St James' Church of England Primary School

About St James' Church of England Primary School

St James' Church of England Primary School is clearly popular with local families. For the 2025/26 intake, the school received 71 applications for just 34 places, giving an oversubscription ratio of 2.09. Of those applicants, 25 put the school as their first preference, and all 25 were offered a place. This level of demand suggests a strong reputation among parents, though no direct parent satisfaction survey data is available in the school's records. The school is a state-funded Church of England primary for mixed genders aged 3 to 11, with a nursery on site. It sits in the London borough of Southwark, where 17 out of 67 primary schools hold an Outstanding rating from Ofsted. St James' itself is rated Good, a grade it has held across its two most recent inspections, with the latest ungraded inspection in July 2024 confirming it remains Good.

Academically, St James' performs broadly in line with the local average. In the 2023/24 Key Stage 2 assessments, 69% of pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, just one percentage point above the Southwark average of 68%. This places the school 28th out of 60 primaries in the borough, putting it in the top half locally. Looking at individual subjects, 80% of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, 82% in maths, and 80% in writing. At the higher standard, 4% achieved the top marks across all three subjects, with writing the strongest area at 35% reaching the higher threshold. Average scaled scores were 105 in both reading and maths. Progress scores are not available, 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 library, music rooms, art studios, a dining hall, playing fields and a chapel. Sports provision covers football, gymnastics, cricket, cross country, netball and swimming, and there are clubs for coding, gardening and chess. SEND support is comprehensive, covering specific learning difficulties like dyslexia, moderate learning difficulty, social, emotional and mental health needs, speech and language communication needs, physical disability, autistic spectrum disorder and other difficulties. With 70.4% of pupils eligible for free school meals, the school serves a significantly disadvantaged community compared to many others in the borough. For families seeking a church school with strong local demand, a Good Ofsted rating and a wide SEND offer, St James' is a realistic and well-regarded option, though those wanting an Outstanding rating would need to look 0.7 km away at Boutcher Church of England Primary School.

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