St James' Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School

St James’ Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School is performing well, being rated as 'Good' in overall effectiveness. The school provides a positive and inclusive environment where pupils feel safe, happy, and respected. Their exemplary behavior and positive attitudes are a testament to the high expectations set by staff. Academic achievement is also a strong point, as pupils typically excel through a well-designed curriculum that encourages participation and strong subject knowledge among teachers. However, the school acknowledges the need for improvement in assessing learning consistently across certain subjects and ensuring that younger pupils develop reading fluency more effectively.

Strengths

• Exceptional behavior and attitudes of pupils.
• Highly inclusive environment that celebrates achievements.
• Ambitious and well-structured curriculum.
• Strong subject knowledge among teachers.
• Effective support for special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).
• Prioritization of reading and phonics from early years.
• Positive relationships between staff and pupils.

Areas for Improvement

• Inconsistent checking of pupils' learning in some subjects.
• Younger pupils struggling with reading fluency.

Admissions: local authority offers data from the Department for Education. A school is oversubscribed when at least 5% of the families who put it first were not offered a place, and undersubscribed when everyone who put it first got in but 10% or more of its places were unfilled in the Department's school capacity survey (the latest survey is used for entry years it does not cover). Places: Department for Education, School capacity, from local authorities' annual survey as at 1 May. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024–25); the survey was not run in 2020. Places include sixth form places. Forecasts are the local authority's own for the school's planning area, an area it uses to plan places that is not the school's catchment area. The forecast starts from a head count in 2025; the dashed line is the Department's estimate of places in that area, including those the authority has firm plans for. Planned places are cumulative, and only those with firm plans are counted.

In 2024–25 pupils at St James' Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School attended 95.5% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 8.5% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 13.0%).

Sessions missed

Pupils persistently absent

Source: Department for Education, Pupil absence in schools in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Persistent absence means missing 10% or more of sessions; severe absence means 50% or more. No figures were published for 2019/20.

In 2024–25, 0.3% of pupils at St James' Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). No pupils were permanently excluded.

Pupils suspended at least once

Source: Department for Education, Suspensions and permanent exclusions in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). A pupil can be suspended more than once, so suspensions per 100 pupils can be higher than the share of pupils suspended. Very small numbers are hidden by the DfE. Exclusion figures dropped in 2020 and 2021 because of school closures.

In 2025–26 St James' Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School had 21.6 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 0.0% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 15.7%).

Pupils per teacher

Teachers who left the school within a year

Source: Department for Education, School workforce in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Pupils per teacher counts full-time-equivalent pupils and teachers. Turnover is the share of a year's teachers (full-time equivalent) who were not at the school the following year, whether they moved to another school or left state-funded teaching. Turnover and sickness figures run one year behind the ratios. Sick leave is the share of teachers who took at least one day in the year, so it swings widely at small schools, where a few teachers can make it 0% or 100%. The national figures are for all state schools of the same type.

In 2025–26, 11.0% of pupils at St James' Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 1.4% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

Pupils by main type of need

Source: Department for Education, Special educational needs in England (the 2025–26 school census). SEN support is extra help in school without an EHC plan. National figures are for all state-funded primary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2025–26 St James' Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School received £5,957 and spent £5,904 for each of its 629 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £166,000 (£264 per pupil).

Income per pupil

Spending per pupil

Source: Department for Education, Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool. Each year is the one the financial year ends in (2024 is 2023–24).

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Tunbridge Wells · Kent local authority: places and applications

What is St James' Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for St James' Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School is Good, from an inspection in April 2024.

When was St James' Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

St James' Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School was last inspected in April 2024.

How many pupils does St James' Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School have?

St James' Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School has 629 pupils on roll.

What age range does St James' Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School cover?

St James' Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School for pupils aged 4 to 11.

What are St James' Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 72% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is St James' Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School?

St James' Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School is at Sandrock Road, Tunbridge Wells, Kent, TN2 3PR.