Stisted Church of England Primary Academy

About Stisted Church of England Primary Academy

If you’re looking for a primary school that local families clearly want to get into, Stisted Church of England Primary Academy is a strong contender. In the 2025/26 admissions round, the school received 52 applications for just 15 places, giving an oversubscription ratio of 3.47. Of those 52 applications, 24 were first-preference choices, and all 15 places went to first-preference families. That level of demand suggests parents who know the school rate it highly, and the numbers back that up. The school is small — just 102 pupils against a capacity of 105 — so classes are intimate, and the headteacher, Danielle Welsman, leads a team that has clearly earned the trust of the local community. With a Church of England character and a location in Braintree, Essex, it’s the kind of village primary that tends to build strong, lasting relationships between staff and families.

Academically, Stisted is performing well above the local average. In the 2023/24 Key Stage 2 results, 73% of pupils reached the expected standard in reading, writing and maths combined, compared with the Essex local authority average of 62%. That puts the school in the top 25% nationally for this measure. Looking at individual subjects, 93% of pupils met the expected standard in maths, with an average scaled score of 108, and 87% did the same in reading, also averaging 108. At the higher standard, 20% of pupils achieved the top marks across all three subjects. The school’s most recent Ofsted inspection, in March 2023, awarded Outstanding across every category — quality of education, behaviour and attitudes, personal development, leadership and management, and early years provision. That’s a clean sweep, and it follows a previous Outstanding rating from 2008, so the school has maintained a very high bar over time.

Beyond the classroom, Stisted offers a good range of facilities for a primary of its size, including a Forest School, a sensory room, a chapel, music rooms, and an ICT suite. Sports provision covers football, netball, athletics, cross country and gymnastics, and there are clubs for drama, science, book club, eco club and film club. The school’s SEND provision is broad, supporting pupils with specific learning difficulties like dyslexia, moderate learning difficulties, speech and language needs, hearing impairment, autistic spectrum disorder, and social, emotional and mental health needs. With just 9.8% of pupils eligible for free school meals, the intake is relatively advantaged, but the school clearly caters for a range of needs. For families who want a small, oversubscribed village primary with outstanding Ofsted grades and strong KS2 results, Stisted is a realistic but competitive option.

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