Ashford Hill Primary School

Ashford Hill Primary School is a small, close-knit village primary (104 pupils, part of The Thames Learning Trust) that inspectors found to be performing strongly across almost every area of its work. Attendance and behaviour, early years, inclusion, leadership and governance, and personal development and well-being all reached the strong standard, with safeguarding requirements fully met. Pupils attend far more regularly than nationally, behave courteously, and are described as thriving in a nurturing, harmonious community. Leaders were praised for securing rapid improvement in standards, achievement and staff morale over the past three years, and for placing inclusion at the heart of their work, with pupils with SEND and disadvantaged pupils achieving well from their starting points. Outcomes in the 2024/25 key stage 2 tests were well above national averages in reading, writing and maths. The weaker areas sit in the curriculum's wider reaches. Achievement and curriculum and teaching were judged at the expected standard rather than strong, because pupils do not build detailed knowledge and understanding in a few subjects beyond English and mathematics, and teaching in those subjects does not consistently build on what pupils have already learned. The single next step for the school reflects this: continuing work to ensure the wider curriculum builds on prior learning so that achievement improves further. Overall, this is a high-performing school with a clear ethos of high aspiration, knowledgeable and appropriately challenging trustees, and positive feedback from parents. The areas for development are narrow and specific rather than systemic, and leaders are already well placed to address them given the accurate self-view and effective monitoring described in the report.

Strengths

• Pupils' attendance is consistently above the national average, with low persistent absenteeism thanks to proactive support for families
• Pupils behave extremely well, are courteous and take pride in presenting their work neatly
• The early years curriculum is well sequenced and tailored to individual needs, preparing children very well for key stage 1
• Strong emphasis on language and vocabulary, with children expressing themselves in full sentences and becoming confident readers
• Inclusion is at the heart of leaders' work, with SEND needs identified quickly and accurately and pupils achieving well from their starting points
• Leaders have secured rapid improvement in standards, achievement and staff morale over the past three years
• Trustees are knowledgeable, fulfil their roles to a high standard and provide appropriate challenge and support
• Staff receive high-quality training, and leaders are considerate of workload and wellbeing
• Personal development is highly effective, with rich experiences, clubs and pupil leadership roles building character and resilience
• Pupils achieve highly in end of key stage 2 national tests, including disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND
• Reading has a high priority, with pupils who need extra help supported to catch up quickly
• Parents and carers are overwhelmingly positive about the school's impact on their child's education
• Pupils learn how to stay safe, including online, and know how to look after their physical and mental health
• Leaders monitor the quality of the curriculum and teaching astutely and use this to prioritise professional development

Areas for Improvement

• Pupils do not develop detailed knowledge and understanding in a few subjects in the wider curriculum
• In a few wider curriculum subjects, teaching does not build on what pupils have learned previously as well as it could
• There are inconsistencies in how well the curriculum is taught in subjects other than English and mathematics
• Leaders need to continue work to ensure the wider curriculum builds on pupils' prior knowledge so achievement improves further

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 Ashford Hill Primary School attended 97.2% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 4.8% 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 Ashford Hill 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 Ashford Hill Primary School had 16.7 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 15.9% 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 Ashford Hill Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 6.9% 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 Ashford Hill Primary School received £8,740 and spent £9,116 for each of its 104 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £385,000 (£3,699 per pupil).

Across all 6 schools of The Thames Learning Trust, income was £7,763 and spending £7,300 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 Thatcham · Hampshire local authority: places and applications

Ashford Hill Primary School is part of The Thames Learning Trust, which runs 6 schools. The nearest others:

• Highwood Copse Primary School Newbury
• Battle Primary Academy Reading
• Reading Girls' School Reading
• Phoenix Infant Academy Slough
• Baylis Court School Slough

What is Ashford Hill Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Ashford Hill Primary School is Expected standard, from an inspection in January 2026.

When was Ashford Hill Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Ashford Hill Primary School was last inspected in January 2026.

How many pupils does Ashford Hill Primary School have?

Ashford Hill Primary School has 130 pupils on roll.

What age range does Ashford Hill Primary School cover?

Ashford Hill Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

What are Ashford Hill Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 87% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Ashford Hill Primary School?

Ashford Hill Primary School is at Ashford Hill Road, Ashford Hill, Thatcham, Berkshire, RG19 8BB.