Rowanfield Infant School

Rowanfield Infant School is judged to be working at the expected standard across all inspected areas, with safeguarding standards met. Pupils progress well from their starting points, including in the early years, and achieve well across the wider curriculum. The school has a nurturing and inclusive culture: pupils are polite, attentive and feel valued, while staff know pupils well and provide strong support for those with SEND, disadvantaged pupils and pupils known to social care. Leadership has improved the curriculum since the previous inspection, and trust and school leaders understand the school's strengths and priorities. Pupils read well, enjoy enrichment opportunities and are typically ready for the next phase of education. Key concerns are narrower. Some pupils' handwriting, letter and number formation are less well developed, and the teaching of these skills is not consistently strong; leaders are already focusing on early writing and number, but writing accuracy across subjects remains a next step. Attendance and persistent absence are above national averages, though improving, and the report notes that published attendance data does not fully reflect the impact of increasing SEND. Leaders must ensure their monitoring of attendance for particular groups continues to have the desired impact. The school is part of the GLA Trust, and the headteacher re-joined in November 2025. It has a well-above-average proportion of pupils with SEN support and is located in an area of above-average deprivation.

Strengths

• Pupils progress well from their starting points and achieve well across the wider curriculum.
• Pupils read well and value reading, with access to the library and books at home.
• The curriculum is thoughtfully designed, carefully matched to pupils' needs and community, and improved since the previous inspection.
• Teaching uses deliberate questioning and adapts the curriculum to develop pupils' thinking.
• Early years provision is well constructed, with children making successful progress and typically ready for Year 1.
• The school has an inclusive culture where all pupils feel valued, safe and able to participate fully.
• Staff support pupils with SEND, disadvantaged pupils and those known to social care effectively.
• Pupils are polite, courteous, attentive and behave well; bullying is rare and staff act swiftly if needed.
• Attendance is improving over time, with tailored support for pupils and families.
• Leadership and governance are effective, with strong trust support and challenge, and staff feel happy and proud.
• Personal development and wellbeing are well provided for, including pastoral support, enrichment trips and clubs.
• Parents are supportive and value the additional help their children receive.

Areas for Improvement

• Some pupils' handwriting, letter and number formation are less well developed than they could be.
• The teaching of handwriting, letter and number formation is not consistently well implemented.
• Pupils' accuracy in writing across subjects, particularly handwriting and letter/number formation, needs improvement.
• Phonics screening outcomes in Year 1 in 2025 were below average, although current pupils learn phonics well.
• Overall absence and persistent absence are above national averages, despite improving over time.
• Leaders must ensure monitoring of attendance for particular groups continues to have the desired impact so all pupils benefit from the school's provision.

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 Rowanfield Infant School attended 92.6% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 17.8% 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, 1.2% of pupils at Rowanfield Infant 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 Rowanfield Infant School had 17.2 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 29.5% 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, 25.5% of pupils at Rowanfield Infant School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 6.4% 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 2024–25 Rowanfield Infant School received £6,935 and spent £7,011 for each of its 247 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £189,000 (£765 per pupil).

Across all 11 schools of Gloucestershire Learning Alliance, income was £6,776 and spending £6,867 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 Cheltenham · Gloucestershire local authority: places and applications

Rowanfield Infant School is part of Gloucestershire Learning Alliance, which runs 11 schools. The nearest others:

• Rowanfield Junior School Cheltenham
• Springbank Primary Academy Cheltenham
• Bishops Cleeve Primary Academy Cheltenham
• Churchdown Village Infant School Gloucester
• Tredington Community Primary School Tewkesbury
• Longford Park Primary Academy Gloucester
• Northway Infant School Tewkesbury
• Carrant Brook Junior School Tewkesbury
• Great Oldbury Primary Academy Stonehouse
• Badsey First School Evesham

What is Rowanfield Infant School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Rowanfield Infant School is Expected standard, from an inspection in July 2026.

When was Rowanfield Infant School last inspected by Ofsted?

Rowanfield Infant School was last inspected in July 2026.

How many pupils does Rowanfield Infant School have?

Rowanfield Infant School has 235 pupils on roll.

What age range does Rowanfield Infant School cover?

Rowanfield Infant School for pupils aged 4 to 7.

Where is Rowanfield Infant School?

Rowanfield Infant School is at Alstone Lane, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, GL51 8HY.