Amberley Parochial School Review 2026: Small rural Church of England primary with standout KS2 results

A village primary with a genuinely small-school feel, Amberley Parochial School serves families in and around Amberley, near Stroud, with a Published Admission Number of 15 per year group.

The most distinctive feature is the setting and scale. The main school building is Grade II listed and dated 1887, built to commemorate Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee, which gives the site a strong sense of continuity even though the legal entity changed when the school converted to an academy in 2023.

Results are the headline. In 2024, outcomes place the school well above England averages at Key Stage 2, alongside a FindMySchool ranking that puts it among the highest-performing primaries in England (top 10%). This is a school where academic habits are deliberately taught, not assumed, via a “Learning Powers” approach that names the behaviours children need to handle challenge and keep improving.

The most recent Ofsted inspection, dated 12 January 2023, confirmed the school continues to be Good.

The school’s own language leans heavily into growth, roots, and flourishing, with the Parable of the Sower used as a unifying reference point for worship, values, and curriculum intent. That can sound abstract, but here it is used as a practical framework: pupils are expected to build confidence, reflect on their learning, and take responsibility for how they show up in the classroom and playground.

Size shapes everything. With a capacity of 105 and just over 100 pupils on roll, social dynamics are more like an extended family than a large cohort where children can disappear into the crowd. Pupils spend years with the same peers, and staff are able to track not only attainment but attitudes and confidence. For many children, that continuity is a strength. For others, it can feel intense, particularly if a child wants a fresh start or a wider friendship pool.

The class structure makes the small scale easy to understand: Dexter is Early Years, Hereford covers Years 1 and 2, Friesians covers Years 3 and 4, and Belted Galloway covers Years 5 and 6. Those mixed-age groupings can work extremely well when teaching is well-planned. Older pupils benefit from consolidating learning by explaining it, younger pupils often rise to the expectations set by older classmates. The trade-off is that teachers must be very precise about progression so that each year group is stretched, not simply kept busy.

Leadership is a recent change. Mrs Alison Flight has been head teacher since September 2023, and her biography on the school website places particular emphasis on music, singing, and the creative arts, as well as sport. In a small primary, the head’s personal strengths tend to show up clearly in day-to-day life, both through assembly content and the opportunities pupils are actively encouraged to try.

A final cultural marker is the school’s deliberate focus on “learning powers”. Rather than simply praising children for being clever, the language encourages pupils to recognise habits such as concentrating, cooperating, staying curious, and persisting. This is a subtle but meaningful difference, especially for children who need help building confidence after setbacks.

Amberley’s Key Stage 2 picture in 2024 is unusually strong.

• Expected standard (reading, writing and maths combined): 95.33%, compared to an England average of 62%.

• Higher standard (greater depth) in reading, writing and maths: 40%, compared to an England average of 8%.

• Reading scaled score: 109, maths scaled score: 107, and GPS (grammar, punctuation and spelling) scaled score: 112.

These are the kinds of figures that usually sit in the company of the strongest schools in England, and they are backed up by the FindMySchool rankings: ranked 730th in England and 1st in Stroud for primary outcomes (FindMySchool ranking based on official data). This level of performance places the school well above England average (top 10%).

For parents, the practical implication is straightforward. Pupils who thrive here are likely to leave Year 6 with very secure basics, strong exam technique, and the confidence that comes from repeated success. The watch-out is pressure. Any school producing results at this level needs to manage expectations carefully, ensuring pupils do not internalise the idea that only top marks count.

If you are comparing several local primaries, FindMySchool’s Local Hub pages and Comparison Tool are useful for viewing these outcomes side by side, rather than relying on anecdote.

The school’s curriculum story has two distinctive strands.

First, there is a clear emphasis on learning behaviours, deliberately taught through the “Learning Powers” characters and assemblies. This is not an add-on. It is framed as the way pupils learn to face uncertainty and difficulty calmly and confidently, which matters in a small school where teachers know exactly when a pupil is coasting.

Second, there is subject-specific ambition, particularly in physical education. PE is taught by specialist teachers and coaches from Atlas Sports, and the school reports holding a Gold School Games Mark. For sporty children, this can be a major motivator, especially when combined with after-school sport options and an ethos that links participation to values and teamwork.

Academic content is also supported by targeted resources. The school works with Atom Learning to provide free Key Stage 2 learning and 11+ preparation accounts for eligible pupils in Years 3 to 6, with a published reference price for Atom Home of £575.90 per year. That matters for equity: it reduces the extent to which only families who can pay for additional online learning can access structured practice.

The area to keep an eye on comes from the most recent inspection documentation: some foundation subjects needed clearer identification of essential knowledge and vocabulary so pupils remember the right core content over time. In a mixed-age class structure, clarity about what must be learned in each year group is particularly important.

As a state primary, the default pathway is into local secondary schools, and practicalities matter: travel time, friendship continuity, and admissions rules.

For many families in Amberley, Thomas Keble School is an obvious local option because its published catchment area explicitly includes Amberley and nearby villages. That catchment clarity is helpful, because it reduces uncertainty about whether an address is in-scope.

