St Columba CE Primary School

St Columba CE Primary School has made significant progress under new leadership, achieving a good overall rating in their first inspection since becoming an academy. The school fosters a positive learning environment where pupils are happy and actively engaged. With high attendance and a variety of extracurricular activities, the school is committed to personal development and ensuring that all students, including those with SEND, receive tailored support to thrive academically and socially.

Strengths

• Strong leadership and unified ambition for pupil success.
• Effective phonics teaching enabling pupils to read well.
• High levels of pupil engagement and positive behaviour.
• An ambitious curriculum that supports SEND students effectively.
• Wide range of extracurricular clubs meeting diverse pupil interests.

Areas for Improvement

• Inconsistent progress in writing and maths for younger pupils.
• Some foundation subjects lack clarity in essential knowledge to learn and remember.

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 St Columba CE Primary School attended 95.2% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 10.1% 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, 5.6% of pupils at St Columba CE 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 St Columba CE Primary School had 14.3 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 0.0% 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, 24.0% of pupils at St Columba CE Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 11.0% 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 St Columba CE Primary School received £10,845 and spent £11,031 for each of its 89 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £32,000 (£357 per pupil).

Across all 28 schools of Diocese of Chichester Academy Trust, income was £7,049 and spending £7,093 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 Fareham · Hampshire local authority: places and applications

St Columba CE Primary School is part of Diocese of Chichester Academy Trust, which runs 28 schools. The nearest others:

• Lanesend Primary School Cowes
• St Blasius Shanklin CofE Primary Academy Shanklin
• St Francis Catholic and Church of England Primary Academy Ventnor
• St. Joseph's Infant School Chichester
• St. Joseph's CofE Junior School Chichester
• The March CofE Primary School Chichester
• St James' Church of England Primary Academy Bournemouth
• Heene CofE Primary School Worthing
• St Nicolas & St Mary CofE Primary School Shoreham-By-Sea
• St Margaret's Church of England Primary School Crawley

What is St Columba CE Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for St Columba CE Primary School is Good, from an inspection in July 2024.

When was St Columba CE Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

St Columba CE Primary School was last inspected in July 2024.

How many pupils does St Columba CE Primary School have?

St Columba CE Primary School has 100 pupils on roll.

What age range does St Columba CE Primary School cover?

St Columba CE Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

What are St Columba CE Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 80% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is St Columba CE Primary School?

St Columba CE Primary School is at Tewkesbury Avenue, Fareham, Hampshire, PO15 6LL.