St Bernard's Catholic Primary School

About St Bernard's Catholic Primary School

St Bernard’s Catholic Primary School in Birmingham holds a Good rating from Ofsted, a grade it has maintained since its most recent graded inspection in 2012 and confirmed in an ungraded visit in 2022. The school’s most telling exam metric is the proportion of pupils reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, which stands at 68 per cent. That is five percentage points above the Birmingham local authority average of 63 per cent, placing St Bernard’s 90th out of 254 primary schools in the area. The school also performs well above the LA average in individual subjects: 84 per cent of pupils met the expected standard in maths, and 83 per cent in reading. This is a solid, above-average academic story for a state primary, particularly given that over a third of pupils (36.6 per cent) are eligible for free school meals, a figure well above the national average.

At the higher standard, the picture is more mixed. Ten per cent of pupils achieved the higher standard in reading, writing and maths combined, while 38 per cent did so in maths and reading individually. Writing at the higher level was lower, at 11 per cent. The school’s average scaled scores in reading and maths were both 107, which is slightly above the national benchmark of 100. Progress scores are not available in the data, so it is not possible to say how much value the school adds relative to pupils’ starting points. However, the combination of above-average attainment and a high proportion of disadvantaged pupils suggests that St Bernard’s is doing effective work in the classroom. The school’s Ofsted report notes that leadership and management are also rated Good, and the school has improved significantly since its previous inspection in 2009, when it was judged to require improvement.

St Bernard’s is a one-form-entry school with a capacity of 420 and currently 404 pupils on roll. It is oversubscribed: for the 2025/26 academic year, there were 107 applications for 54 places, with 43 first-preference offers made. That gives an oversubscription ratio of nearly 2:1, so families living within the Catholic catchment will need to apply early. The school offers a range of facilities including an ICT suite, Forest School, sensory room, art studios and a chapel. Sports provision is broad, with netball, cricket, athletics, tennis, football, rounders and gymnastics, plus clubs for drama, book club and gardening. SEND provision is well-documented, covering specific learning difficulties such as dyslexia, moderate learning difficulty, social, emotional and mental health needs, speech, language and communication needs, and autistic spectrum disorder. This is a school that suits families seeking a faith-based, community-focused primary with strong core results and a clear commitment to inclusion.

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