St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Falmouth

About St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Falmouth

St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Falmouth sits within the Cornwall local authority and is one of the highest-performing primary schools in the area, ranking 9th out of 208 schools of the same type. This places it comfortably in the top 10 per cent of Cornwall primaries. Its closest peers at the top of the local rankings are Calstock Community Primary School, Landewednack Community Primary School, and St Buryan Primary School, all of which score slightly higher on the same ranking metric. The school is a state-funded, mixed Roman Catholic primary for children aged 4 to 11, with a current roll of 186 pupils against a capacity of 218. Just under 10 per cent of pupils are eligible for free school meals, which is broadly in line with the national average for primary schools. The school is led by headteacher Lucy Titheridge and its most recent Ofsted inspection took place in July 2025.

Academically, St Mary's performs well above the local average. In the 2023/24 Key Stage 2 assessments, 81 per cent of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, compared with a Cornwall average of 58 per cent. The school also achieved strong results at the higher standard, with 16 per cent of pupils reaching that level across all three subjects. In reading, 47 per cent of pupils achieved the higher standard, and in writing the figure was 44 per cent. Average scaled scores were 107 in reading and 105 in maths. The school's most recent Ofsted inspection judged behaviour and attitudes as Outstanding, while leadership and management, quality of education, personal development, and early years provision were all rated Good. This marks a clear improvement from the school's previous graded inspection in February 2023, when overall effectiveness was rated Requires Improvement.

The school offers a range of facilities including playing fields, a sports hall, gymnasium, art studios, a library, a sensory room, and a chapel. Sports on offer include athletics, football, gymnastics, cricket and tennis, and there are clubs for book club, drama and gardening. The school has a number of SEND provisions in place, covering specific learning difficulties such as dyslexia, moderate learning difficulty, social, emotional and mental health needs, speech, language and communication needs, and physical disability. For the 2025/26 intake, the school was oversubscribed, receiving 60 applications for 30 places, with 24 first-preference offers made. Parent View responses from the 2024/25 period were overwhelmingly positive: 90 per cent of respondents would recommend the school, and 99 per cent agreed or strongly agreed that their child is happy there. This is a school that suits families looking for strong academic outcomes within a faith-based setting, and who value a clear improvement trajectory.

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