St John's Church of England Infant School

About St John's Church of England Infant School

St John’s Church of England Infant School was rated Good in its most recent Ofsted inspection in March 2024, a rating it has held consistently across both its graded inspections. The school’s overall effectiveness, quality of education, personal development, behaviour and attitudes, and leadership and management all scored a 2, with early years provision also rated Good. This is a small infant school with just 80 pupils on roll, serving children from age 5 to 7, and it is significantly oversubscribed: for the 2025/26 intake, it received 50 applications for just 13 places, with only 10 first-preference offers made. That works out at nearly four applicants for every place, which tells you something about how local families view the school. The most telling exam metric for a school this young is the local authority’s average Key Stage 2 score, which sits at 62 for Medway primary schools, though St John’s itself doesn’t publish its own KS2 results because its pupils leave before reaching that stage.

Because St John’s is an infant school, its academic story is less about exam results and more about early foundations. The Ofsted report highlights Good ratings across every category, including early years provision, which is the most relevant measure for this age group. The school’s previous inspection in 2018 also rated it Good overall, with early years provision scoring a 2 at that time too, so there is consistency in how the school supports its youngest learners. With 45% of pupils eligible for free school meals, the school serves a community with above-average disadvantage, yet it maintains solid Ofsted grades. Compared to the Medway local authority, where only 4 out of 76 primary schools are rated Outstanding, St John’s Good rating places it in the solid middle tier, and the nearest Outstanding school, The Pilgrim School, is 2.8 km away.

The school offers a range of facilities including playing fields, an art studio, library, music rooms, ICT suite, and a chapel, reflecting its Church of England foundation. Sports provision covers gymnastics, tennis, athletics, football, and dance, while clubs include art, book club, coding, and gardening. For families with children who have additional needs, the school lists SEND provisions for moderate and severe learning difficulties, social, emotional and mental health needs, speech, language and communication needs, and autistic spectrum disorder. With a capacity of 90 and only 80 pupils currently enrolled, there is some physical space, but the oversubscription ratio of 3.85 means getting a place is competitive. This is a school that will suit families who value a small, church-affiliated infant setting with strong early years support and a clear track record of Good Ofsted outcomes, particularly those living within the Medway area who can secure a first-preference application.

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