupils have gaps in knowledge, activities do not always deepen understanding, and checks on what pupils know are not effective enough. Writing, including spelling, punctuation and grammar, is a particular concern, and published outcomes at the end of key stage 2 in reading, writing and mathematics are too low. Phonics and early reading have been prioritised and pupils at the earliest stages are well supported, but beyond Reception the phonics approach is inconsistent and not all staff have had the training they need. This was the school’s first routine inspection since the COVID-19 pandemic and its first under the current framework, so no overall effectiveness grade was given. Governors know the school’s strengths and areas for development and work increasingly effectively with external partners, while staff are committed and proud to work at the school.

Strengths

• Pupils are safe, happy and respectful in a caring school community.
• The school’s values and outdoor learning ethos are well understood and valued by pupils.
• Behaviour and attitudes are good, with high expectations and calm, sensitive approaches.
• Personal development is good, with wide extra-curricular opportunities and meaningful pupil responsibilities.
• Early years provision is good, with strong subject knowledge and effective questioning.
• Pupils with SEND are identified and supported well so they can access the curriculum.
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective.
• Attendance is regular and the school intervenes quickly when pupils are at risk of lower attendance.
• Early reading and phonics have been rightly prioritised, with appropriate catch-up support for pupils falling behind.
• Governors know the school well and work closely with the local authority and diocese.
• Staff are dedicated, committed and proud to work at the school.

Areas for Improvement

• The quality of education requires improvement because curriculum improvements are not implemented consistently.
• In some subjects, pupils have gaps in knowledge that are not addressed effectively.
• Some activity choices do not help pupils deepen their understanding or recall key knowledge.
• Checks on what pupils have learned are not consistently effective in some subjects.
• The writing curriculum, including spelling, punctuation and grammar, does not have a strong enough impact.
• Too many pupils make repeated spelling, punctuation and grammar errors without appropriate support.
• Published outcomes by the end of key stage 2 in reading, writing and mathematics are too low.
• Phonics teaching beyond Reception is inconsistent, and not all staff have received the needed training.
• Some pupils are not becoming as accurate and fluent readers as they should by the end of key stage 2.
• Leadership and management require improvement.

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 Fittleworth CofE Village School attended 95.6% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 8.7% 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 Fittleworth CofE Village 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 Fittleworth CofE Village School had 19.5 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 3.0% 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, 20.2% of pupils at Fittleworth CofE Village School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 2.4% 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 Fittleworth CofE Village School received £9,277 and spent £9,476 for each of its 124 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £16,000 (£130 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).

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All schools in Chichester · West Sussex local authority: places and applications

What is Fittleworth CofE Village School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Fittleworth CofE Village School is Requires Improvement, from an inspection in June 2025.

When was Fittleworth CofE Village School last inspected by Ofsted?

Fittleworth CofE Village School was last inspected in June 2025.

How many pupils does Fittleworth CofE Village School have?

Fittleworth CofE Village School has 124 pupils on roll.

What age range does Fittleworth CofE Village School cover?

Fittleworth CofE Village School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

What are Fittleworth CofE Village School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 42% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Fittleworth CofE Village School?

Fittleworth CofE Village School is at School Lane, Fittleworth, West Sussex, RH20 1JB.