Ditcheat Primary School

About Ditcheat Primary School

Ditcheat Primary School holds a Good rating from Ofsted, a grade it has maintained across its two most recent inspections, including the most recent graded inspection in November 2021. The school’s strongest academic metric comes from Key Stage 2 outcomes for the 2023/24 academic year, where 60% of pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined. That figure sits just above the Somerset local authority average of 59%, placing Ditcheat 64th out of 219 similar schools in the county. The school’s ranking score of 60 puts it in the bottom half nationally, but the picture is more nuanced when you look at individual subjects. In maths, 87% of pupils reached the expected standard, and the average scaled score of 105 matches the reading average, suggesting solid core provision. However, no pupils achieved the higher standard in writing, and only 27% did so in maths, indicating that while most children meet the baseline, stretching the highest attainers is an area to watch.

Digging deeper into the Ofsted breakdown, inspectors rated every category as Good in 2021, including quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, and leadership and management. The early years provision also earned a Good grade, which is consistent with the school’s previous inspection in 2014, where it was rated Good overall. The school is small, with 79 pupils on roll against a capacity of 90, and 11.4% of children are eligible for free school meals, slightly below the national average. Progress scores for reading, writing and maths are not available in the data, so it is difficult to assess how much value the school adds relative to pupils’ starting points. The absence of a nursery provision means children join in Reception, and the school does not have a sixth form, as expected for a primary. The headteacher is Rachael Bisset, who leads a mixed-gender, non-religious state school in the Somerset local authority area.

Ditcheat is oversubscribed for the 2025/26 academic year, with 18 applications for just 8 places, and 7 of those applications were first-preference choices, all of which received offers. The oversubscription ratio of 2.25 to 1 means competition is real, so families should be prepared to apply early. The school offers a broad range of facilities for its size, including an ICT suite, sports hall, playing fields, a sensory room, art studios, music rooms, a library and even a chapel. Sports provision covers dance, netball, football, cricket and tennis, while clubs include book club, coding, gardening and choir. SEND support is available for social, emotional and mental health needs, speech, language and communication difficulties, and visual impairment. This is a village-style primary that suits families who value a small, community-focused setting with decent core academic results and a wide array of on-site facilities, but who are also aware that pushing pupils to the highest levels may require additional support at home.

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