Oakwood Primary School

About Oakwood Primary School

Oakwood Primary School in St Albans holds a Good rating from Ofsted following its most recent graded inspection in July 2024, a step down from the Outstanding grade it received in its previous inspection a decade earlier. The school’s most telling academic metric is the Key Stage 2 combined reading, writing and maths expected standard, which sits at 64 per cent — exactly in line with the Hertfordshire local authority average for primary schools. That figure places Oakwood 30th out of 40 primary schools within St Albans itself, and 179th out of 401 across the wider county. While the combined expected score is solid, the school’s reading results are notably stronger: 98 per cent of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, with 53 per cent achieving the higher standard. Maths also performed well, with 91 per cent at expected and an average scaled score of 108, though the higher standard in maths was 40 per cent. Writing and reading, writing and maths combined higher standard both sat at 13 per cent.

Looking more closely at the exam data, Oakwood’s reading average scaled score of 110 is comfortably above the national benchmark of 100, and its maths average of 108 follows a similar pattern. The school does not publish progress scores for reading, writing or maths, so it is not possible to compare pupil progress against peers directly. Nationally, Oakwood ranks in the 46th percentile for its combined expected standard metric, placing it around the middle of all primary schools in England. In the East of England region, it sits in the 42nd percentile. The school’s ranking score of 64 places it well behind the top performers in Hertfordshire, such as Little Gaddesden Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School and Harvey Road Primary School, both of which scored 100. Still, for a school operating at near full capacity with 313 pupils against a capacity of 315, Oakwood is clearly a popular choice among local families.

Oakwood is heavily oversubscribed: for 45 places in the 2025/26 reception intake, there were 146 applications, a ratio of 3.24 applicants per place. Only 31 first-preference offers were made from 38 first-preference applications, meaning even families who put Oakwood top often miss out. The school serves a relatively affluent catchment, with just 7.7 per cent of pupils eligible for free school meals. Facilities include a sports hall, playing fields, a library, music rooms, an ICT suite and a chapel, and the school offers clubs such as film club, drama, book club and science club. Sports provision covers rounders, tennis, cricket, netball, football and swimming. SEND support is available for specific learning difficulties including dyslexia, speech, language and communication needs, autistic spectrum disorder, and social, emotional and mental health needs. Oakwood suits families who prioritise strong reading outcomes and a broad range of extracurricular activities within a well-subscribed local primary.

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