Walsh CofE Infant School, Ash
Walsh CofE Infant School is a primary school for pupils aged 5 to 7 in Ash, part of The Good Shepherd Trust. It has a Church of England religious character. It was full in 2025, at 102% of capacity.
- Demand
- Every first choice offered
- Attendance
- Below England average
Reception applications for September 2027 close in 81 days
Deadline Friday 15 January 2027. Apply to Surrey (the council where you live). Offers on 16 April.
Data last updated 26 Oct 2026
Walsh CofE Infant School in detail
Getting a place at Walsh CofE Infant School
For September 2026 entry, 40 families put Walsh CofE Infant School as their first choice and 123 named it as one of their preferences, for 59 places offered. It had fewer first-choice applications than places. Every family who put it first was offered a place there for 2026 entry.
Admissions history and your chances at Walsh CofE Infant School
Compared with nearby schools
The nearest other state primary schools to Walsh CofE Infant School are Walsh CofE Junior School (under 0.1 miles, 38% reading, 44% maths); Ash Grange Nursery and Primary School (0.5 miles, Good, 90% reading, 90% maths); St Paul's CofE Primary School & Nursery (0.7 miles, Good); and Shawfield Primary School (0.7 miles, Good, 77% reading, 62% maths).
Walsh CofE Junior SchoolAsh Grange Nursery and Primary SchoolSt Paul's CofE Primary School & NurseryShawfield Primary School
The trust
Walsh CofE Infant School is one of 24 schools run by The Good Shepherd Trust, an academy trust.
Across the trust's primary schools, 59% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths in 2024/25.
What parents say
33 parents answered Ofsted's Parent View survey about Walsh CofE Infant School (as of September 2025): 88% would recommend the school, 94% say their child is happy there and 63% of those with a view say bullying is dealt with well.
The strongest agreement was that they are kept well informed about progress (94%); the weakest, that the school deals with bullying well (among parents with a view) (63%).
Who goes there
In 2026, 32 pupils (18.9%) received SEN support and 14 (8.3%) 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 speech, language and communication needs.
Staffing
Walsh CofE Infant School had 12 teachers in 2026, one for every 15 pupils: more teachers per pupil than a typical primary school, at about one for every 20.
Getting there
The nearest railway station is Ash Rail Station, about 1100 metres away (roughly a 14-minute walk).
10 bus stops are within a five-minute walk; the closest is Walsh Junior School (opposite), 120 metres away.
The area around the school
Measured by the 2025 English Indices of Deprivation, the neighbourhood Walsh CofE Infant School stands in is among the 10% least deprived neighbourhoods in England. This describes where the school is, not where its pupils live.
Suspensions and exclusions
In 2024/25, Walsh CofE Infant School issued 44 suspensions, 24.2 for every 100 pupils (the average state school: 6.3), and no permanent exclusions.
Secondary schools nearby
The secondary schools closest to Walsh CofE Infant School are Ash Manor School (0.3 miles) and Alderwood School (0.8 miles).
Sources: DfE school-level applications and offers; council admissions booklets; DfE appeals statistics; DfE multi-academy trust performance data; Ofsted Parent View; DfE school census and special educational needs statistics; DfE school workforce census; NaPTAN (Department for Transport); English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG); data.police.uk street-level crime; DfE exclusions statistics
Key Information
DfE GIASOfsted Rating
Ofsted · 1 year agoOverall
Quality of Education
Behaviour & Attitudes
Personal Development
Leadership & Management
Early Years
Walsh CofE Infant School has had no graded Ofsted inspection since it took its current form in April 2024. Before that, as Walsh Memorial CofE Controlled Infant School (URN 125135), it was rated Outstanding in December 2013.
Ofsted Insights
From Ofsted's June 2025 inspection report.
What This School Does Well
Walsh CofE Infant School excels at creating a caring, ambitious learning environment where children thrive academically and personally. Staff have strong subject knowledge and use well-designed tasks with practical resources to help pupils understand and remember what they learn. The school also provides exceptional enrichment activities like museum visits, aspirations week with visiting authors and scientists, and meaningful pupil responsibilities that help children develop confidence and contribute to school life.
Key Strengths
- Clear curriculum vision with well-structured learning that builds on pupils' prior knowledge
- Strong subject knowledge and teaching, with regular checks on pupil understanding and timely support
- Recent improvements to early reading and phonics teaching, with pupils now learning to read with fluency
- Excellent support for pupils with SEND through well-trained staff and specialist training
- Rich personal development opportunities including cultural visitors, aspirations week, and pupil responsibilities like safeguarding ambassadors
Areas for Improvement
- Attendance remains too high for some pupils, including vulnerable groups, limiting their access to learning and wider opportunities
Safeguarding
The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.
Extracurricular Activities
Canal visits, anti-litter poster creation, Samuel Cody museum visits, aspirations week with authors and scientists, creative art and dance activities, safeguarding ambassador roles, Busy Bees playground friends
Walsh CofE Infant School is a caring and ambitious school where pupils thrive and feel safe. The school has a clear vision for learning across all subjects and provides a well-structured curriculum with strong enrichment opportunities.
