Shelley Primary School, Horsham
Shelley Primary School is a primary school for pupils aged 4 to 11 in Horsham. It was rated Good at its last graded Ofsted inspection, in June 2019. Ofsted's ungraded inspection in January 2025 did not change this grade. Its 2025 Key Stage 2 results were the 9th-highest of the 26 schools in Horsham with published results, and 3,012th of 14,452 across England. It was 97% full in 2025.
- SATs results
- Above England average
- Ofsted
- Good (2019)
- Demand
- Oversubscribed
- Attendance
- In line with England
Reception applications for September 2027 close in 81 days
Deadline Friday 15 January 2027. Apply to West Sussex (the council where you live). Offers on 16 April.
Data last updated 26 Oct 2026
Shelley Primary School in detail
Shelley Primary School in its own words
In its own words: "A community driven by aspiration, united by respect and strengthened by togetherness - enabling every child to thrive."
Clubs and activities named on the school's website include football, netball, gymnastics, karate and dance.
The school runs after-school care.
Vision and values (school website)Clubs (school website)Wraparound care (school website)
Source: The school's own website
Results
In 2025, 85% of Year 6 pupils at Shelley Primary School reached the expected standard in reading and 87% in maths. At the average state primary the figures were 76% and 72% in West Sussex and 77% and 75% across England.
Results rose from 75% in reading and 73% in maths in 2024.
Getting a place at Shelley Primary School
For September 2026 entry, 52 families put Shelley Primary School as their first choice and 84 named it as one of their preferences, for 57 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. 1 family who put it first was not offered a place there.
Admissions history and your chances at Shelley Primary School
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to Shelley Primary School are St John's Catholic Primary School (0.9 miles, Good, 73% reading, 77% maths); Arunside School, Horsham (0.9 miles, Good, 81% reading, 86% maths); Greenway Junior School (0.9 miles, Good, 81% reading, 73% maths); and Trafalgar Community Infant School (1.1 miles, Good).
Shelley Primary School's 2025 results were higher than all 3 of them.
St John's Catholic Primary SchoolArunside School, HorshamGreenway Junior SchoolTrafalgar Community Infant School
What parents say
116 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about Shelley Primary School (as of September 2025): 91% would recommend the school, 93% say their child is happy there and 79% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.
The strongest agreement was that their child feels safe (95%); the weakest, that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (79%).
Who goes there
10.9% of pupils are eligible for free school meals, well below the average state school (25%), and 10.4% speak English as an additional language, against 18.8% on average, according to the 2026 school census.
In 2026, 53 pupils (12.9%) received SEN support and 5 (1.2%) had an education, health and care plan, against 16.2% and 4.6% at the average state school. The most common need among them is social, emotional and mental health needs.
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Christs Hospital Rail Station, about 1.3 miles away in a straight line.
9 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Shelley Arms (adjacent), 250 metres away.
The area around the school
In August 2026, police recorded 62 crimes within a mile of the school, most often violence and sexual offences, anti-social behaviour and shoplifting. That is well below the typical figure around schools in West Sussex (103).
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, Shelley Primary School issued 1 suspension, 0.2 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.
Sources: DfE school performance data (averages: state mainstream schools); DfE school-level applications and offers; council admissions booklets; DfE appeals statistics; Ofsted Parent View; DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); data.police.uk street-level crime; DfE exclusions statistics
Location
Our estimate from how close the nearest similar schools are and how oversubscribed the council's schools are. It is not a published boundary.
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 2 years agoThis judgement is from June 2019, 7 years ago, longer than Ofsted's usual 4-year cycle: the school may have changed since.
Overall
Quality of Education
Behaviour & Attitudes
Personal Development
Leadership & Management
Early Years
Ofsted Insights
From Ofsted's January 2025 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
Shelley Primary School excels in creating a happy, welcoming environment where children feel safe and respected. The school has prioritised reading exceptionally well, with structured phonics teaching from Reception and swift support for any pupils falling behind. Parents and families strongly value the school's wide range of trips, clubs, and enrichment activities that help children develop leadership skills and explore their interests.
Key Strengths
- Strong phonics and reading programme with effective staff training and support for pupils who fall behind
- Broad curriculum covering all national curriculum subjects with logical sequencing from early years
- Warm and respectful relationships between staff and pupils with positive attitudes to learning
- Extensive personal development programme including leadership roles, clubs, and community understanding
- Good early years provision with children settling quickly into routines
Areas for Improvement
- Inconsistent curriculum implementation means pupils do not secure knowledge deeply enough in all subjects
- Teachers do not consistently use information about what pupils already know to address gaps in learning
- Pupils with SEND have gaps in understanding because activities do not consolidate their knowledge effectively
- Leadership and governors' accountability work is at an early stage with insufficient rigour in checking improvement actions
- School's self-evaluation has not been accurate enough in identifying areas for improvement
Safeguarding
Safeguarding arrangements are effective, with staff creating an open and positive culture that puts pupils' interests first.
Extracurricular Activities
Football, coding, drama, house captain roles, inclusion ambassador roles, peer mentor roles, school council, visits to museums and archaeological sites
Shelley Primary School is a welcoming place where pupils are happy, respectful, and feel safe. However, the quality of education requires improvement because pupils are not securing knowledge consistently across subjects.
At a Glance
10.9%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
116 responsesSource: Ofsted Parent View, responses as at September 2025 - % who strongly agree or agree
Primary Performance (KS2)
Academic year 2024/25KS2 Results (% meeting expected standard)
Reading has improved from 75% to 85% (2024 to 2025). Maths has improved from 73% to 87% (2024 to 2025). Writing has improved from 63% to 68% (2024 to 2025).
