Bathford Church School

Bathford Church School is a happy and inclusive primary school where pupils feel they belong, behave well and attend regularly. This was its first routine section 5 inspection; it is an academy converter within the Bath and Wells Diocesan Academies Trust and had previously been judged outstanding before becoming an academy. The curriculum is ambitious and well sequenced from the early years, reading is taught strongly from Reception, and pupils with SEND are identified quickly and supported to learn alongside their peers. Personal development is a particular strength, with a wide range of enriching experiences, meaningful pupil voice and a strong understanding of British values and equalities. Leadership is effective, staff feel supported, and governance holds leaders to account. Safeguarding is effective. The main area for improvement is writing transcription. In some lessons, staff do not spot and correct errors in letter formation and spelling precisely enough, so misconceptions can persist. As a result, some pupils are not fluent or confident in their basic writing skills and are not ready for more complex writing tasks. The trust should ensure all staff consistently address these transcription misconceptions and that pupils act on feedback.

Strengths

• Pupils are happy, feel a strong sense of belonging and attend regularly.
• The curriculum is ambitious and well sequenced from the early years, helping pupils build and recall knowledge.
• Reading is taught well from the start, with well-trained staff and books matched to pupils' phonics knowledge.
• Pupils with SEND are identified quickly and supported to learn the same curriculum as their peers.
• Personal development is excellent, with rich experiences, pupil voice and strong understanding of British values and equalities.
• Behaviour and attitudes are good; pupils understand rules and routines and play well together.
• Leadership and governance are effective; staff feel supported and governance holds leaders to account.
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective.

Areas for Improvement

• Some staff do not consistently identify and correct pupils' writing transcription errors.
• Teaching of letter formation sometimes lacks precision, so misconceptions can persist.
• Some pupils are not fluent or confident in writing and are not ready for more complex writing.

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 Bathford Church School attended 95.7% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 5.9% 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 Bathford Church 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 Bathford Church School had 18.1 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 13.8% 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, 12.3% of pupils at Bathford Church School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 6.5% 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 Bathford Church School received £7,711 and spent £7,889 for each of its 139 pupils. It ended the year with a deficit of £91,000 (-£652 per pupil).

Across all 45 schools of The Bath and Wells Diocesan Academies Trust, income was £7,160 and spending £7,193 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 Bath · Bath and North East Somerset local authority: places and applications

Bathford Church School is part of The Bath and Wells Diocesan Academies Trust, which runs 46 schools. The nearest others:

• Bathampton Primary School Bath
• Batheaston Church School Bath
• St Saviours Junior Church School Bath
• St Saviours Infant Church School Bath
• Bathwick St Mary Church School Bath
• Swainswick Church School Bath
• St Stephens Church School Bath
• St Andrew's Church School Bath
• Freshford Church School Bath
• St Michaels Junior Church School Bath

What is Bathford Church School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Bathford Church School is Good, from an inspection in March 2025.

When was Bathford Church School last inspected by Ofsted?

Bathford Church School was last inspected in March 2025.

How many pupils does Bathford Church School have?

Bathford Church School has 138 pupils on roll.

What age range does Bathford Church School cover?

Bathford Church School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

What are Bathford Church School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 72% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Bathford Church School?

Bathford Church School is at Dovers Park, Bathford, Bath, Somerset, BA1 7UB.