Clive CofE Primary School

A primary school that leans into its rural setting and small scale, with the practical advantages that can bring for younger children. With around 90 pupils on roll and an age range that includes nursery, it reads as the sort of place where staff can keep a close eye on the day-to-day details, routines, relationships, and what individual pupils need next.

The school describes itself as the school “at the top of the hill”, and that phrase is not just branding. It turns up repeatedly in the way the school presents its local context, including curriculum work that makes explicit use of the surrounding village and landscape.

For families, the headline trade-off is familiar. Small schools can feel personal and calm, but choice and scale can be limited, clubs can depend on staffing and demand, and admission can still be competitive. Clive is oversubscribed for its main entry route in the available demand data, with 31 applications for 10 offers in the most recent recorded cycle provided. That level of pressure matters, especially for families who assume village schools are always easy to access.

Clive’s history gives it substance. The school records that it opened on 13 January 1873, in the era immediately following the 1870 Education Act, and it positions today’s roll of about 90 children as part of that longer story of fluctuating numbers and a school serving its community across generations.

The school’s own materials place a strong emphasis on belonging and positive routines, rather than on high-gloss messaging. That comes through most clearly in the way it frames daily life: a school day that starts at 8.50am (with gates opened at 8.40am) and ends at 3.20pm, plus wraparound care for working families.

The latest published inspection documentation also paints a picture of children who feel settled in school and who generally behave well, with staff attention particularly visible in the early years and in the personal development programme. This is consistent with what many parents look for first in a small primary: a calm baseline and clear expectations.

Leadership is clearly signposted. Miss Nicola Brayford is listed as headteacher on the school website and on the government establishment record, and she is also named as headteacher in the most recent Ofsted report for the academy.

Current FindMySchool primary data is now available for this school. In the 2024-25 / 2025 dataset, 70% met the expected standard in reading, writing and mathematics combined, with scaled scores of 106 in reading, 103 in mathematics, and 104 in grammar, punctuation and spelling. The school is ranked 7,601st out of 14,978 schools in England for primary academic outcomes, with a 21st-place local primary ranking in Shrewsbury.

What can be said, based on the most recent official inspection reporting, is that the school was judged previously as Good for overall effectiveness before the September 2024 framework change, and an ungraded inspection took place on 10 December 2024 with the stated outcome that the school had taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at the previous inspection.

For parents, the practical implication is straightforward. This is not a school where you should expect a detailed, data-heavy public narrative about results. Instead, the strongest externally validated signal available is that standards were sustained at the most recent check, with the usual caveat that an ungraded inspection does not provide new headline grades.

The most useful evidence here comes from how the school describes its curriculum in practice, especially where it links learning to place. Class and topic work published by the school repeatedly draws on local context, such as using village history and the surrounding landscape as a stimulus for enquiry and writing, including references to local sandstone and why the location may have suited historic settlement.

That kind of curriculum delivery tends to suit pupils who learn best when knowledge is made concrete. It also gives parents a clue about the school’s priorities: community, locality, and a curriculum that tries to feel “real” to children, rather than abstract.

In early years and Key Stage 1, the staffing list indicates named class teams and a defined early years class structure, which usually supports smoother transitions for nursery and Reception age pupils.

For a primary school, the transition out at Year 6 matters as much as the entry in.

Clive’s published admissions information explicitly includes materials relating to transition from Year 6 to secondary, but it does not consistently publish a simple, parent-facing list of typical destination secondaries in the pages surfaced here, so this review avoids guessing.

What is clear is that the school maintains links beyond its own site for certain activities. For example, the school notes participation in a percussion group at Thomas Adams School for some pupils, which indicates a willingness to connect pupils into wider local opportunities when appropriate.

If secondary transfer is a key concern for your family, a sensible next step is to ask directly which secondaries pupils most commonly move on to, and what transition support is in place for pupils who may find change harder.

Reception entry is coordinated through Shropshire Council, and the school’s admissions page directs parents to the local authority route, including online application and the council’s processes for offers and appeals.

The school also publishes an admissions policy for 2026 to 2027. In that policy, the stated closing date for Reception applications made through Shropshire Council is 15 January in the academic year before the child is due to start.

Demand looks meaningfully competitive for the main entry route, with 31 applications and 10 offers, and an oversubscribed status with 3.1 applications per place applications per offer. For parents, that is the practical signal to treat admissions seriously, even in a village setting.

No furthest distance at which a place was offered figure is available provided for this school, so it is not possible to quote a distance-based cutoff for recent years.

To reduce uncertainty, families shortlisting Clive should use FindMySchool’s Map Search to sense-check travel distance and day-to-day logistics, then confirm the oversubscription criteria and how distance is measured in the relevant admissions year.

Small primaries often differentiate themselves on day-to-day pastoral attention, and the published inspection reporting for December 2024 describes pupils who are happy and enjoy learning, alongside a generally positive picture of behaviour and personal development, including pupils’ understanding of protected characteristics and respect for others.

From a parent perspective, those details matter because they are a proxy for how well the school sets norms, handles minor issues before they escalate, and builds a shared language around kindness and respect.

The school also publishes safeguarding and child protection documentation, which is a basic but important marker of process maturity in any primary.

Clive’s extracurricular story is less about an enormous menu of clubs and more about a set of distinctive, very “this school” opportunities.

Music is a good example. The school notes that pupils can learn instruments including keyboard (piano), guitar and cornet, and that some pupils extend this through participation in a percussion group at Thomas Adams School. That kind of outward link can make a small school feel bigger for children who are keen.

There is also a strong thread of outdoors and locality. The school runs a “walking bus” from a defined village meeting point, led by parent volunteers, with a set departure time of about 8.35am. For working families, this is practical help; for pupils, it builds routine and independence.

The school’s published galleries and class work also point to enrichment that is more experiential than formal, such as events and themed learning days, orienteering, woodland-related activities, and a Year 6 residential referenced in gallery content. These are the kinds of experiences that can be disproportionately memorable in primary years, and they often suit children who learn best through doing rather than just writing.

The school day starts at 8.50am, with gates opened at 8.40am, and it ends at 3.20pm.

Wraparound care is clearly set out. Breakfast Club runs 7.30am to 8.40am, and After School Club runs 3.20pm to 6pm, both needing advance booking. Published pricing includes £4 for the first child at Breakfast Club, with sibling rates, and After School Club priced at £4 per hour or £12 for the full session, plus an optional light tea after 5pm for £1 per child.

On travel and drop-off, the walking bus is a distinctive option for families who can use it, and it also reduces car pressure near the site for those mornings.

• Oversubscription. Demand data indicates an oversubscribed intake for the main entry route, with 31 applications for 10 offers provided. This is the limiting factor for many families, even for a village primary.

• Small-school trade-offs. A smaller roll can mean closer relationships and quicker communication, but it can also mean fewer parallel classes per year and less “choice by scale” in clubs or peer groups.

• Published outcomes data.

• Wraparound is structured. Breakfast Club and After School Club require advance booking. Families with shifting weekly schedules may want to understand how flexible amendments are in practice.

Clive CofE Primary School offers what many families seek from a village primary: a strong sense of identity, learning that connects to local context, and wraparound care that is clearly organised for working parents. External evidence indicates standards were maintained at the latest inspection checkpoint, and the school’s small scale is likely to feel personal for younger children.

Best suited to families who value a close-knit primary experience with practical wraparound support, and who are comfortable with a smaller setting where enrichment is distinctive rather than vast. The challenge lies in admission rather than what follows.