St Mary's Catholic Infant School
About St Mary's Catholic Infant School
St Mary's Catholic Infant School serves children from age 3 to 7 in Croydon, and its most recent Ofsted inspection in 2022 rated the school Good overall. That puts it in the majority of local primaries — only 17 out of 88 schools in the borough achieved Outstanding. However, the school’s inspection breakdown shows two Outstanding grades: for personal development and for behaviour and attitudes. That’s a stronger showing than many Good-rated schools manage, and it suggests the school is particularly effective at building character and maintaining a calm, purposeful atmosphere. The school is oversubscribed by a wide margin — 179 applications for 59 places in the 2025/26 intake, with 68 first-preference applications and only 58 first-preference offers. That ratio of over three applicants per place tells you local families rate it highly, even if the headline Ofsted grade doesn’t match the nearest Outstanding school, Chestnut Park Primary, which sits just 0.8 km away.
Key Details
The full report on this school
The inspection in plain English, admissions context, and how this school compares to nearby alternatives — all in one full school report.
- Ofsted inspection in plain EnglishStrengths, concerns and what inspectors flagged
- Parent View survey resultsWhat parents told Ofsted — when the school has 10+ responses
- Where Ofsted and parents disagreeGaps to probe + questions to ask at the open day
- Admissions & catchmentAdmission criteria, distance cutoffs (where the LA publishes them)
- Nearby schools comparedBackup options with Ofsted, demand and distance
- Attendance & behaviour dataPersistent absentees, suspensions and exclusions vs national
Ofsted Inspection Breakdown
4 Oct 2022Source: Ofsted, 27 Nov 2022. Ratings: 1=Outstanding, 2=Good, 3=Requires Improvement, 4=Inadequate.
Facilities
8Facilities may vary. Contact the school for current availability.
Extracurriculars
10Sports
Clubs & Activities
Activities may vary by term. Contact the school for current offerings.
SEND Support
Source: Department for Education, 2024/25. Support availability based on current student population.
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