Ashurst CofE Primary School
General Information
- Address: School Lane, Ashurst, Steyning, BN44 3AY – View on map
- Phone: 01403710426
- Website: Visit school website
- Headteacher: Headteacher Sarah Smith
- Age range: 4-11 years
- Demand for places (Reception, September 2026): 9 families put it first for 8 places – 11 for every 10 places. 89% of them were offered a place. 1 of the 8 places went to families living outside the council area. Children putting it first, for every 10 places: 2023 10 · 2024 10 · 2025 10 · 2026 11
- Sixth form: No
- Intake: Mixed
- Religious character: Church of England
- Nursery provision: No
Who goes here
- Pupils eligible for free school meals: 4
- % eligible for free school meals: 8.3%
- Pupil mix: 2 in 10 (less mixed than the Horsham average)
- English as an additional language: 8% (England 22%)
Staff
Teachers leaving each year
- Teacher turnover: 0% a year (Horsham 13.6%, typical in England 13.9%)
- Data years: 2022/23 to 2024/25 (average of 3 years, DfE school workforce census)
Teachers who moved school or left state schools in the year after each November, as a share of all the school's teachers. Some turnover is healthy – retirements, promotions, moving house. This is a small staff, so one or two teachers leaving moves the figure a lot.
Behaviour
Awaiting Data
Across West Sussex: suspensions by reason
- Suspensions for sexual misconduct: 12 (0.2 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.2)
- Permanent exclusions for sexual misconduct: 1
- Suspensions for bullying: 10 (0.2 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.2)
- Suspensions for abuse against sexual orientation or gender identity: 4 (0.1 per 1,000 pupils; England 0.0)
- Data year: 2024/25 (DfE suspensions and exclusions statistics)
These are figures for all state primary schools in West Sussex (the council area this school is in), not this school's own – the government doesn't publish them school by school. A suspension can have up to three reasons. Most sexual harassment between pupils never leads to a suspension, so these figures show only part of the picture.
Attendance
- Overall absence: 7.6%
- Persistently absent pupils: 14.3%
- Data year: 2024/25
SEN
No dedicated Unit or Resourced Provision
- Pupils on SEN Support: 14.6%
- Pupils with an EHC Plan: 2.1%
- Data year: 2025/26
Most common needs - SEN Support
- Speech, language and communications needs: 5 pupils
- Specific learning difficulty: 1 pupil
- Autistic spectrum disorder: 1 pupil
Most common needs - EHC Plan
- Autistic spectrum disorder: 1 pupil
These figures show the makeup of the school.
Educational Attainment
No overall grade given 2024 report
Year 6 SATs results
- Met the expected standard in reading, writing & maths: 70% (England 62%)
- Reached the higher standard: 10% (England 8%)
- Compared with the area: 6 percentage points above the Horsham average (64%)
- Compared with schools with similar pupils: Well below (3-year average 50% against an expected 64%)
- 3-year average (expected standard): 50%
- Expected standard by subject: Reading 80% · Writing 70% · Maths 80% · Grammar, punctuation & spelling 90%
- Average test scores: reading 107, maths 103
- Based on: 10 Year 6 pupils, 2024/25
View the School Context Comparator – how this school's SATs results compare with schools teaching similar pupils.
SATs results over time
Year 6 SATs: 13th of 38 junior and primary schools in the area
- #11Castlewood Primary School72%
- #12Jolesfield CofE Primary School71%
- #13Ashurst CofE Primary School70%
- =14Southwater Junior Academy69%
- =14St Andrew's CofE Primary School69%
Click to see the full ranking
Financials
Spending per pupil: £9,260 (2024-25)
4th of 39 primary schools in Horsham for spending per pupil
- #2St James' CofE Primary School, Coldwaltham£11,753
- #3William Penn School£9,735
- #4Ashurst CofE Primary School£9,260
- #5Shipley CofE Primary School£8,695
- #6Slinfold CofE Primary School and Pre School£8,443
Click to see the full ranking
View on the Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool (GOV.UK)