St James Church of England Primary School

About St James Church of England Primary School

St James Church of England Primary School in Harlow holds a Good rating from Ofsted, a grade it has maintained consistently across its two most recent inspections. The school’s most recent graded inspection in 2018 rated overall effectiveness, leadership and management, and early years provision all as Good, and an ungraded inspection in 2023 confirmed the school remains Good. The most telling exam metric comes from the 2023/24 Key Stage 2 results: 56% of pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined. That figure sits below the Essex local authority average of 62%, placing the school 20th out of 28 primary schools in Harlow and in the bottom half nationally. While the combined expected score is modest, individual subject results tell a more nuanced story — 81% of pupils reached the expected standard in maths, and average scaled scores of 103 in maths and 102 in reading are both above the national benchmark of 100.

Looking beyond the headline combined figure, the school’s performance is stronger in maths than in literacy. Only 59% of pupils met the expected standard in reading and 66% in writing, compared with 81% in maths. The proportion reaching the higher standard is low across all three subjects — 13% in reading, 9% in writing and just 6% in maths — which partly explains the school’s ranking in the bottom 50% nationally. The school has no progress scores published, so it is not possible to say how much value it adds relative to pupils’ starting points. With 22.8% of pupils eligible for free school meals, the school serves a community with above-average disadvantage, which may contextualise the results. For parents focused on academic outcomes, St James performs solidly in maths but the combined reading and writing figures are an area to investigate further.

The school is oversubscribed for 2025/26, receiving 42 applications for 30 places, with 15 first-preference offers made from 15 first-preference applications — meaning every family who put it first got a place, but demand from second-preference applicants pushed the oversubscription ratio to 2.1. Facilities include a gymnasium, ICT suite, library, sensory room, music rooms, a chapel and playing fields. Sports on offer include tennis, netball, cross country, dance, gymnastics and cricket, while clubs range from chess and coding to eco club and book club. The school has a broad range of SEND provisions, including support for autistic spectrum disorder, speech and language needs, dyslexia, hearing impairment and social, emotional and mental health needs. With 206 pupils against a capacity of 218, the school is near full but not overcrowded. This is a church school with a clear local intake, suited to families who value a Good-rated primary with strong maths outcomes and a wide range of enrichment activities.

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