Combe St Nicholas Church of England VA Primary School
Combe St Nicholas, Chard, TA20 3NG
- Phase
- Primary
- School type
- Voluntary aided school
- Ages
- 4 to 11
- Gender
- Mixed
- Religious character
- Church of England
- Headteacher
- Miss Joanna Rousseau
- Diocese
- Diocese of Bath and Wells
- Constituency
- Yeovil
- Setting
- Smaller rural: Further from a major town or city
- Capacity
- 120
- Pupils on roll
- 117
- URN
- 123828
- Local authority
- Somerset
- Website
- School website
- Telephone
- 0146063116
About this school
Combe St Nicholas Church of England VA Primary School is a Church of England voluntary aided primary school in Chard. It teaches children aged 4 to 11 and has 117 pupils on roll.
You can read Ofsted's latest judgement for the school 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
Confirmed by a short inspection, not a full one
Ofsted's most recent visit was a short inspection on 21 September 2022, where inspectors confirmed the school remains Good. The school's last full inspection took place before September 2019, so its area grades are not part of Ofsted's current published data. Older reports are on the school's Ofsted page.
Exam results
Key stage 2 (end of primary school)
| Measure | 2022/23 | 2023/24 | 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils at the end of key stage 2 | 8 | 14 | 9 |
| Met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths | 75% | 100% | 67% |
| Reached the higher standard in reading, writing and maths | 25% | 21% | 11% |
| Expected standard in reading | 88% | 100% | 67% |
| Expected standard in maths | 75% | 100% | 67% |
| Expected standard in grammar, punctuation and spelling | 88% | 100% | 67% |
| Average scaled score in reading | 107.0 | 107.0 | 107.0 |
| Average scaled score in maths | 106.0 | 110.0 | 107.0 |
| Reading progress | -1.40 | - | - |
| Writing progress | +1.70 | - | - |
| Maths progress | -1.00 | - | - |
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 Combe St Nicholas Church of England VA Primary 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 | Somerset average | England average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 75% | 54.1% | 57.9% |
| 2023/24 | 100% | 55.4% | 58.8% |
| 2024/25 | 67% | 57.3% | 60.3% |
Department for Education KS2 performance data, published school results.
| Year | This school | England average |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 5.3% | 6.8% |
| 2023/24 | 4.8% | 6.6% |
| 2024/25 | 5.3% | 6.2% |
Department for Education pupil absence data.
| Year | This school |
|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 92 |
| 2023/24 | 96 |
| 2024/25 | 102 |
School census, spring count each academic year.
How Combe St Nicholas Church of England VA Primary School compares
Combe St Nicholas Church of England VA Primary School ranked 50th of 155 primary schools in Somerset for KS2 results in 2024/25. Its KS2 result was higher than 57% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 54% of England schools in 2024/25.
| School | KS2 RWM (2024/25) | Absence | FSM (6 years) | Pupils | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 67% | 5.3% | 10.8% | 117 | — |
| The Redstart Primary School | 67% | 5.2% | 22.3% | 444 | 1.7 miles |
| Manor Court Community Primary School | 75% | 5.8% | 33.1% | 448 | 2.2 miles |
| Buckland St Mary Church of England Primary School | 71% | 3.9% | 16% | 54 | 2.4 miles |
| Avishayes Community Primary School | 46% | 7% | 31.2% | 199 | 2.4 miles |
| Neroche Primary School | 76% | 5% | 6.2% | 233 | 3.0 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.
School context
From the 2024/25 school census and absence figures.
- Free school meals (last 6 years)
- 10.78%
- English as an additional language
- 3.9%
- Overall absence
- 5.28%
- Persistent absence
- 10.71%
Location
Nearby schools
-
The Redstart Primary School1.7 miles
Primary · Chard
-
Manor Court Community Primary School2.2 miles
Primary · Chard
-
Buckland St Mary Church of England Primary School2.4 miles
Primary · Chard
-
Avishayes Community Primary School2.4 miles
Primary · Chard
-
Neroche Primary School3.0 miles
Primary · Ilminster
Other schools in Chard
Combe St Nicholas Church of England VA Primary School ranks 3rd of the 6 ranked primary schools in Chard.
- Avishayes Community Primary School Primary
- Buckland St Mary Church of England Primary School Primary
- Manor Court Community Primary School Primary
- Tatworth Primary School Primary
- The Redstart Primary School Primary
- Holyrood Academy Secondary
- 3 Dimensions Special schools
- Chard School Independent schools
Common questions
- What year groups does Combe St Nicholas Church of England VA Primary School teach?
- Combe St Nicholas Church of England VA Primary School teaches children aged 4 to 11. It is a primary school in Chard.
- Who is the headteacher of Combe St Nicholas Church of England VA Primary School?
- The headteacher of Combe St Nicholas Church of England VA Primary School is Miss Joanna Rousseau, as recorded in the Department for Education's register of schools.
- When was Combe St Nicholas Church of England VA Primary School last inspected?
- Ofsted has inspected Combe St Nicholas Church of England VA Primary 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 big is Combe St Nicholas Church of England VA Primary School?
- Combe St Nicholas Church of England VA Primary School has 117 pupils on roll, teaching children aged 4 to 11.
- Is Combe St Nicholas Church of England VA Primary School full?
- Combe St Nicholas Church of England VA Primary School has capacity for 120 pupils and 117 on roll (98%), so it is close to full. Places are allocated through the local authority's admissions process, so capacity alone does not tell you whether a place is available.
- Is Combe St Nicholas Church of England VA Primary School a faith school?
- Yes. Combe St Nicholas Church of England VA Primary School is designated Church of England, in the Diocese of Bath and Wells.
- Does Combe St Nicholas Church of England VA Primary School have a nursery?
- No. The schools register records Combe St Nicholas Church of England VA Primary School as having no nursery classes.
- How have Combe St Nicholas Church of England VA Primary School's results changed over recent years?
- Its share of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths was 75% in 2022/23 and 67% in 2024/25. The year-by-year figures, alongside local and national averages, are charted in the trends section on this page.
- How does Combe St Nicholas Church of England VA Primary School rank locally?
- Combe St Nicholas Church of England VA Primary School ranked 50th of 155 primary schools in Somerset for key stage 2 results. Its KS2 result was higher than 57% of England primary schools that published results in 2024/25. Its absence rate was lower than 54% of England schools in 2024/25. Results reflect each cohort as well as the school, so treat rankings as a starting point.
- What is Combe St Nicholas Church of England VA Primary School's absence rate?
- Combe St Nicholas Church of England VA Primary School's overall absence rate is 5.3% in the latest published census, at or below the England average of 6.2%.
- What are Combe St Nicholas Church of England VA Primary School's exam results?
- Where the Department for Education has published them, Combe St Nicholas Church of England VA Primary 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.