Ofsted: Good trending_up Popular emoji_events #107 in Essex public Top 8% UK

Dedham Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School

verifiedData: DfE 2024/25–2025/26 · Ofsted

personMrs Gemma Chester

location_onColchester, CO7 6BZ

language Visit Website phone 1206322242

verified

Ofsted

Good

Inspected 2024

groups

Students

198

school

Expected Standard

83%

local_fire_department

Demand Ratio

1.0x

summarize

Dedham Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School is a Voluntary controlled school primary school in Colchester, serving ages 4-11. Rated Good by Ofsted. Demand is above capacity (1.0×) — apply through your local authority on time. Ranks in the top 8% of primary schools nationally.

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School Summary

Dedham Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School is a voluntary controlled school in Colchester, Essex, admitting pupils aged 4-11. The school has approximately 194 pupils on roll, of whom 11% are eligible for free school meals.

In 2025, 83% of pupils met the expected standard in Reading, Writing and Maths combined, with 17% achieving the higher standard. The school ranks #107 of 387 primaries in Essex and #4,092 of 14,143 nationally.

Ofsted last inspected the school in 2024. The school's current overall rating is Good. Inspectors assessed quality of education as Good, behaviour and attitudes Good, personal development Outstanding, and leadership and management Good.

The school is oversubscribed — in the most recent cycle, there were 1.0× as many applications as places, making a successful application competitive.

The pupil-to-qualified-teacher ratio is 19.6:1. There are no current teaching vacancies.

In the 2024/25 academic year, there were no permanent exclusions. The average suspension rate was 0.3 per 1,000 pupils per term.

verified Source: DfE 2024/25–2025/26 · Ofsted

Academic Performance

verified Data: UK Gov 2024/25

school

Primary Performance Trends (KS2)

2025

R/W/M Expected Standard

83%

LA 61%

Reading86% LA 74%

Writing83% LA 70%

Maths93% LA 72%

Read SS

109

Maths SS

109

GPS SS

110

Progress (0 = national avg)

Read

Write

Maths

2024

R/W/M Expected Standard

64%

LA 60%England 61%

Reading75% LA 73% · Eng 74%

Writing79% LA 70% · Eng 72%

Maths82% LA 71% · Eng 73%

Read SS

106

Maths SS

105

GPS SS

106

Progress (0 = national avg)

Read

Write

Maths

2023

R/W/M Expected Standard

64%

LA 59%England 60%

Reading75% LA 72% · Eng 73%

Writing68% LA 71% · Eng 71%

Maths82% LA 72% · Eng 73%

Read SS

105

Maths SS

104

GPS SS

106

Progress (0 = national avg)

-0.7

Read

LA -0.1

-3.1 to 1.6

-0.2

Write

LA 0.0

-2.4 to 2.1

-1.4

Maths

LA -0.3

-3.6 to 0.8

2019

R/W/M Expected Standard

79%

LA 64%England 65%

Reading90% LA 73% · Eng 73%

Writing83% LA 77% · Eng 78%

Maths97% LA 77% · Eng 79%

Read SS

106

Maths SS

108

GPS SS

107

Progress (0 = national avg)

0.8

Read

LA -0.5

-1.5 to 3.0

0.6

Write

LA -0.2

-1.4 to 2.7

2.0

Maths

LA -0.6

0.1 to 4.0

2018

R/W/M Expected Standard

80%

LA 63%

Reading83% LA 75%

Writing87% LA 77%

Maths93% LA 73%

Read SS

107

Maths SS

106

GPS SS

108

Progress (0 = national avg)

0.7

Read

LA -0.3

-1.4 to 2.8

0.4

Write

LA -0.2

-1.7 to 2.5

0.3

Maths

LA -0.6

-1.6 to 2.2

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Report Archive

04 June 2024

Inspection Report

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20 September 2012

Inspection Report

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07 January 2011

Inspection Report

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31 October 2007

Inspection Report

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01 November 2006

Inspection Report

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11 October 2004

Inspection Report

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Inspection Report

Inspection History

3 Evaluations

2024-06-04

S5 Inspection EIF

Good

Education

Good

Behaviour

Good

Development

Outstanding

Leadership

Good

2012-09-20

S5 Inspection EIF

Outstanding

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Outstanding

2007-10-31

None EIF

Good

Education

No Judgement

Behaviour

No Judgement

Development

No Judgement

Leadership

Good

Wellbeing, SEN & Pastoral Care

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Behaviour & Discipline (Suspensions & Exclusions)

Official Department for Education (DfE) data. Suspensions measure temporary removals due to behavior, while exclusions represent permanent removals.

Suspension Rate

0.0%per term

sentiment_satisfied Below Average (Good)

National average: 0.8% for this term (primary).

Pupils Suspended 1+ Times

0.0%(0 pupils)

Spring term 2025

Represents the proportion of unique students suspended at least once in this term.

Permanent Exclusions

0pupils

verified Excellent (Zero)

National average: 1.225% of pupils excluded per term.

Pastoral Context: In the Spring term of 2025, this school served a headcount of 194 pupils. During this period, there were 0 temporary suspensions. The school's suspension rate was 0.0%, which is below the termly national average of 0.8%.

