St Catherine of Siena Catholic Primary School

About St Catherine of Siena Catholic Primary School

St Catherine of Siena Catholic Primary School in Birmingham is a state-funded Roman Catholic primary that is clearly popular with local families. The school has 250 pupils on roll against a capacity of 210, meaning it is operating above its official number of places. That demand is confirmed by the 2025/26 admissions data: the school received 131 applications for just 30 places, with 51 of those coming as first preferences. Only 29 first-preference offers were made, giving an oversubscription ratio of 4.37 applicants per place. The proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals stands at 35.7%, which is notably higher than the national average for primary schools and reflects the school’s inner-city Birmingham context. The school also offers nursery provision for children from age three, and its religious character as a Roman Catholic school will be a key factor for many families considering it.

Academically, the school performs well above the local authority average. In the 2023/24 Key Stage 2 assessments, 70% of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, compared with a Birmingham LA average of 63%. The school ranks 69th out of 254 primary schools in the local authority, placing it in the top 28% nationally. In individual subjects, 87% met the expected standard in writing, 83% in maths and 77% in reading. Higher-standard attainment was strongest in maths, where 47% of pupils scored at the higher level, and in reading at 43%. The most recent Ofsted inspection in November 2023 rated the school Good overall, with Outstanding grades for early years provision, personal development, behaviour and attitudes, and leadership and management. This represents a change from the previous inspection in 2010, when the school was rated Outstanding overall.

The school offers a solid range of facilities including a sports hall, music rooms, an outdoor playground, a forest school area, a sensory room and a chapel. Sports provision covers swimming, netball, gymnastics, cricket, football, rounders and athletics, while extracurricular clubs include gardening, drama and art club. The school has identified SEND provisions for moderate learning difficulty, social, emotional and mental health needs, speech, language and communication needs, autistic spectrum disorder, and other difficulty or disability. For families weighing up options, this is a Catholic primary that is heavily oversubscribed and performing above the local average academically, with strong Ofsted grades across the board. It will particularly suit families who prioritise a faith-based setting and are comfortable with a larger-than-capacity school community in an urban Birmingham context.

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