Bedfield Church of England Primary School

Bedfield Church of England Primary School is a very small, family-like school that pupils are extremely happy to attend. This was its first routine section 5 inspection, and inspectors found good quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, and leadership and management. Pupils feel safe, behave well, are resilient and inquisitive, and benefit from an ambitious and inclusive curriculum, strong reading provision and a wide range of clubs and trips. The school has a significant proportion of pupils with SEND, and these pupils are well supported and achieve well. Early years provision could not be fully judged because there was only one child in Reception at the time of inspection. Leaders, governors and the trust work well together, parents overwhelmingly praise the school, and safeguarding is effective. The main area for improvement is that some teachers do not rigorously identify spelling, punctuation and grammar errors in younger pupils’ work, so some pupils continue to make the same mistakes. The report also notes that some pupils with SEND do not attend as well as they could at times, although the school takes appropriate action when this occurs.

Strengths

• Pupils are extremely happy and quickly make friends in a small, family-like school
• Staff make sure pupils are safe and support their physical and mental health
• Pupils are ready to learn, inquisitive and resilient
• Most pupils behave consistently well because of high expectations
• The curriculum is ambitious and inclusive
• Teachers have strong subject knowledge and receive effective training
• Teachers use a consistent approach and help pupils remember knowledge well
• Reading is a priority and younger pupils, including those with SEND, learn to read well
• Pupils who fall behind in reading receive immediate help and catch up swiftly
• Pupils with SEND are well supported and achieve well
• The school has a highly inclusive ethos and pupils are kind and compassionate
• Pupils enjoy a wide range of clubs, trips and extra-curricular activities
• Parents overwhelmingly praise the school and recognise its improvement
• Leaders have a highly ambitious vision and know precisely how the school needs to improve
• Safeguarding arrangements are effective

Areas for Improvement

• Some teachers do not rigorously identify spelling, punctuation and grammar errors in younger pupils’ work
• Some younger pupils do not receive the precise help they need and continue to make the same errors
• Some pupils with SEND do not attend as well as they could at times

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 Bedfield Church of England Primary School attended 94.2% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 26.1% 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, 9.5% of pupils at Bedfield Church of England 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 2024–25 Bedfield Church of England Primary School had 6.0 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.8). 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 2024–25 Bedfield Church of England Primary School received £18,957 and spent £19,209 for each of its 21 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £133,000 (£6,351 per pupil).

Across all 21 schools of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich Diocesan Multi-Academy Trust, income was £7,618 and spending £7,433 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.

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• Secondary Schools

All schools in Mid Suffolk · Suffolk local authority: places and applications

Bedfield Church of England Primary School is part of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich Diocesan Multi-Academy Trust, which runs 21 schools. The nearest others:

• Wetheringsett Church of England Primary School Stowmarket
• Mellis Church of England Primary School Eye
• Eyke Church of England Primary School Woodbridge
• St Mary's Church of England Primary School, Woodbridge Woodbridge
• Bramfield Church of England Primary School Halesworth
• St Matthew's Church of England Primary School, Ipswich Ipswich
• Sproughton Church of England Primary School Ipswich
• Morland Church of England Primary School Ipswich
• Elmsett Church of England Primary School Ipswich
• Nacton Church of England Primary School Ipswich

What is Bedfield Church of England Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Bedfield Church of England Primary School is Good, from an inspection in November 2024.

When was Bedfield Church of England Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Bedfield Church of England Primary School was last inspected in November 2024.

How many pupils does Bedfield Church of England Primary School have?

Bedfield Church of England Primary School has 18 pupils on roll.

What age range does Bedfield Church of England Primary School cover?

Bedfield Church of England Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

Where is Bedfield Church of England Primary School?

Bedfield Church of England Primary School is at Bedfield, Woodbridge, Suffolk, IP13 7EA.