School Chooser

Sutton CofE VA Primary School

Primary · ages 4-11MixedChurch of England98 pupilsCentral Bedfordshire
School Chooser Score
81
Above
similar schools
Likely range 59 to 92
Out of 100. Better than 75% of the 50 schools most like it. Slipping year on year.
OfstedAs expected teachingOfsted report card, November 2025
Attendance96.8%England 94.8%
Pupils from low-income families4%Far fewer than most schools
Parents would recommend97%36 Parent View responses
Places7 spare98 pupils, 105 places
Pupils per teacher18.4School workforce census

Sutton CofE VA Primary School is a Church of England school (voluntary aided) in Sutton for boys and girls aged 4 to 11. It has 98 pupils and room for 105. About 4 in every 100 pupils come from a low-income family, far fewer than at most schools in England. We give it 81 out of 100. That puts it above schools like it, ahead of 75% of the 50 schools most like it. Ofsted visited in November 2025 and gave it a report card, which is below.

High Street, Sutton, SG19 2NE01767 260334suttonprimary.co.ukMrs Lucy Chapman headteacherAll details

What Ofsted found

Ofsted visited on 18 November 2025. Instead of one overall word, it now gives a grade for each part of school life. Read the full report on Ofsted's website.

TeachingOfsted calls this “curriculum and teaching”
As expected
Achievement
As expected
Behaviour and attendanceOfsted calls this “attendance and behaviour”
Strong
Support for every childOfsted calls this “inclusion”
Strong
WellbeingOfsted calls this “personal development and wellbeing”
Strong
LeadershipOfsted calls this “leadership and governance”
Strong
Early years
As expected
SafeguardingAre pupils kept safe?
Pupils are kept safe
Met
Ofsted's scale:ExceptionalStrong standardExpected standardNeeds attentionUrgent improvement

Ofsted says these new grades can't be lined up against the old one-word grades.

Earlier inspections (1)
DateTypeOutcome
14 September 2021S5 InspectionGood

Results

No published results yet for this school.

Getting a place

Open to all. There is no entrance test. As a Church of England school it may put families of that faith first. Check the school's own admissions rules.

Full86 pupils for 75 places, 2024/25
115% full

The school is full, with 11 more pupils than it has places for. More families apply than can get in, so things like how close you live and whether an older brother or sister is already here decide who gets a place. Pupil numbers have grown by 25% since 2021/22, so places are getting harder to come by.

Each council publishes its own figures on how many families applied and how far away the last child to get a place lived. We are adding councils one at a time. If you have a link to Central Bedfordshire council's admissions booklet, send it to us.

What parents say

Would recommend the school97%England 87%
My child is happy here97%agree or strongly agree
My child feels safe97%
Positive overall100%
My child is happy at this school
97%England 89%
My child feels safe at this school
97%England 90%
Pupils are well behavedThe school makes sure its pupils are well behaved
100%England 83%
Has your child been bullied here?Parents answering yes
3% yesEngland 18%
Bullying was dealt with quickly and effectivelyOnly parents whose child was bullied
100%England 50%
My child gets the right support to learn well
97%England 85%
Does your child have SEND?Parents answering yes
22% yesEngland 26%
The school gives them the support they needOnly parents of children with SEND
88%England 71%
The school communicates well with me
94%England 80%
My concerns have been dealt with properlyWhen I have raised concerns
83%England 69%
Decisions put the child's best interests first
97%England 82%
I would recommend this school
97%England 87%
Overall view of the school is positive
100%England 82%
Strongly agreeAgreeDon't knowDisagreeStrongly disagreeEngland, agree or yes

From Ofsted's Parent View survey: 36 parents answered in the year to 6 April 2026. Parents choose whether to fill it in, and many only do so when an inspection is coming, so don't read too much into small differences. The England figures are the average for primary schools with enough answers to publish.

Who goes here

Who a school teaches matters. That is why our score compares it with schools that take in a similar mix of children, not with every school in the country.

