Hawridge and Cholesbury Church of England School

About Hawridge and Cholesbury Church of England School

Hawridge and Cholesbury Church of England School is a small state primary in Buckinghamshire, with 175 pupils on roll against a capacity of 218. In the local authority’s primary rankings, it sits at 96th out of 137 schools, placing it in the bottom half of the table. The top-performing peers in the area include Ickford School, Frieth Church of England Combined School and Elangeni School, all of which score higher on the same ranking metric. The school’s most recent Ofsted inspection, carried out in October 2024, judged its overall effectiveness as ‘Not judged’ — a technical outcome that followed a previous ‘Good’ rating in 2015. However, inspectors rated the quality of education as ‘Requires improvement’, while behaviour and attitudes, personal development, and leadership and management were all judged ‘Good’. Early years provision also held a ‘Good’ grade, offering some reassurance for families with younger children.

In the 2023/24 Key Stage 2 assessments, 58% of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined — slightly below the Buckinghamshire local authority average of 64%. The school’s ranking score of 58 places it in the bottom 50% nationally and regionally, though individual subject scores tell a more nuanced story. Average scores were 107 in reading and 103 in maths, both above the national baseline of 100. A higher-than-expected proportion of pupils achieved the higher standard in reading (35%) and writing (23%), while maths higher attainment was 16%. Progress measures were not available for any subject, so it is difficult to assess how much value the school adds relative to starting points. The parent view survey, based on 77 responses between September 2024 and September 2025, showed 83% of parents would recommend the school, with strong majorities agreeing that children are happy and feel safe.

The school offers a solid range of facilities including a sports hall, ICT suite, art studios, music rooms, a sensory room and a chapel. Sports provision covers swimming, netball, cricket and dance, while clubs include chess, choir and coding. SEND support is available for a broad spectrum of needs, including autistic spectrum disorder, speech and language difficulties, and social and emotional mental health needs. However, the parent view data on SEND support was notably divided: 43% strongly agreed that children with SEND get the support they need, but 24% strongly disagreed — the most polarised response in the survey. For 2025/26 admissions, the school was oversubscribed with 52 applications for 26 places, and 22 first-preference offers were made. This suggests it remains a popular choice locally despite its mixed inspection profile, and it may suit families who value a Church of England ethos and a small, community-focused setting with strong pastoral care.

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