Orchard Grove Primary School

Orchard Grove Primary School is a new, growing school that is performing strongly overall. Inspectors found pupils achieving highly across an ambitious curriculum, with secure reading and writing, strong progress for pupils who join mid-year, and effective support for pupils with SEND and disadvantaged pupils. Attendance is high, persistent absence is very low, and behaviour is excellent; pupils are polite, caring and keen to learn. The early years provision, inclusion and personal development are particular strengths, and leadership, governance and trust support are highly effective. Safeguarding standards are met. The school opened in September 2023 and is part of the Blackdown Education Partnership. It moved to its permanent site in 2024 and now includes a nursery, with significant mid-year admissions linked to local housing growth. Despite these challenges, leaders have built a consistent, nurturing culture, and parents unanimously recommend the school. No significant weaknesses were identified. The main next step is to ensure that, as the school continues to grow, its systems are applied consistently across all areas to the same high standard so that all pupils, including disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND, continue to achieve well and feel a sense of belonging.

Strengths

• Pupils, including disadvantaged pupils, achieve highly across the curriculum.
• Very high phonics outcomes and strong, accurate writing development.
• Pupils who join mid-year catch up well through tailored English and mathematics support.
• Pupils with SEND make strong progress from their starting points.
• Attendance is high and persistent absence is very low.
• Pupils are polite, courteous and behave consistently well; bullying is rare.
• Teaching is consistently high quality with strong subject knowledge.
• The curriculum is ambitious, carefully ordered and plans ahead for future key stage 2 classes.
• Early years provision is a strength, helping children including two-year-olds and those with SEND or EAL to flourish.
• Inclusion is central, with precise support for pupils with SEND, EAL and those known to social care.
• Disadvantaged pupils achieve and attend well through effective use of funding.
• Leadership, governance and trust support are highly effective.
• Staff feel proud, well supported and positive about working at the school.
• The personal development programme is comprehensive, including the Orchard Grove 50, residentials and careers activities.
• Pastoral support is high quality and begins before pupils start school.
• Pupils participate widely in clubs, including disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND.
• Parents unanimously recommend the school.
• The school is a valued part of its emerging community and its values are lived out.

Areas for Improvement

• As the school grows, systems must be applied consistently across all areas to the same high standard so all pupils continue to achieve and flourish.

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 Orchard Grove Primary School attended 97.6% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 0.0% 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 Orchard Grove 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 Orchard Grove Primary School had 30.2 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, 13.1% of pupils at Orchard Grove Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 1.5% 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 Orchard Grove Primary School received £12,051 and spent £11,150 for each of its 64 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £167,000 (£2,623 per pupil).

Across all 13 schools of Blackdown Education Partnership, income was £7,733 and spending £7,770 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

Orchard Grove Primary School is part of Blackdown Education Partnership, which runs 14 schools. The nearest others:

• Bishops Hull Primary School Taunton
• The Castle School Taunton
• Isambard Kingdom Brunel Primary School Wellington
• Wellesley Park Primary School Wellington
• Court Fields School Wellington
• Neroche Primary School Ilminster
• Uffculme Primary School Cullompton
• Uffculme School Cullompton
• Holyrood Academy Chard
• Cullompton Community College Cullompton

What is Orchard Grove Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Orchard Grove Primary School is Strong standard, from an inspection in July 2026.

When was Orchard Grove Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Orchard Grove Primary School was last inspected in July 2026.

How many pupils does Orchard Grove Primary School have?

Orchard Grove Primary School has 130 pupils on roll.

What age range does Orchard Grove Primary School cover?

Orchard Grove Primary School for pupils aged 2 to 11.

Where is Orchard Grove Primary School?

Orchard Grove Primary School is at Egremont Road, Taunton, TA3 7FD.