St Maria Goretti Catholic Academy

About St Maria Goretti Catholic Academy

St Maria Goretti Catholic Academy is a state primary in Stoke-on-Trent that currently teaches 220 pupils against a capacity of 240, so it is not yet full but is clearly in demand. For the 2025/26 intake, the school received 40 applications for 30 places, making it officially oversubscribed, with 28 of those applications coming as first preferences. The proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals stands at 51.8%, which is significantly above the national average and reflects the local demographic context of the area. The school has a Roman Catholic religious character and is mixed-gender, serving children from age 3 through to 11, with nursery provision on site. Headteacher Karyn Oakley leads the school, which has held a Good rating from Ofsted since its most recent graded inspection in 2012, and an ungraded inspection in 2022 confirmed it remains Good.

Academically, the school's Key Stage 2 results for 2023/24 show that 58% of pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, which is slightly below the local authority average of 60%. In individual subjects, 65% reached the expected standard in reading, 68% in writing, and 58% in maths. At the higher standard, the figures are notably lower: just 3% achieved the higher standard across all three subjects, with 23% reaching it in reading, 6% in writing, and 13% in maths. Average scaled scores were 102 for reading and 100 for maths. The school ranks 38th out of 63 primary schools in Stoke-on-Trent on the combined expected standard metric, placing it in the bottom half of the local authority. Nationally, it sits in the 61st percentile, meaning around 39% of schools nationally perform better on this measure.

The school offers a solid range of facilities including a library, playing fields, art studios, music rooms, a sports hall, gymnasium, outdoor playground, forest school and a chapel. Sports on offer include gymnastics, swimming, tennis, cross country and athletics, while clubs extend to choir, coding, chess and film club. The school has identified SEND provisions for moderate learning difficulty, social emotional and mental health needs, and speech language and communication needs. With an oversubscription ratio of 1.33, families applying should be aware that a first preference does not guarantee a place. The nearest outstanding-rated school is Our Lady and St Benedict Catholic Academy, 1.6 km away. St Maria Goretti will suit families seeking a Catholic primary with strong pastoral support and a broad extracurricular offer, particularly those comfortable with a school that reflects a high level of socio-economic diversity.

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