At a Glance
20.1%
Free School Meals
No
Boarding
No
Nursery
No
Sixth Form
No
Special Measures
What Parents Think
33 responsesSource: Ofsted Parent View, responses as at September 2025 - % who strongly agree or agree
Class Sizes
28.0
Avg class size
28.0
Infant (KS1)
3
Total classes
2025/26 academic year
How Does This School Compare?
Ranked against 5 nearby primary schools
Keep up with Walsh CofE Infant School
Before and after school care
Clubs on Ofsted's childcare register at or near Walsh CofE Infant School.
- SCL @ Walsh C OF E JuniorAt the school · Not yet graded
Term dates
Walsh CofE Infant School is an academy, so it sets its own term dates: check the school's website. As a guide, see Surrey's term dates for its community schools.
Getting There
Train Stations
Bus Stops
Free school transport
Check free transport to Walsh CofE Infant School from your postcode →
You apply to the council where you live. Walsh CofE Infant School is in Surrey; for families living there:
- Surrey's school travel policy: Travel Assistance Policy for under 16s
- How to apply: Apply online for under 16 travel help
Safety and surroundings
Road collisions within 500 m (2021 to 2025)
- Collisions
- 15
- Fatal
- 0
- Serious
- 4
- Children hurt
- 2
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, 4 serious and 11 slight.
2 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 2 on a bicycle.
3 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 Surrey is 13 (the median across 521 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 Walsh CofE Infant School
Will you get a place at Walsh CofE Infant School? Get the admissions report
Your home postcode, set against Walsh CofE Infant School's admissions figures, in one report saved to your account.
What the report includes for Walsh CofE Infant School:
- The straight-line distance from your home to Walsh CofE Infant School.
- Surrey publishes last distance offered figures, but none for Walsh CofE Infant School that we hold, so the report covers demand, alternatives and dates.
- Applications, first choices and offers at Walsh CofE Infant School for 2024 to 2026 entry.
- How many families in Surrey 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.
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Capacity & Demand
School Occupancy
102%
Over capacity
183 pupils
180 places
3 pupils over capacity in 2025
2025, DfE school capacity data
Area Demand Pressure - Ash
Based on MHCLG Live Table 122 (2024-25, last 5 years) for Ash
Across Surrey council
Places available
13,004
Applications
11,426
Got 1st preference
89.8%
Got preferred school
98.7%
All primary applications across Surrey council (2026/27), not just this school.
This school: Every first choice offered
Inspection History
SEND & SEN Provision
SEN Overview
32
SEN Support
14
EHC Plans
27.2%
of Total Pupils
2026 academic year
Provision & Specialist Facilities
Pupils by Need Type
Pupil Demographics
Ethnicity
2026 academic year
Key Indicators
169
Total Pupils
96
Boys
73
Girls
2026 academic year
Workforce
12
Teachers
14.1:1
Pupil-teacher ratio
£52,684
Mean salary
2026 data
School Funding
£5,736
Per pupil
£1176k
Total funding
£52k
Pupil premium
2025-26 financial year allocations
Pupil Absence2024/25
8.1%
Overall absence
19.5%
Persistent absence
123
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
Walsh CofE Infant School
Questions parents ask about Walsh CofE Infant School
What is Walsh CofE Infant School's Ofsted rating?
Walsh CofE Infant School has had no graded Ofsted inspection since it took its current form in April 2024. Before that, as Walsh Memorial CofE Controlled Infant School (URN 125135), it was rated Outstanding in December 2013.
What is the catchment area for Walsh CofE Infant School?
No fixed boundary. When Walsh CofE Infant School is oversubscribed, Surrey allocates places by its published criteria, usually ending with home-to-school distance.
Is it hard to get a place at Walsh CofE Infant School?
Walsh CofE Infant School was full in 2025, at 102% of its capacity, so places are allocated on the oversubscription criteria.
How big are the classes at Walsh CofE Infant School?
Classes at Walsh CofE Infant School average 28 pupils (2025/26).
How many pupils go to Walsh CofE Infant School?
Walsh CofE Infant School has around 169 pupils on roll. 20% are eligible for free school meals.
What is attendance like at Walsh CofE Infant School?
8.1% of sessions were missed at Walsh CofE Infant School in 2024/25. 19.5% of pupils were persistently absent (missing 10% or more of sessions).
How do I apply to Walsh CofE Infant School?
Apply through Surrey's coordinated admissions process, naming Walsh CofE Infant 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 Walsh CofE Infant School have a breakfast club or after-school club?
Ofsted's childcare register lists an out-of-school club at the school: SCL @ Walsh C OF E Junior (registered, not yet graded). The school may also run its own clubs, which don't have to register with Ofsted.
How many road collisions happen near Walsh CofE Infant 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, 4 serious and 11 slight. 2 children aged 0 to 15 were hurt: 2 on a bicycle. 3 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 Surrey is 13 (the median across 521 schools, same distance and years).
Where is Walsh CofE Infant School?
Walsh CofE Infant School is at Ash Street, Ash, Surrey, GU12 6LT.
Source: Department for Transport, Road Safety Data (STATS19)