Soudley School
Soudley, Cinderford, GL14 2UA
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Community school
- Ages
- 4 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Headteacher
- Mrs Mel Davis
- Federation
- Forest Federation of Soudley, Steam Mills and Woodside Primary Schools
- Constituency
- Forest of Dean
- Setting
- Smaller rural: Further from a major town or city
- Capacity
- 77
- Pupils on roll
- 44
- URN
- 115521
- Local authority
- Gloucestershire
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 01594822004
About this school
Soudley School is a community primary school in Cinderford. It teaches children aged 4 to 11 and has 44 pupils on roll.
Ofsted has inspected Soudley School, and its latest judgement is set out below. Where the Department for Education has published them, its results and pupil characteristics appear below. Numbers and a report only go so far, so visit in person before you apply.
Ofsted judgement
Ofsted no longer gives schools a single overall grade. Each area of the school's work is graded on a five-point scale, and safeguarding is judged separately.
- Inclusion
- Strong standard
- Curriculum and teaching
- Expected standard
- Achievement
- Expected standard
- Attendance and behaviour
- Expected standard
- Personal development and wellbeing
- Expected standard
- Leadership and governance
- Expected standard
- Early years
- Expected standard
- Safeguarding
- Met
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 10 | 12 | 8 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 30% | 50% | 50% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Expected standard in reading | 60% | 58% | 75% |
| Expected standard in maths | 50% | 67% | 50% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 80% | 75% | 63% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 103.0 | 104.0 | 107.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 101.0 | 102.0 | 101.0 |
| Reading progress | -3.10 | - | - |
| Writing progress | -5.80 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -3.40 | - | - |
Progress measures ended nationally after the 2022/23 school year, when the key stage 1 assessments they were based on were stopped. Blank progress figures in later years are not missing school data.
Trends over time
How Soudley School has moved over recent years against the local and national picture. Every figure is shown in the table beneath its chart.
| Year | This school | Gloucestershire average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 30% | 58.8% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 50% | 56.6% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 50% | 59.1% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 6% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.8% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 6.4% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 64 |
| 2023/24 | 56 |
| 2024/25 | 41 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Soudley School compares
Soudley School ranked 164th of 209 primary schools in Gloucestershire for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 21% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 32% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 50% | 6.4% | 17.1% | 44 | — |
| St White's Primary School | 61% | 4.1% | 25.6% | 245 | 1.5 miles |
| Littledean Church of England Primary School | 50% | 6.4% | 30.4% | 69 | 1.9 miles |
| Newnham St Peter's Church of England Primary School | 67% | 4.3% | 8.1% | 120 | 2.1 miles |
| Forest View Primary School | 72% | 5.1% | 28% | 365 | 2.3 miles |
| Blakeney Primary School | 17% | 5.2% | 23.8% | 75 | 2.4 miles |
Results reflect each school's cohort as much as its teaching, and free school meals share is context, not a judgement. Small gaps between neighbouring schools are rarely meaningful on their own.
Inspection history
-
Graded inspection report20 January 2026
- 28 February 2023
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 17.07%
- English as an additional language
- 0%
- Overall absence
- 6.42%
- Persistent absence
- 17.5%
Location
Nearby schools
-
St White's Primary School1.5 miles
Primary · Cinderford
-
Littledean Church of England Primary School1.9 miles
Primary · Cinderford
-
Newnham St Peter's Church of England Primary School2.1 miles
Primary · Newnham
-
Forest View Primary School2.3 miles
Primary · Cinderford
-
Blakeney Primary School2.4 miles
Primary · Blakeney
Other schools in Cinderford
Soudley School ranks 5th of the 5 ranked primary schools in Cinderford.
- Forest View Primary School Primary
- Littledean Church of England Primary School Primary
- St White's Primary School Primary
- Steam Mills Primary School Primary
- SGS Forest High School Secondary
Common questions
- What ages does Soudley School teach?
- Soudley School teaches children aged 4 to 11. It is a primary school in Cinderford.
- Who is the headteacher of Soudley School?
- The headteacher of Soudley School is Mrs Mel Davis, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- Has Soudley School been inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Soudley School, and its latest judgement is set out in the inspection section on this page, with the framework and the date it was made.
- How many pupils are at Soudley School?
- Soudley School has 44 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 11.
- Is Soudley School full?
- Soudley School has capacity for 77 pupils and 44 on roll (57%), so it has space against its published capacity. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Soudley School a faith school?
- No. Soudley School has no designated religious character.
- Does Soudley School have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records Soudley School as having no nursery classes.
- Is Soudley School part of an academy trust?
- Soudley School is part of the Forest Federation of Soudley, Steam Mills and Woodside Primary Schools federation. Schools in a trust or federation share leadership and governance, but each keeps its own inspection record and results.
- How have Soudley School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 30% in 2022/23 and 50% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Soudley School compare with other schools in Gloucestershire?
- Soudley School ranked 164th of 209 primary schools in Gloucestershire for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 21% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 32% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Soudley School's absence rate?
- Soudley School's overall absence rate is 6.4% in the latest published census, above the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Soudley School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Soudley School's key stage results are shown in the results section on this page, with the last three years so you can see the trend rather than a single year.
School details come from the Department for Education's Get Information About Schools register. Inspection outcomes come from Ofsted, and exam results from the Department for Education's school performance service. This page was last updated on 30 June 2026.