Pupils on roll98Census January 2026
Places10593% full
Pupils from low-income families4%4% have had free school meals at some point in the last six years
Pupils learning English12%First language is not English
Pupils getting extra support6%6 pupils with SEN support
Pupils with an EHC plan5%5 pupils with a plan
Average class size18.52 classes, January 2026; England 25.4
Classes with more than 30 pupils0%Infant classes are capped at 30 by law; England 10%
Pupils with extra funding (pupil premium)4%£6,200 extra funding in 2026/27; England 24%
Boys and girls44 / 54
White British pupils82%

Infant classes (Reception to Year 2) average 15.0 pupils (England 25.5); junior classes (Years 3 to 6) average 22.0 (England 27.3).

The most common needs among pupils getting extra support: Autistic spectrum disorder (3), Hearing impairment (2), emotional and mental health (2), Specific learning difficulty (2), language and communications needs (2).

How the mix of pupils has changed
Census202620252024202320222021
Pupils on roll988773686873
Pupils from low-income familiesFree school meals4%2%3%7%4%3%
Pupils learning EnglishEnglish as an additional language12%3%4%4%2%0%
Pupils getting extra supportSEN support7%6%9%7%7%
Pupils with an EHC planEducation, health and care plans4%4%4%3%0%

Attendance and behaviour

In 2024/25 pupils were in school 96.8% of the time. Across similar schools in England it was 94.8%.

Attendance96.8%
England 94.8%
Official name: 100 minus overall absence
Pupils missing a lot of school2.8%
England 12.8%
Official name: Persistent absence
Suspensions per 100 pupils0.02024/25, no permanent exclusions
Missed without permission0.7%of school time, 2024/25
Attendance year by year
Measure2024/252023/242022/232021/222020/212018/19England
Sessions missedOverall absence3.2%4.3%4.5%5.3%1.5%2.8%5.2%
Missed with permissionAuthorised absence2.5%2.9%3.5%4.5%1.2%1.9%
Missed without permissionUnauthorised absence0.7%1.4%1.0%0.8%0.3%0.9%
Pupils missing a lot of schoolPersistent absence2.8%8.5%6.9%12.5%1.7%0.0%12.8%
SuspensionsSuspension rate0.00.00.00.00.0
Permanent exclusionsPermanent exclusions00000

Staff and money

From the government's count of school staff in November 2025 and the school's published accounts.

Teachers5.3full-time equivalent, 7 people
Pupils per teacher18.4Pupils for every full-time teacher
Fully qualified teachers86%hold qualified teacher status
Teaching assistants5.8full-time equivalent
Average teacher pay£48,177
Teachers who left in the year0%2024/25, for any reason including retirement
Vacancies0
Sick days per teacher0.22023/24

Money

From the council school accounts, year to March 2025. The per-pupil figures are compared with other primary schools in England that report their accounts the same way.

Spend per pupil£6,936England £7,738. Total £603k
Income per pupil£7,141England £7,697. Total £621k
Spent on teachers per pupil£3,616England £3,480
Money in reserve18%A healthy amount put by: £110k, £1,259 per pupil. England 6%
Money in against money out+£18kit took in more than it spent this year
Where the money goes£6,936spent per pupil

Reserves are the money left over at the end of the year, kept back for emergencies and big projects. Being in the red year after year is a warning sign. Very large reserves can mean money sitting in the bank instead of being spent on today's pupils. Academy figures are rounded to the nearest £1,000 and include a share of any money the trust holds centrally.

The area around the school

Crimes within 500 m312 months to June 2026, mostly violence and sexual offences
Local crime rate49 per 1,000 people47% lower than the England average
Typical house price£365,000Central Bedfordshire
Nearest bus stop30 mLower School, 6 stops within 500 m

Crime figures come from police.uk. The police record each crime at the nearest of a fixed set of map points rather than the exact spot, so “within 500 m” is only rough. House prices are from HM Land Registry sales nearby over the last two years.

Nearby schools

The closest primary schools, nearest first. Hover over a row to see it on the map.