Class Sizes
29.4
Avg class size
29.2
Infant (KS1)
29.6
KS2
14
Total classes
1 class with more than 30 pupils
2025/26 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby primary schools
Social & online
Keep up with Shelley Primary School
Before and after school care
Clubs on Ofsted's childcare register at or near Shelley Primary School.
- RocketeersAt the school · Not yet graded
Term dates
Shelley Primary School is a community school, so its term dates are set by West Sussex. Training (INSET) days, when pupils are not in school, vary by school: check the school's own calendar.
2026 to 2027
- Autumn term: Tuesday 1 September to Friday 18 December 2026 (half term Monday 26 October to Friday 30 October 2026)
- Spring term: Monday 4 January to Thursday 25 March 2027 (half term Monday 15 February to Friday 19 February 2027)
- Summer term: Monday 12 April to Wednesday 21 July 2027 (half term Monday 31 May to Friday 4 June 2027)
Getting There
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Shelley Primary School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Shelley Primary School is in West Sussex; for families living there:
Apply to West Sussex for free school transport. Its policy is on the council's website.
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 15
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 3
- Children hurt
- 1
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 15 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 3 serious and 12 slight.
1 child aged 0 to 15 was hurt.
2 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included.
The typical figure for schools in West Sussex is 11 (the median across 337 schools, same distance and years).
Serious and slight counts use the Department for Transport's severity adjustment, which allows for changes in how police forces record injuries; they are estimates, rounded to whole numbers. Distances are in a straight line. Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19), Open Government Licence v3.0.
Commute and house prices
Your chances of a place at Shelley Primary School
Will you get a place at Shelley Primary School? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against Shelley Primary School's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for Shelley Primary School:
- The straight-line distance from your home to Shelley Primary School.
- West Sussex publishes last distance offered figures, but none for Shelley Primary School that we hold, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at Shelley Primary School for 2014 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in West Sussex got their first choice, and how often appeals there succeed.
- The nearest state schools to your home, with Ofsted rating, demand and last distance offered where published.
- Key dates for September 2027 entry and how to apply.
£9.99 once
One school, inc. VAT. Or £19.99 for up to three schools.
Pro £9 a month, every report included, cancel any time
A report for any school, plus everything else in Pro.
Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
97%
Near capacity
408 pupils
420 places
12 spare places in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Horsham
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Horsham
Across West Sussex council
Places available
9,608
Applications
8,127
Got 1st preference
92.4%
Got preferred school
99.2%
All primary applications across West Sussex council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Oversubscribed
Inspection History(9)
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
53
SEN Support
5
EHC Plans
14.1%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
412
Total Pupils
196
Boys
216
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
25
Teachers
16.5:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£51,678
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£5,074
Per pupil
£2295k
Total funding
£76k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
4.9%
Overall absence
10.5%
Persistent absence
362
Enrolments
Absence trend
Source: DfE pupil absence statistics. Persistent absence = pupils missing 10%+ sessions.
Secondary Schools Nearby
Secondary schools pupils are likely to move to
Shelley Primary School
Questions parents ask about Shelley Primary School
What are SATs results like at Shelley Primary School?
Of the pupils at Shelley Primary School who took the 2025 Key Stage 2 assessments, 85% reached the expected standard in reading and 87% did so in maths.
What is Shelley Primary School's Ofsted rating?
Shelley Primary School's most recent Ofsted inspection, in January 2025, was ungraded, so it gave no overall grade. At its last graded inspection, in June 2019, it was rated Good.
What is the catchment area for Shelley Primary School?
No fixed boundary. When Shelley Primary School is oversubscribed, West Sussex allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at Shelley Primary School?
Shelley Primary School was close to full in 2025, at 97% of its capacity.
How big are the classes at Shelley Primary School?
Classes at Shelley Primary School average 29.4 pupils (2025/26). 1 class has more than 30 pupils - infant classes are capped at 30 by law, with limited exceptions.
How many pupils go to Shelley Primary School?
Shelley Primary School has around 412 pupils on roll. 11% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at Shelley Primary School?
4.9% of sessions were missed at Shelley Primary School in 2024/25. 10.5% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Shelley Primary School?
Apply through West Sussex's coordinated admissions process, naming Shelley Primary School on your application. Applications for Reception places starting in September 2027 close on Friday 15 January 2027, and offers are made on Friday 16 April 2027.
Does Shelley Primary School have a breakfast club or after-school club?
Ofsted's childcare register lists an out-of-school club at the school: Rocketeers (registered, not yet graded). The school may also run its own clubs, which don't have to register with Ofsted.
What are Shelley Primary School's term dates?
Shelley Primary School is a community school, so its term dates are set by West Sussex. In 2026 to 2027: Autumn term: Tuesday 1 September to Friday 18 December 2026 (half term Monday 26 October to Friday 30 October 2026); Spring term: Monday 4 January to Thursday 25 March 2027 (half term Monday 15 February to Friday 19 February 2027); Summer term: Monday 12 April to Wednesday 21 July 2027 (half term Monday 31 May to Friday 4 June 2027).
How many road collisions happen near Shelley Primary School?
Within 500 m of the school's mapped location, police recorded 15 road collisions in which someone was injured in 2021 to 2025: none fatal, 3 serious and 12 slight. 1 child aged 0 to 15 was hurt. 2 of the collisions happened on a weekday between 08:00 and 09:30 or 14:45 and 16:30, holidays included. The typical figure for schools in West Sussex is 11 (the median across 337 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Shelley Primary School?
Shelley Primary School is at Wickhurst Lane, Broadbridge Heath, Horsham, West Sussex, RH12 3LU.
Sources: West Sussex term dates; Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)