St John's CofE Primary School

About St John's CofE Primary School

St John's CofE Primary School in Huntingdonshire is a popular choice among local families, with 35 of its 37 reception places for 2025/26 going to first-preference applicants and a total of 57 applications received. That works out at an oversubscription ratio of 1.54, meaning nearly six families compete for every four places. While the school doesn't publish a parent recommendation percentage, the high demand suggests a strong reputation in the community. The school is a state-funded, Church of England primary for mixed-gender pupils aged 5 to 11, with a current roll of 322 children against a capacity of 420, so there is some room to grow. Headteacher Rebecca Soper leads a school that has held a Good Ofsted rating since its graded inspection in 2014, and an ungraded visit in 2021 confirmed it remains Good. That's a notable improvement from its previous Requires Improvement rating in 2012, showing consistent progress in leadership and management.

Academically, St John's performs well above the local authority average. In the 2023/24 Key Stage 2 tests, 71% of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, compared to a Cambridgeshire average of just 58%. The school's average scores in reading and maths both sit at 105, comfortably above the national benchmark of 100. At the higher standard, 7% of pupils achieved the top level across all three subjects, with 33% reaching that level in reading and 28% in maths. Writing at the higher standard is lower, at 10%, but 78% of pupils met the expected standard in both writing and reading. Nationally, the school ranks in the top 28% of all primaries for its combined expected standard score, and within Huntingdonshire it places 7th out of 55 schools, putting it in the top 13% locally. That's a strong showing for a school with a higher-than-average proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals at 31.4%.

The school offers a solid range of facilities and activities that support both learning and personal development. There's a sensory room, a library, playing fields, a sports hall, a forest school area and a chapel. Sports provision is broad, including football, cricket, netball, swimming, athletics, tennis and cross country, while clubs cover drama, choir and chess. For children with additional needs, St John's has a wide range of SEND provisions, including support for dyslexia, moderate learning difficulties, social and emotional mental health needs, speech and language difficulties, physical disabilities and autistic spectrum disorder. The school is oversubscribed, so families applying should be prepared for a competitive process, particularly for first-preference places. It suits families who value a church school with strong academic outcomes, a broad extracurricular offer and a clear commitment to inclusion, all within a well-regarded Huntingdonshire primary.

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