SchoolFacts.uk

Sherford Vale School & Nursery

Primary · Sherford · PL9 8FA

Data updated

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Good

Graded inspection under the pre-November 2025 system

This is an overall-effectiveness grade from the previous inspection framework. The school has not yet had a report-card inspection.

Quality of education: GoodBehaviour & attitudes: GoodPersonal development: GoodLeadership & management: GoodSafeguarding effective: Yes

Inspected 24 January 2023

Read the Ofsted report ↗

At a glance

347 pupils · 83% of 420 capacity (January 2026 census)

School type
Free schools
Age range
2–11
Gender
Mixed
Free school meals
30% of pupils (January 2026)
English as additional language
4.2% of pupils (2024/2025)
SEN support
22.3% of pupils (2024/2025)
EHC plan
2.6% of pupils (2024/2025)
Nursery
Yes
Website
www.sherfordvaleschool.co.uk
URN
145907

In figures

For September 2026 entry, 35 families named it first for 40 Reception places, 0.88 first choices per place. We hold 7 Reception admissions rounds for it, 2020 to 2026; none was decided by a published distance. Ofsted last graded it Good on 24 January 2023, under the framework used before November 2025. In the 2025/26 autumn and spring terms its pupils missed 5.8% of sessions, against 6.6% across England.

Admissions demand: Reception entry, September 2026

0.88 first-choice applications per place

40 places offered · 35 first-choice applications · roughly balanced

First-choice applications per place, by entry year

19/20
20/21
21/22
22/23
23/24
24/25
25/26
26/27

Source: DfE applications and offers on national offer day · how demand is measured

Catchment area

Catchment area: not named in the council's figures. Every applicant was offered a place for 2026 entry, so distance was not needed to decide places.

Admissions cutoff distance: Reception

Every applicant was offered a place for 2026 entry, so distance was not needed to decide places.

Cutoff by admission criterion (2023 entry)

Category 5
3477.7 m (≈2.16 mi)

2023 is the most recent year we hold a cutoff for this school. It describes that year, not 2026.

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Source: the admissions authority's published figures · how cutoffs work

Key stage 2 results (2024/2025)

27 pupils at the end of key stage 2 in 2024/2025

Reaching the expected standard in reading, writing & maths
59%
England 62%
Reaching the higher standard
4%
England 8%
Average scaled score (reading)
106
England 106
Average scaled score (maths)
104
England 105

Source: DfE performance tables 2024/2025 · what “suppressed” means

Schools with a similar intake

Meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths, 2024/2025

This school59%
Median of its 12 closest peers58.5%
Devon average60%
England62%

On meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths, this school is in line with the schools that teach a comparable intake.

They are matched on intake, not location, so most are not local: see nearby schools for those you could apply to.

SchoolOfstedResult
Hungerford Primary SchoolHungerford · 132 miles awayGood65%
Silver End AcademyWitham · 227 miles awayExpected standard45%
Swinton Queen Primary SchoolMexborough · 245 miles awayGood58%
Croft Junior SchoolNuneaton · 185 miles awayGood51%
Comberton Primary SchoolKIDDERMINSTER · 160 miles awayGood66%
Windy Nook Primary SchoolGateshead · 333 miles awayGood67%
Giffards Primary SchoolStanford-le-Hope · 212 miles awayGood78%
Holsworthy Church of England Primary SchoolHolsworthy · 34 miles awayGood46%
Lift HamfordWalton on the Naze · 252 miles awayGood55%
Palm Bay Primary SchoolMargate · 249 miles awayGood59%
Netley Abbey Junior SchoolSouthampton · 124 miles awayGood57%
Battle and Langton Church of England Primary SchoolBattle · 202 miles awayGood (2015)63%

It is not a ranking. Source: DfE performance tables 2024/2025 · how the matching works

Pupils by ethnicity (January 2026)

White British 86% (Devon 87%, England 60%) · Any other ethnic group 3% (Devon 1%, England 3%) · Any other White background 2% (Devon 4%, England 7%) · White Irish 2% (Devon 0%, England 0%) · Black African 1% (Devon 1%, England 5%) · Not recorded 1% (Devon 1%, England 1%) · Asian Indian 1% (Devon 1%, England 4%) · Any other Mixed background 1% (Devon 1%, England 3%) · Mixed White and Black African 1% (Devon 0%, England 1%) · White Gypsy/Roma 1% (Devon 0%, England 0%) · other groups together 1%

