Dunmow St Mary's Primary School

About Dunmow St Mary's Primary School

Dunmow St Mary's Primary School is clearly a popular choice among local families, with 142 applications for just 59 places in the 2025/26 admissions round, giving an oversubscription ratio of 2.41. Of those applications, 56 were first-preference, and 48 first-preference offers were made, indicating strong demand. The school is a Church of England state primary for mixed-gender pupils aged 4 to 11, located in Uttlesford, Essex. It currently has 463 pupils on roll, which is above its official capacity of 420, so it is running full. The most recent Ofsted inspection, carried out in June 2023, rated the school Good across all five categories: overall effectiveness, quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, and leadership and management. The early years provision was also rated Good. This continues a pattern of Good ratings, as the previous inspection in 2014 also judged the school Good overall.

Academically, the school's Key Stage 2 results for the 2023/24 year show that 52% of pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined. This is below the local authority average of 62% and places the school 282nd out of 444 similar schools in Essex. In Uttlesford specifically, it ranks 28th out of 34 primary schools, putting it in the bottom half of the district. Looking at individual subjects, 68% of pupils reached the expected standard in reading and in maths, while 70% did so in writing. At the higher standard, 7% achieved in all three subjects, with 22% reaching that level in reading, 12% in maths and 12% in writing. Average scaled scores were 103 in both reading and maths. Progress measures were not available in the data, so it is not possible to say how much value the school adds relative to pupils' starting points.

The school offers a solid range of facilities including a dining hall, ICT suite, sports hall, sensory room, art studios, forest school, playing fields and a chapel. Sports provision covers cross country, tennis, dance, netball, athletics and rounders, while clubs include book club, film club, drama, science club, coding and choir. For families with children who have additional needs, the school lists SEND provisions for specific learning difficulties including dyslexia, moderate learning difficulty, social emotional and mental health needs, speech language and communication needs, physical disability, autistic spectrum disorder and other difficulties. Given the high oversubscription, families applying should be prepared for competition, particularly if they are not regular churchgoers, as the school's religious character may influence admissions criteria. This is a school that suits families who value a Church of England setting and are comfortable with its academic profile being below the local average.

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