St Nicolas' Church of England Combined School

About St Nicolas' Church of England Combined School

St Nicolas' Church of England Combined School stands out sharply against the Buckinghamshire primary average for Key Stage 2 outcomes. In the 2023/24 academic year, 81% of pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, compared with a local authority average of 64%. That is a 17 percentage point gap, placing the school comfortably above the typical state primary in the area. Its ranking reinforces the point: St Nicolas' sits 13th out of 184 primary schools in Buckinghamshire, putting it in the top 10% nationally by this measure. The school also outperforms the LA norm on higher-standard attainment, with 19% of pupils reaching the higher threshold in all three subjects. For a mixed, Church of England primary in Taplow, these are strong headline numbers that suggest academic rigour well beyond the local baseline.

Digging into the detail, the school's strengths are spread across the core subjects. Reading is a particular standout: 94% of pupils reached the expected standard and 47% achieved a higher score, with an average scaled score of 109. In maths, 84% met expectations and 44% hit the higher mark, averaging 107. Writing is slightly lower but still solid, with 88% at expected and 25% at greater depth. The school's most recent Ofsted inspection, an ungraded visit in June 2023, confirmed it 'remains Good' — the same overall effectiveness rating it has held since its last graded inspection in February 2014. Leadership and management, and early years provision, were both rated Good in that earlier graded inspection. There is no Progress 8 data available for primary schools, but the KS2 outcomes alone make clear that pupils here typically leave Year 6 well prepared for secondary school.

St Nicolas' is a popular school, and the numbers prove it. For 2025/26 entry, there were 91 applications for 30 places, giving an oversubscription ratio of 3.03. Of those, 38 were first-preference applications, and 26 first-preference offers were made. The school has capacity for 218 pupils and currently enrols 216, so it is essentially full. Facilities include a library, playing fields, art studios, a forest school and a chapel. Sports provision covers football, cricket, rounders, tennis, swimming and dance, while clubs extend to art, gardening, drama and coding. SEND support is broad, covering specific learning difficulties, moderate learning difficulty, social and emotional needs, speech and language issues, hearing and visual impairments, physical disability and autistic spectrum disorder. This is a school that suits families who value strong academic outcomes within a Church of England ethos, and who are prepared for a competitive admissions process.

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