Charles Dickens Primary School

About Charles Dickens Primary School

Charles Dickens Primary School holds an Ofsted Outstanding rating, a grade it has maintained across both its most recent graded inspection in 2019 and its ungraded inspection in 2025, where inspectors confirmed that standards are being maintained. The school’s strongest academic story lies in its Key Stage 2 results for the 2023/24 academic year, where 89% of pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined. That figure sits well above the Southwark local authority average of 68%, placing the school 5th out of 60 primary schools in the borough and in the top 5% nationally. In reading, 95% of pupils reached the expected level, with 44% working at a higher standard. Maths tells a similar story: 92% at expected and 44% at greater depth. Average scaled scores of 109 in reading and 108 in maths confirm that pupils are performing comfortably above the national benchmark of 100.

The Ofsted breakdown from the 2019 graded inspection awarded Grade 1 (Outstanding) across every category: quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and early years provision. The 2025 ungraded inspection found no evidence that the school’s high standards had slipped. Parent feedback is overwhelmingly positive. In the most recent Parent View survey, covering September 2024 to September 2025, 100% of the 64 respondents said they would recommend the school. Every single parent agreed that their child is happy, feels safe, and does well. On SEND support, 83% strongly agreed that the school gives children the help they need, though 8% strongly disagreed — a small but notable minority. The school’s capacity is 420, but it currently has 479 pupils on roll, reflecting its popularity.

Admissions for 2025/26 show the school is heavily oversubscribed: 211 applications for 56 places, with 111 first-preference applications and 56 first-preference offers. That gives an oversubscription ratio of 3.77, meaning competition for places is fierce. The school offers a nursery provision for children from age 2, which may give local families an early foot in the door. Facilities include a forest school, playing fields, a sports hall, music rooms, art studios and an ICT suite. Clubs range from book club and drama to gardening, choir, science club and coding. SEND provisions cover specific learning difficulties like dyslexia, moderate learning difficulties, speech and language needs, social and emotional mental health needs, and autistic spectrum disorder. This is a school that suits families who value strong academic outcomes within a supportive, well-resourced environment, but given the oversubscription, living very close to the school gates will matter.

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