St George's Church of England School, Bourton

St George’s Church of England School, Bourton is a small primary school inspected under section 5 for the first time since becoming an academy. It is part of the Pickwick Academy Trust and, under the current framework, did not receive an overall effectiveness grade. Inspectors judged the school good in quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and early years provision. Pupils are happy, safe and well behaved, relationships are warm and nurturing, and safeguarding is effective. The school provides an ambitious curriculum, and children get off to a strong start in the early years. Reading is a priority, phonics teaching is skilled, and pupils who fall behind are supported to catch up. Pupils with SEND are central to the school’s work and generally learn the same curriculum as their peers. Personal development is effective, with a wide range of enrichment, music, sport and leadership opportunities, and the trust and governors provide strong support and challenge. The main area for improvement is that some pupils, including some with SEND, do not remember key knowledge securely across subjects and over time, which can limit how well they build on prior learning. The trust should ensure curriculum implementation helps pupils retain the most important knowledge year by year.

Strengths

• Ambitious and exciting curriculum with key knowledge, skills and vocabulary identified across subjects
• Warm, nurturing relationships and a happy, safe school culture
• Pupils behave well, are polite and respectful, and attend well
• Strong early years provision that develops independence, communication and early reading, writing and maths
• Skilled phonics and reading teaching, with books matched to pupils’ phonics knowledge
• Effective support for pupils who struggle with reading to catch up
• Accurate identification of SEND barriers and adaptations that help pupils access the curriculum
• Effective personal development with charity work, enrichment, music, sport and leadership responsibilities
• Effective safeguarding arrangements
• Strong support and challenge from the trust and governors, with consideration for staff workload

Areas for Improvement

• Some pupils cannot recall key knowledge across subjects over time, limiting how securely they build on prior learning
• Some pupils with SEND still struggle to remember essential learning over time

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 George's Church of England School, Bourton attended 96.2% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 5.8% 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 St George's Church of England School, Bourton 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 George's Church of England School, Bourton had 23.8 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 5.5% 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, 13.4% of pupils at St George's Church of England School, Bourton were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 4.2% 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 George's Church of England School, Bourton received £6,917 and spent £6,796 for each of its 119 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £113,000 (£948 per pupil).

Across all 21 schools of Pickwick Academy Trust, income was £6,042 and spending £5,893 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 Gillingham (Dorset) · Dorset local authority: places and applications

St George's Church of England School, Bourton is part of Pickwick Academy Trust, which runs 21 schools. The nearest others:

• Milton-on-Stour Church of England Primary School Gillingham
• Wyke Primary School Gillingham
• Gillingham Primary School Gillingham
• St Gregory's Church of England Primary School, Marnhull Sturminster Newton
• Ludwell Primary School Shaftesbury
• Princecroft Primary School Warminster
• All Saints Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School Sherborne
• Woodford Valley Church of England Aided School Salisbury
• Aloeric Primary School Melksham
• Greentrees Primary School Salisbury

What is St George's Church of England School, Bourton's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for St George's Church of England School, Bourton is Good, from an inspection in June 2025.

When was St George's Church of England School, Bourton last inspected by Ofsted?

St George's Church of England School, Bourton was last inspected in June 2025.

How many pupils does St George's Church of England School, Bourton have?

St George's Church of England School, Bourton has 142 pupils on roll.

What age range does St George's Church of England School, Bourton cover?

St George's Church of England School, Bourton for pupils aged 2 to 11.

What are St George's Church of England School, Bourton's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 53% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is St George's Church of England School, Bourton?

St George's Church of England School, Bourton is at Church Track, Bourton, Gillingham, Dorset, SP8 5BN.