Ashill Community Primary School

Ashill Community Primary School is performing well overall, achieving a 'Good' rating in various areas, including the quality of education, leadership, and early years provision. Behaviour and attitudes are particularly outstanding, promoting a nurturing environment where pupils feel safe and supported. The school, part of the Academies for Character and Excellence trust, is relatively new to inspection, having not been inspected since converting to an academy in 2020. The previous inspection's absence reflects a significant gap that may still require attention in terms of curriculum delivery and addressing learning gaps in various subjects. The school excels in fostering a positive learning experience with strong relationships built among staff, pupils, and parents. There are notable efforts towards inclusivity and supporting pupils with special educational needs and disabilities. However, there are still areas of concern, particularly regarding gaps in pupils' knowledge, especially in science and the wider curriculum, which the school is actively working to address. Engagement with parents and the community is strong, but further development is needed in educating pupils about British values and diversity to better prepare them for modern British life.

Strengths

• Exemplary behaviour and attitudes of pupils.
• Strong relationships built on trust and respect.
• Effective support for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities.
• Ambitious and well-structured curriculum promoting knowledge acquisition.
• Positive atmosphere encouraging pupils' love for reading and learning.

Areas for Improvement

• Gaps in science and wider curriculum knowledge among pupils.
• Limited understanding of fundamental British values and diverse beliefs.

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 Ashill Community Primary School attended 92.0% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 13.9% 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 Ashill Community 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 Ashill Community Primary School had 13.1 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 58.8% 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, 20.6% of pupils at Ashill Community Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 0.0% 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 2024–25 Ashill Community Primary School received £12,538 and spent £8,990 for each of its 41 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £24,000 (£590 per pupil).

Across all 20 schools of The Academies for Character and Excellence, income was £6,628 and spending £6,807 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 Ilminster · Somerset local authority: places and applications

Ashill Community Primary School is part of The Academies for Character and Excellence, which runs 20 schools. The nearest others:

• Hatch Beauchamp Church of England Primary School Taunton
• Buckland St Mary Church of England Primary School Chard
• Holy Trinity Church of England Primary School Taunton
• Winsham Primary School Near Chard
• Stockland Church of England Primary Academy Honiton
• Baltonsborough Church of England VC Primary School Glastonbury
• Castle Cary Community Primary School Castle Cary
• Milborne Port Primary School Sherborne
• Stoberry Park School Wells
• Trinity CofE Primary and Nursery School Exeter

What is Ashill Community Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Ashill Community Primary School is Good, from an inspection in September 2024.

When was Ashill Community Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Ashill Community Primary School was last inspected in September 2024.

How many pupils does Ashill Community Primary School have?

Ashill Community Primary School has 34 pupils on roll.

What age range does Ashill Community Primary School cover?

Ashill Community Primary School for pupils aged 2 to 11.

What are Ashill Community Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 67% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Ashill Community Primary School?

Ashill Community Primary School is at School Road, Ashill, Ilminster, Somerset, TA19 9ND.