The Winchcombe School

The Winchcombe School is performing at an expected standard overall, with notable strengths in safeguarding and early years provision. The school fosters a warm and safe environment where children feel valued and supported. However, the achievement levels of disadvantaged pupils are a significant concern as they perform markedly worse than their peers, particularly in key subjects. The leadership team is committed to addressing these disparities and improving attendance rates, but current measures have yet to yield substantial improvements.

Strengths

• Strong safeguarding standards are in place, ensuring a safe environment for all pupils.
• The early years provision is well-structured, promoting strong relationships and independent learning.
• The personal development programme offers rich experiences and inspires positive contributions within the community.
• Pupils engage positively with diverse cultures and demonstrate an understanding of respect and tolerance.

Areas for Improvement

• Achievement levels for disadvantaged pupils are significantly lower than those of their non-disadvantaged peers.
• Low attendance rates among disadvantaged pupils and high persistent absence indicate challenges in regular school participation.
• Inconsistency in teaching practices affects the quality of education across subjects.
• The writing curriculum is not implemented effectively, leading to inadequate development in pupils' writing skills.

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 Winchcombe School attended 94.4% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 15.6% 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, 0.9% of pupils at The Winchcombe 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 Winchcombe School had 20.3 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 8.6% 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, 15.8% of pupils at The Winchcombe School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 7.1% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

The school has resourced provision with 13 pupils.

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 Winchcombe School received £7,522 and spent £7,676 for each of its 431 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £39,000 (£90 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 Newbury · West Berkshire local authority: places and applications

What is The Winchcombe School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for The Winchcombe School is Needs attention, from an inspection in March 2026.

When was The Winchcombe School last inspected by Ofsted?

The Winchcombe School was last inspected in March 2026.

How many pupils does The Winchcombe School have?

The Winchcombe School has 436 pupils on roll.

What age range does The Winchcombe School cover?

The Winchcombe School for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are The Winchcombe School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 51% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is The Winchcombe School?

The Winchcombe School is at Maple Crescent, Shaw, Newbury, Berkshire, RG14 1LN.