Shiplake Church of England School

About Shiplake Church of England School

Shiplake Church of England School is a small primary in South Oxfordshire, with 140 pupils against a capacity of 196, meaning it is operating at around 71% of its maximum. This is a notably low proportion of free school meals pupils, at just 2.9%, compared with the national average of around 23% in primary schools. Despite the spare capacity, the school is clearly in demand: for the 2025/26 intake, it received 47 applications for 18 places, an oversubscription ratio of 2.61, and all 18 first-preference applicants were offered a place. The school is a Church of England state primary for mixed-gender pupils aged 4 to 11, with a nursery provision attached. Katherine Page-Howie is the headteacher. The school’s most recent Ofsted inspection, an ungraded visit in March 2022, confirmed that it remains Good, a rating it has held since its previous graded inspection in 2011.

Academically, Shiplake performs well above the local average. In the 2023/24 Key Stage 2 assessments, 81% of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, compared with an Oxfordshire local authority average of 61%. The school ranks 7th out of 48 primary schools in South Oxfordshire on this metric, placing it in the top 15% of the local authority. In reading and maths, average scores were both 110, and 56% of pupils achieved the higher standard in each subject. In writing, 31% reached the higher standard. The school’s national percentile ranking of 9.3 means it sits in the top 10% of all primary schools in England for combined expected standards. Ofsted’s graded inspection in 2011 rated overall effectiveness, leadership and management, and early years provision all as Good, with early years rated Outstanding at that time.

The school offers a range of facilities including a sports hall, ICT suite, art studios, library, dining hall, outdoor playground and a chapel. Sports on offer include tennis, rounders, netball and athletics, and clubs include chess, coding, choir, art club and eco club. The school has identified SEND provisions for specific learning difficulties including dyslexia, moderate learning difficulty, social, emotional and mental health needs, speech, language and communication needs, and autistic spectrum disorder. For families considering Shiplake, the data suggests a small, Church of England village primary that is academically strong and oversubscribed, but with enough capacity to offer places to all first-preference applicants. It suits families who value strong core academic outcomes and a broad set of clubs and sports, within a relatively small school community.

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