St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Ipswich

St Mary’s Catholic Primary School is performing exceptionally well, achieving an overall effectiveness rating of outstanding in all areas for its first inspection under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. The school is part of the Our Lady of Walsingham Catholic multi-academy trust, and its leaders have established a broad and ambitious curriculum that facilitates high levels of engagement and learning among pupils. The supportive and inclusive school environment fosters pupils’ personal development, with students demonstrating high levels of empathy, respect for diversity, and responsibility.

Strengths

• Outstanding quality of education across all areas.
• Highly effective leadership and management.
• Strong support and progress for students with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).
• Wide range of enriching extracurricular activities.
• Exceptional standards in reading, writing, and mathematics.

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 Mary's Catholic Primary School, Ipswich attended 96.0% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 4.9% 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, 0.5% of pupils at St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Ipswich 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 Mary's Catholic Primary School, Ipswich had 21.4 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 24.8% 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, 6.7% of pupils at St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Ipswich were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 4.8% 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 2024–25 St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Ipswich received £6,483 and spent £6,462 for each of its 212 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £138,000 (£651 per pupil).

Across all 8 schools of Our Lady of Walsingham Catholic Multi Academy Trust, income was £7,225 and spending £7,189 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). Academy figures include a share of the trust's central services, shared out by pupil numbers, and are rounded to the nearest £1,000. Premises costs were defined differently from 2024, so compare them across that gap with care.

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Ipswich · Suffolk local authority: places and applications

St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Ipswich is part of Our Lady of Walsingham Catholic Multi Academy Trust, which runs 11 schools. The nearest others:

• St Alban's Catholic High School Ipswich
• St Mark's Catholic Primary School Ipswich
• St Pancras Catholic Primary School Ipswich
• St Joseph's Catholic Primary School Sudbury
• St Edmund's Catholic Primary School Bury St Edmunds
• St Benedict's Catholic School Bury St Edmunds
• St Felix Roman Catholic Primary School, Haverhill Haverhill
• St Louis Catholic Academy Newmarket
• St Alban's Catholic Primary School Cambridge
• St Laurence Catholic Primary School Cambridge

What is St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Ipswich's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Ipswich is Outstanding, from an inspection in April 2024.

When was St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Ipswich last inspected by Ofsted?

St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Ipswich was last inspected in April 2024.

How many pupils does St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Ipswich have?

St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Ipswich has 210 pupils on roll.

What age range does St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Ipswich cover?

St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Ipswich for pupils aged 4 to 11.

What are St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Ipswich's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 75% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Ipswich?

St Mary's Catholic Primary School, Ipswich is at Woodbridge Road, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP4 4EU.