Woodford Valley Church of England Aided School

Woodford Valley Church of England Aided School is a happy, inclusive primary school where pupils feel safe, cared for and well supported. Inspectors found good provision across the quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and early years, with effective safeguarding arrangements. The school has addressed the areas identified at its previous inspection, and published 2024 outcomes in English, reading and mathematics are now above national expectations. It recently joined the Pickwick Academy Trust and is a Church of England school in the Diocese of Salisbury. The school's strengths include warm and nurturing relationships, high expectations, positive pupil behaviour, strong phonics and reading teaching, effective identification of pupils with SEND, and a rich personal development offer. Pupils benefit from trips, clubs, leadership roles and pastoral support, and parents are highly positive about the school. Early years provision prepares children well for Year 1, and pupils are confident, tolerant and empathetic. The main area for improvement is the foundation subject curriculum. Recent refinements require further embedding, and checks on pupils' learning are not consistently secure across all foundation subjects. As a result, some pupils have gaps in subject-specific knowledge and do not retain some of the content they have been taught over time. The trust and school need to ensure that important curriculum content and effective assessment processes are securely in place so pupils know and remember more.

Strengths

• Warm and nurturing relationships between staff and pupils
• Pupils feel safe, happy and attend regularly
• High expectations and positive pupil behaviour
• Strong phonics and reading provision with effective catch-up support
• Quick and effective identification of pupils with SEND
• Broad personal development offer including trips, clubs and pupil leadership roles
• Strong early years provision that prepares children well for Year 1
• 2024 outcomes in English, reading and mathematics above national expectations
• Effective safeguarding arrangements
• Supportive governors and trust, with staff proud to work at the school
• Significant pastoral support that parents appreciate

Areas for Improvement

• Checks on pupils' learning are not securely in place in some foundation subjects
• Some pupils have gaps in subject-specific knowledge and do not retain content over time
• Recent refinements to the foundation subject curriculum require further embedding

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 Woodford Valley Church of England Aided School attended 96.3% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 3.4% 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 Woodford Valley Church of England Aided 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 Woodford Valley Church of England Aided School had 21.4 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 6.4% 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, 11.4% of pupils at Woodford Valley Church of England Aided 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 2023–24 Woodford Valley Church of England Aided School received £5,665 and spent £5,690 for each of its 200 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £83,000 (£415 per pupil).

Across all 16 schools of Pickwick Academy Trust, income was £5,994 and spending £5,983 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). Academy figures include a share of the trust's central services, shared out by pupil numbers, and are rounded to the nearest £1,000. Premises costs were defined differently from 2024, so compare them across that gap with care.

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Salisbury · Wiltshire local authority: places and applications

Woodford Valley Church of England Aided School is part of Pickwick Academy Trust, which runs 21 schools. The nearest others:

• Greentrees Primary School Salisbury
• Winterbourne Earls Church of England Primary School Salisbury
• Gomeldon Primary School Salisbury
• St Andrew's Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School, Laverstock Salisbury
• Longford Church of England Primary School Salisbury
• Pitton Church of England Primary School Salisbury
• Alderbury and West Grimstead Church of England Primary School Salisbury
• Winterslow Church of England Primary School Salisbury
• Ludwell Primary School Shaftesbury
• Princecroft Primary School Warminster

What is Woodford Valley Church of England Aided School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Woodford Valley Church of England Aided School is Good, from an inspection in July 2025.

When was Woodford Valley Church of England Aided School last inspected by Ofsted?

Woodford Valley Church of England Aided School was last inspected in July 2025.

How many pupils does Woodford Valley Church of England Aided School have?

Woodford Valley Church of England Aided School has 193 pupils on roll.

What age range does Woodford Valley Church of England Aided School cover?

Woodford Valley Church of England Aided School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

What are Woodford Valley Church of England Aided School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 83% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Woodford Valley Church of England Aided School?

Woodford Valley Church of England Aided School is at Middle Woodford, Salisbury, Wiltshire, SP4 6NR.