Well aboveAboveIn lineBelowWell belowNot scored
SchoolTypeDistancePupilsOfstedScore
Potton Primary SchoolFoundation1.3 miles387No overall grade 20255Compare
Dunton CofE Junior SchoolChurch of England2.2 miles66Good 202377Compare
Wrestlingworth CofE Infant SchoolChurch of England2.2 miles58Good 202364Compare
Lawnside AcademyAcademy2.3 miles283Good 202341Compare
Everton Heath Primary SchoolAcademy2.5 miles82Good 202416Compare
St Andrew's CofE VC Primary SchoolChurch of England2.6 miles945Report card 20265Compare
Biggleswade AcademyAcademy2.7 miles839Good 202447Compare
St Swithun's Church of England VC Primary SchoolChurch of England3.1 miles172Good 202216Compare

Compared with schools like it

Our score compares Sutton CofE VA Primary School with the 48 schools in England whose pupils are most like its own. We match on family income, how many children are learning English, special needs, the neighbourhood, the size of the school and how it admits pupils. Those 48 schools are dotted all over the country, so we don't list them. What matters is where this school sits among them.

Beats75%of schools with a similar mix of pupils
In the top quarter of its group. Its score of 81 is 21 points above the typical school in the group.
0Lowest of the group 6 · middle 60 · highest 99100

How the score was worked out

The score is out of 100. A 81 means that once everything below is added up, this school comes out ahead of 81% of primary schools in England. Results bounce around from year to year, especially in small schools, so we also show a likely range: 59 to 92. Every part is judged against schools with a similar mix of pupils. For small schools we pull each part towards the group average, so one unusual year can't swing the score too far.

What we looked atHow much it countsAgainst schools like itEffect on the scoreBased on
Results over three years0%no data
Ofsted inspection20%above
+0.16
Ofsted report card, 0.8 years old
Progress pupils make0%no data
Direction of travel over five years10%below
-0.08
results and attendance falling year on year
Attendance and behaviour10%well above
+0.27
2024/25; 72 pupils
Results, allowing for the mix of pupils0%no data
What parents say5%above
+0.08
Ofsted's Parent View survey, allowing for how many parents replied; 36 responses

Worked out on 13 September 2026 (method v1). Read how the score works, including every weight and the checks we run. Think a number is wrong? Tell us.

Questions parents ask

Is Sutton CofE VA Primary School a good school?

Yes, going by the figures. Sutton CofE VA Primary School scores 81 out of 100. That is above schools that take in a similar mix of pupils, and ahead of 75% of the 50 schools most like it in England. The score could fairly be anywhere from 59 to 92, so a few points either way between schools doesn't mean much. Its results have been slipping over the last five years.

What is Sutton CofE VA Primary School's Ofsted rating?

Ofsted no longer gives schools one overall grade. When it visited on 18 November 2025 it rated teaching as as expected, achievement as as expected, behaviour and attendance as strong, leadership as strong.

How many pupils does Sutton CofE VA Primary School have?

98 pupils aged 4 to 11 were on the roll in January 2026. It has 105 places, so it is 93% full.

Is Sutton CofE VA Primary School oversubscribed?

Probably. The school was full in 2024/25, with 11 more pupils than places. How close you live, and the school's other admissions rules, decide who gets in.

What is attendance like at Sutton CofE VA Primary School?

Pupils were in school 96.8% of the time in 2024/25. Similar schools in England managed 94.8%. 3% of pupils missed at least a tenth of the year.

What do parents say about Sutton CofE VA Primary School?

97% of the 36 parents who answered Ofsted's Parent View survey would recommend it to other parents, and 97% say their child is happy there. Across England, 87% of parents would recommend their child's school.

How big are the classes at Sutton CofE VA Primary School?

The average class had 18.5 pupils in January 2026. Across England it was 25.4. No class had more than 30 pupils.

These answers come straight from the figures on this page and update when new data comes out.

Contact and details

Address
High Street, Sutton, SG19 2NE
Telephone
01767 260334
Website
www.suttonprimary.co.uk
Headteacher
Mrs Lucy Chapman
Type of school
Church of England school (voluntary aided) (Voluntary aided school, local authority maintained schools)
Phase
Primary school, ages 4-11
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
Church of England, Diocese of St Albans
Local authority
Central Bedfordshire
Ward
Potton
Constituency
North Bedfordshire
Setting
Smaller rural: Nearer to a major town or city
URN
109626 · LAESTAB 8233331 · UKPRN 10077751

Where these figures come from