View Historical Disciplinary Records (2017–2025)keyboard_arrow_down

Year / Term	Headcount	Suspensions	Susp. Rate	Nat. Avg
2024/25 (Spring term)	194	0	0.0%	0.8%
2024/25 (Autumn term)	196	1	0.5%	0.9%
2023/24 (Summer term)	198	2	1.0%	0.8%
2023/24 (Spring term)	199	2	1.0%	0.7%
2023/24 (Autumn term)	201	4	2.0%	0.8%
2022/23 (Summer term)	197	4	2.0%	0.7%
2022/23 (Spring term)	198	3	1.5%	0.6%
2022/23 (Autumn term)	205	0	0.0%	0.6%
2021/22 (Summer term)	207	0	0.0%	0.5%
2021/22 (Spring term)	209	0	0.0%	0.5%
2021/22 (Autumn term)	209	0	0.0%	0.5%
2020/21 (Summer term)	210	0	0.0%	0.4%
2020/21 (Spring term)	212	0	0.0%	0.1%
2020/21 (Autumn term)	212	1	0.5%	0.4%
2019/20 (Summer term)	208	0	0.0%	0.0%
2019/20 (Spring term)	208	0	0.0%	0.4%
2019/20 (Autumn term)	205	0	0.0%	0.6%
2018/19 (Summer term)	209	0	0.0%	0.4%
2018/19 (Spring term)	204	0	0.0%	0.5%
2018/19 (Autumn term)	203	0	0.0%	0.5%
2017/18 (Summer term)	207	0	0.0%	0.5%
2017/18 (Spring term)	207	0	0.0%	0.4%
2017/18 (Autumn term)	206	0	0.0%	0.5%
2016/17 (Summer term)	205	0	0.0%	0.4%
2016/17 (Spring term)	202	0	0.0%	0.4%
2016/17 (Autumn term)	198	0	0.0%	0.5%

Source: DfE Suspensions and Permanent Exclusions in England. Data represents termly statistics as published by the Department for Education.

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psychology_alt

Supported Special Educational Needs (SEN)

Primary areas of need currently supported by the school. A high number often indicates specialized internal units or high staff experience in these areas.

Speech, Language & Communication 9 pupils

Social, Emotional & Mental Health 6 pupils

Moderate Learning Difficulty 3 pupils

Autistic Spectrum Disorder 2 pupils

Specific Learning Difficulty 1 pupils

Physical Disability 1 pupils

health_and_safety

Parent View on Pastoral Care

Results from the official Ofsted Parent View survey, reflecting direct parent sentiment regarding the school environment.

My child is happy at this school.

94.0%Positive

My child feels safe at this school.

96.0%Positive

My child has been bullied and the school dealt with the bullying quickly and effectively.

12.0%Positive

View All Survey Responseskeyboard_arrow_down

The school makes sure its pupils are well behaved.

strongly agree57%

agree37%

disagree3%

strongly disagree1%

don't know1%

The school makes me aware of what my child will learn during the year.

strongly agree48%

agree44%

disagree5%

don't know3%

When I have raised concerns with the school they have been dealt with properly

strongly agree40%

agree25%

disagree7%

strongly disagree1%

not applicable27%

Does your child have special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND)?

My child has special educational needs and/or disabilities, and the school gives them the support they need to succeed.

The school has high expectations for my child.

strongly agree45%

agree40%

disagree11%

don't know4%

My child does well at this school.

strongly agree53%

agree41%

disagree4%

strongly disagree1%

The school lets me know how my child is doing.

strongly agree48%

agree41%

disagree5%

don't know5%

There is a good range of subjects available to my child at this school.

strongly agree55%

agree37%

disagree4%

don't know4%

My child can take part in clubs and activities at this school.

strongly agree57%

agree33%

disagree8%

strongly disagree1%

The school supports my child's wider personal development.

strongly agree49%

agree35%

disagree8%

don't know8%

I would recommend this school to another parent.

yes95%

no5%

Top Primary Schools in Essex

Other highly-ranked schools in the same local authority

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Outstanding

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Good

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Outstanding

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Lee Chapel Primary School

Outstanding

location_on Basildon, SS16 5RU

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Hereward Primary School

Outstanding

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Perryfields Junior School

Outstanding

location_on Chelmsford, CM1 7PP

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School Summary

Academic Performance

Primary Performance Trends (KS2)

Ofsted History

Publication Timeline

Inspection History

Admissions Insight

How Places Are Allocated

Faith Priority (Church of England)

Distance to School

School Capacity

Primary Admission Trends

Students & School Environment

School Size

Language Diversity

Inclusive Support

Attendance

Ethnicity Breakdown

Wellbeing, SEN & Pastoral Care

Behaviour & Discipline (Suspensions & Exclusions)

Supported Special Educational Needs (SEN)

Parent View on Pastoral Care

My child is happy at this school.

My child feels safe at this school.

My child has been bullied and the school dealt with the bullying quickly and effectively.

The school makes sure its pupils are well behaved.

The school makes me aware of what my child will learn during the year.

When I have raised concerns with the school they have been dealt with properly

Does your child have special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND)?

My child has special educational needs and/or disabilities, and the school gives them the support they need to succeed.

The school has high expectations for my child.

My child does well at this school.

The school lets me know how my child is doing.

There is a good range of subjects available to my child at this school.

My child can take part in clubs and activities at this school.

The school supports my child's wider personal development.

I would recommend this school to another parent.

Funding & Staffing

School Funding Allocation

Funding Breakdown

Staffing

Teacher Turnover

Top Primary Schools in Essex

Kingston Primary School

Lift Westerings

Quilters Junior School

Lee Chapel Primary School

Hereward Primary School

Perryfields Junior School