St. Paul's (Slade Green) Church of England Primary School

About St. Paul's (Slade Green) Church of England Primary School

St Paul’s (Slade Green) Church of England Primary School sits in Bexley, and its headline Key Stage 2 results are notably below the local authority average. Just 42 per cent of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, compared with a Bexley average of 67 per cent for primary schools. That gap is significant, and it places the school near the bottom of the borough’s 61 primary schools — ranked 53rd. No pupils achieved the higher standard in all three subjects, and the proportion reaching the higher standard in individual subjects was also low: 18 per cent in reading, 12 per cent in maths and just 2 per cent in writing. The average scores in reading (100) and maths (101) are close to the national baseline but not enough to lift the combined measure. For parents looking at headline attainment, this is a school where outcomes are clearly an area of focus.

The school’s most recent Ofsted inspection, in September 2023, rated it Good overall, a clear improvement from its previous Requires Improvement rating in 2019. Every category — quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and early years provision — was judged Good. That suggests the school has made solid progress under headteacher Wendy Cornford. However, the exam data tells a more cautious story. In writing, 63 per cent of pupils met the expected standard, which is the strongest individual subject, but reading (53 per cent) and maths (58 per cent) lag behind. The school’s ranking score of 42 places it in the bottom 50 nationally, and in London it sits at the 97th percentile — meaning 97 per cent of London primaries outperform it on this metric. The nearest Outstanding-rated school is Christ Church (Erith) CofE Primary, 1.5 km away, which may be worth a look for families prioritising top grades.

St Paul’s is a Church of England primary with a nursery, serving children from age 3 to 11. It has 376 pupils against a capacity of 420, and 45.1 per cent are eligible for free school meals — well above the national average, reflecting a high-deprivation intake. The school is oversubscribed: for 2025/26, it received 78 applications for 40 places, with 38 first-preference offers made. Facilities include playing fields, a library, art studios, an outdoor playground and a chapel. Sports on offer include swimming, cricket, football and dance, and clubs range from gardening and choir to chess, film club and coding. SEND provision is extensive, covering dyslexia, moderate learning difficulties, social and emotional needs, speech and language issues, hearing and visual impairments, physical disability, autism, and a resourced provision. This is a school that has turned around its Ofsted rating and now offers strong pastoral and SEND support, but its academic results remain a challenge for families who place a premium on high attainment.

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