Source: DfE schools, pupils and their characteristics, January 2026 census · how to read these figures

Attendance (2025/26 autumn and spring terms)

Sessions missed (overall absence)
5.8%
England 6.6%
Pupils missing 10%+ of sessions (persistent absence)
12%
England 17.5%

Suspensions and permanent exclusions (2024/25)

0.32 suspensions per 100 pupils and 0 permanent exclusions · England, primary schools: 2.47 suspensions and 0.03 permanent exclusions per 100 pupils · Devon: 3.30 suspensions and 0.04 permanent exclusions per 100 pupils

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Source: DfE pupil absence data, autumn and spring terms, and DfE suspensions and permanent exclusions, school-level file · how absence is measured · how to read exclusions

Staffing

Pupils per qualified teacher
24.8
England 18.5

Full-time-equivalent, 2025/26.

Teacher retention (2024/25)

80% of teachers stayed at the school the following year · 3% moved to another state school · 17% left the state-funded sector

Vacancies (November 2025)

0% of teaching posts vacant, 0% filled temporarily · England, primary academies: 0.3% vacant, 0.32% temporary

Teacher sickness absence (reported in the November 2024 census)

77.8% of teachers took sickness absence, 4.9 days each on average · England, all state-funded schools: 61.8%, 8.1 days

Teacher pay (November 2025)

Mean salary of full-time qualified teachers £43,999; 20% on the leadership pay range · England, primary schools: £50,856, 17.3%

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Source: DfE School Workforce Census · how these figures are counted

Spending per pupil (2024-25)

This school£6,210
Typical primary school£7,202

Where the money went (2024-25)

Share of spending, with the median for primary schools in brackets: Staff 80% (77%) · premises 5% (5%) · occupation (energy, rates, cleaning) 8% (8%) · supplies and services 8% (9%) · educational supplies 2% (4%) · bought-in professional services 3% (2%) · catering 4% (5%)

Reserves (2024-25)

Revenue reserve -£22,000; in-year balance +£34,000

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Higher spending is not a measure of quality. Source: academy finance return, 2024-25, DfE · how spending is compared

Inspection history since 2015

Source: Ofsted management information · ungraded visits and the two inspection systems

The area around the school

Child poverty (IDACI)
4/10more deprived than most of England
Overall deprivation (IMD)
6/10around the middle for England
Census 2021This areaEngland
Adults with a degree or higher36%33.9%
Adults with no qualifications11.7%18.1%
In managerial or professional work39.6%33.2%
Households deprived in two or more ways12.9%18.1%
Residents in very good health52.9%48.5%
Homes owned by the occupier72%62.3%
Social housing15.3%17.1%
Privately rented12.7%20.5%
Detached houses31.7%22.9%
Flats10.8%22.2%
Homes with four or more bedrooms31.6%21.1%
Households with no car or van6.4%23.5%

These figures describe the area, not the pupils. Source: Census 2021 (ONS) and English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG) for small area E01020187 · how to read area figures

What homes cost nearby

Median sale price
£347,000266 sales within 1 km, January 2024 to September 2026
Typical range
£285,000–£405,000the middle half of sales
England median
£300,000all sales over the same period
Detached (93)£405,000
Semi-detached (67)£332,500
Terraced (83)£330,000
Flat (23)£97,500

Homes around this school are dearer than most school neighbourhoods in England, comparing the median within 1 km across every state school.

Source: HM Land Registry sales within 1 km since January 2024 · how sales are counted. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. This data is licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Postcodes located with OS Code-Point Open: contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026; contains Royal Mail data © Royal Mail copyright and database right 2026; contains National Statistics data © Crown copyright and database right 2026.

Roads around the school

Child pedestrian casualties
0an urban school averages 2.0
Collisions at school-run times
1an urban school averages 5.7
All reported collisions
5an urban school averages 30.5
Of those, serious or fatal
1an urban school averages 6.1

A high count usually reflects traffic, not an unsafe school. Source: DfT road casualty statistics (STATS19), collisions within 500 m, 2021–2025 · what is counted

Nearby schools