Ruishton Church of England School

Ruishton Church of England School has received its first inspection since converting to an academy, and it has been rated as good overall. The school creates a welcoming environment where pupils feel valued and safe, particularly benefiting from supportive relationships with adults. The commitment of the leadership team to improving education quality is notable, as is the focus on personal development through a range of extracurricular activities. However, some concerns have emerged regarding the expectations set for older pupils in reading, which may hinder their progress.

Strengths

• Positive relationships foster a caring and respectful atmosphere.
• Effective support for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities.
• Strong focus on early communication and language in Nursery.
• Ambitious curriculum design with effective subject knowledge from teachers.
• Wide range of extracurricular opportunities that enhance personal development.
• Robust safeguarding arrangements ensuring pupil safety.

Areas for Improvement

• Expectations for older pupils' reading achievement are not high enough.
• Key concepts in some wider curriculum subjects lack clarity, leading to gaps in knowledge.

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 Ruishton Church of England School attended 94.6% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 12.2% 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, 1.0% of pupils at Ruishton Church of England 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 Ruishton Church of England School had 29.2 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 14.7% 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, 13.5% of pupils at Ruishton Church of England School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 2.3% 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 Ruishton Church of England School received £7,770 and spent £8,803 for each of its 191 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £67,000 (£353 per pupil).

Across all 6 schools of The Oak Partnership Trust, income was £14,193 and spending £14,256 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 Taunton · Somerset local authority: places and applications

Ruishton Church of England School is part of The Oak Partnership Trust, which runs 6 schools. The nearest others:

• Blackbrook Primary School Taunton
• West Monkton Church of England School Taunton
• Selworthy Special School Taunton
• Stoke St Gregory Church of England Primary School Taunton
• Hill View School Martock

What is Ruishton Church of England School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Ruishton Church of England School is Good, from an inspection in May 2023.

When was Ruishton Church of England School last inspected by Ofsted?

Ruishton Church of England School was last inspected in May 2023.

How many pupils does Ruishton Church of England School have?

Ruishton Church of England School has 215 pupils on roll.

What age range does Ruishton Church of England School cover?

Ruishton Church of England School for pupils aged 2 to 11.

What are Ruishton Church of England School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 62% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Ruishton Church of England School?

Ruishton Church of England School is at Newlands Road, Ruishton, Taunton, Somerset, TA3 5JZ.