Ridgewell Church of England Primary School, Halstead
Data last updated 11 Sept 2026
Location
Estimated admission likelihood based on school density and oversubscription data
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Overall
Ofsted Insights
What This School Does Well
Ridgewell provides a warm, welcoming environment where pupils feel they belong and behave respectfully. The school excels at supporting attendance and behaviour, creating calm classrooms where learning happens. Reading is prioritised with effective phonics teaching that helps most pupils progress well.
Key Strengths
- Strong safeguarding culture with open communication and pupils feeling safe
- Effective support for attendance and behaviour, creating calm classrooms and playgrounds
- Broad, well-planned curriculum across all subjects
- Effective phonics teaching with good progress in reading
- Supportive relationships with parents and caring school community
Areas for Improvement
- Teaching quality is inconsistent, with gaps in knowledge not addressed quickly enough
- Disadvantaged pupils do not achieve as well as they should, particularly in writing
- Early years staff lack secure subject knowledge in key reading skills
- Expectations are not always high enough across the curriculum
- Leaders' improvement actions are at early stages and not yet showing consistent results
Safeguarding
Safeguarding standards are met - leaders have established an open culture where safeguarding is everyone's responsibility and pupils are made safer and feel safe.
Extracurricular Activities
outdoor learning sessions, trips and visits including Colchester Castle, culture days, basketball
Ridgewell Church of England Primary School is a welcoming, inclusive school where pupils enjoy warm relationships with staff and behave well. However, the school requires improvement in teaching quality and pupil achievement, particularly in writing and spelling.
At a Glance
32.7%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
Primary Performance (KS2)
Academic year 2025/26KS2 Results (% meeting expected standard)
Reading has improved from 50% to 85%. Maths has improved from 50% to 85%. Writing has improved from 33% to 77%.
Class Sizes
13.3
Avg class size
11.5
Infant (KS1)
17.0
KS2
3
Total classes
2024/25 academic year
Getting There
Bus Stops
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Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
52%
Available places
55 pupils
105 capacity
50 spare places available
Area Demand Pressure - Halstead
Based on MHCLG housing supply data for Halstead
Admissions Demand - Essex
Places available
17,913
Applications
15,619
Got 1st preference
90.3%
Got preferred school
98.4%
Primary admissions across Essex (2025/26)
Inspection History(13)
House Prices
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SEN Provision
How many pupils have special educational needs, what types of support the school provides, and how it compares to similar schools.
Pupil Demographics
The school's pupil mix - ethnicity breakdown, free school meals eligibility, and English as an additional language. Useful context when evaluating school fit.
Teachers & Staff
Teacher qualification rates, pupil-to-teacher ratio, staff turnover, and salary data. Shows how well-resourced and stable the school's workforce is.
School Funding
Annual funding per pupil, total budget, pupil premium grants, and how the school's resources compare to similar schools nationally.
Pupil Absence2024/25
5.87513%
Overall absence
16.66667%
Persistent absence
54
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
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Secondary Schools Nearby
Secondary schools pupils are likely to move to
Ridgewell Church of England Primary School
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