Gloucestershire also has a well-established selective sector. Even if grammar schools are not a family’s plan, the wider context can still shape local culture in Year 5 and Year 6, as some pupils prepare for entrance tests and others do not. The county’s secondary admissions guidance documents set out these options and timelines each year.

What Amberley does particularly well, given its results profile, is leave pupils strongly placed for whichever route a family chooses. High attainment at Key Stage 2 makes the transition academically smoother. The more important question becomes fit: does your child want a larger peer group, a broader subject offer, or a setting where they can reset socially?

Admissions are competitive relative to the school’s size. For Reception entry, the school’s Published Admission Number is 15, and in the most recent admissions data provided, there were 57 applications for 15 offers, which is about 3.8 applications per place. The school is recorded as oversubscribed.

The Diocese of Gloucester Academies Trust (DGAT) determined admissions policy for 2026 to 2027 sets out the oversubscription criteria order. In summary, priority runs through looked-after and previously looked-after children, then siblings, then children of staff (under defined conditions), and then distance measured in a straight line.

Key dates for Gloucestershire’s coordinated Reception process for September 2026 entry include:

• Application window from 03 November 2025 to midnight 15 January 2026

• Allocation day 16 April 2026

• Reply deadline 23 April 2026

Because the school is small, tiny changes in the number of local births, moving patterns, or sibling cohorts can swing the cut-off significantly from year to year. If you are considering a house move based on admission chances, use FindMySchool’s Map Search to check your precise distance, then cross-check the school’s admissions rules for the relevant year.

Pastoral support in a small primary often looks less like separate “systems” and more like high adult visibility and quick intervention. The school’s safeguarding information makes clear that the designated safeguarding lead is the headteacher, supported by named deputies across the senior team.

There is also explicit attention to mental health leadership. For example, the staff profile identifies a Senior Mental Health Lead role, which signals that wellbeing is treated as operational work rather than a poster on the wall.

Ofsted also confirmed safeguarding is effective.

As a Church of England school, the wider pastoral picture includes worship and values-led reflection. The school also reports a Good judgement in its SIAMS inspection (June 2022), which is relevant for families who want the school’s Christian distinctiveness to be more than nominal.

For a school of this size, Amberley runs an impressively specific programme, and it is practical rather than performative.

The Spring 2026 club list includes:

• Years 3 to 6 Computing Club

• Years 1 and 2 Art Club

• Years 5 and 6 Reading Club

• Key Stage 2 Beginner Crochet Club

• Key Stage 1 Multi Sports Club

• Key Stage 2 Choir Club

• Key Stage 2 Street Hockey Club

The implication for families is that pupils can try genuinely different activities, not only the standard rotation of football and colouring. Crochet and choir, for example, both reward persistence and practice, which aligns neatly with the school’s learning habits framework. Computing club also provides structured enrichment for pupils who enjoy problem-solving beyond the curriculum.

Sport is a particularly defined pillar. The school states that PE is delivered by specialist staff from Atlas Sports, and links physical activity directly to wellbeing. This can suit children who need movement to regulate attention, and it also supports those who want competitive fixtures and coaching.

On top of clubs, wraparound options matter in a rural setting. Breakfast club is run on site with breakfast provided, and pupils can arrive from 7:45am. After-school care is available on site until 5:30pm via Atlas Camps, with a published session cost of £11.

The school day has clear timings. Classroom doors open at 8:45am and close at 8:55am, with the school day ending at 3:15pm.

Wraparound care is unusually well-defined for a school of this size. Breakfast club is available from 7:45am (charged at £4.60 per session per child), and after-school care runs until 5:30pm (charged at £11 per session per child, via Atlas).

Transport is the main practical consideration. Amberley is a rural village setting, so many families rely on car travel and will want to understand how drop-off and pick-up works in practice, particularly during winter months and in poor weather.

• Very small intake. With a Published Admission Number of 15, competition can feel amplified and friendship groups are inevitably tight. If your child needs a larger peer group, this is worth weighing early.

• Oversubscription reality. Recent application numbers imply several applications for each place. Admission is shaped by DGAT criteria and, when needed, distance tie-breaks.

• Curriculum consistency in foundation subjects. The latest inspection identified a need for clearer definition of essential knowledge and vocabulary in some foundation subjects. Ask how this has been addressed, especially given mixed-age classes.

• Faith character is meaningful. The Christian framing and SIAMS judgement will suit many families, including those who want worship and values to be central. Families who prefer a fully secular approach should read the school’s worship and ethos materials carefully.

Amberley Parochial School combines a small rural primary experience with results that sit well above England averages. It is academically serious, but it also puts real effort into teaching pupils how to learn, not only what to learn, through a clear learning habits programme.

Who it suits: families who want a tight-knit primary with strong Key Stage 2 outcomes, clear values, and structured enrichment, and who are comfortable with a Church of England ethos at the centre of school life.

The limiting factor is not what happens after entry, it is getting a place.