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St Alban's Catholic Academy

Primary · Harlow · CM20 2NP

Data updated

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No current grade

Ungraded inspection: no current grade

Ofsted's most recent visit was an ungraded inspection; its outcome was “Standards maintained”. Since September 2024 these outcomes no longer confirm a named grade. No graded inspection appears in Ofsted's records for this school since 2015 either, so SchoolFacts shows no grade rather than guessing. Any earlier grade is on the school's Ofsted report page.

Inspected 23 October 2024

Read the Ofsted report ↗

At a glance

227 pupils · 108% of 210 capacity (over capacity) (January 2026 census)

School type
Academy converter
Age range
3–11
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
Roman Catholic
Free school meals
14.8% of pupils (January 2026)
English as additional language
41.8% of pupils (2024/2025)
SEN support
18.2% of pupils (2024/2025)
EHC plan
2.7% of pupils (2024/2025)
Nursery
Yes
Website
http://www.st-albans.essex.sch.uk
URN
137056

In figures

For September 2026 entry, 26 families named it first for 30 Reception places, 0.87 first choices per place. We hold one Reception admissions round for it, 2026 entry, and it was not decided by a published distance. In the 2025/26 autumn and spring terms its pupils missed 4.7% of sessions, against 6.6% across England.

Admissions demand: Reception entry, September 2026

0.87 first-choice applications per place

30 places offered · 26 first-choice applications · roughly balanced

First-choice applications per place, by entry year

19/20
20/21
21/22
22/23
23/24
24/25
25/26
26/27

Source: DfE applications and offers on national offer day · how demand is measured

Catchment area

Catchment area: not named in the council's figures. The council did not publish a cutoff distance for 2026 entry.

Admissions cutoff distance: Reception

The council did not publish a cutoff distance for 2026 entry.

Source: the admissions authority's published figures · how cutoffs work

Key stage 2 results (2024/2025)

30 pupils at the end of key stage 2 in 2024/2025

Reaching the expected standard in reading, writing & maths
57%
England 62%
Reaching the higher standard
3%
England 8%
Average scaled score (reading)
104
England 106
Average scaled score (maths)
105
England 105

Source: DfE performance tables 2024/2025 · what “suppressed” means

Schools with a similar intake

Meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths, 2024/2025

This school57%
Median of its 12 closest peers60.5%
Essex average63.8%
England62%

On meeting the expected standard in reading, writing and maths, this school is behind the schools that teach a comparable intake.

They are matched on intake, not location, so most are not local: see nearby schools for those you could apply to.

SchoolOfstedResult
All Saints CEVA Primary School and NurseryWellingborough · 50 miles awayExpected standard63%
St Catherine Catholic Primary SchoolWest Drayton · 31 miles awayGood59%
Countess Anne Church of England SchoolHatfield · 14 miles awayOutstanding64%
St Peter and St Paul RC Junior and Infant SchoolBirmingham · 97 miles awayGood67%
St Simon of England Roman Catholic Primary School, AshfordAshford · 55 miles awayGood40%
St John Fisher Catholic Voluntary AcademyDerby · 101 miles awayGood61%
St Nicholas CofE (VA) Primary School and NurseryStevenage · 15 miles awayRequires improvement31%
St Cyprian's Greek Orthodox Primary AcademyThornton Heath · 27 miles awayRequires improvement51%
Sitwell Junior SchoolRotherham · 128 miles awayExpected standard72%
Park Junior School, WellingboroughWellingborough · 50 miles awayNo current grade45%
Belmont Junior SchoolLondon · 15 miles awayExpected standard65%
Our Lady's RC Primary SchoolHereford · 122 miles awayNeeds attention60%

It is not a ranking. Source: DfE performance tables 2024/2025 · how the matching works

Pupils by ethnicity (January 2026)

Black African 30% (Essex 4%, England 5%) · White British 20% (Essex 73%, England 60%) · Any other White background 19% (Essex 7%, England 7%) · Asian Indian 10% (Essex 3%, England 4%) · Any other ethnic group 5% (Essex 1%, England 3%) · Any other Black background 4% (Essex 1%, England 1%) · Any other Mixed background 4% (Essex 3%, England 3%) · Mixed White and Black African 4% (Essex 1%, England 1%) · Mixed White and Asian 2% (Essex 1%, England 2%) · Asian Bangladeshi 1% (Essex 1%, England 2%) · other groups together 2%

Source: DfE schools, pupils and their characteristics, January 2026 census · how to read these figures

Attendance (2025/26 autumn and spring terms)

Sessions missed (overall absence)
4.7%
England 6.6%
Pupils missing 10%+ of sessions (persistent absence)
13.7%
England 17.5%

Suspensions and permanent exclusions (2024/25)

3.11 suspensions per 100 pupils and 0 permanent exclusions · England, primary schools: 2.47 suspensions and 0.03 permanent exclusions per 100 pupils · Essex: 3.26 suspensions and 0.03 permanent exclusions per 100 pupils

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Source: DfE pupil absence data, autumn and spring terms, and DfE suspensions and permanent exclusions, school-level file · how absence is measured · how to read exclusions

Staffing

Pupils per qualified teacher
24.3
England 18.5

Full-time-equivalent, 2025/26.

Teacher retention (2024/25)

62% of teachers stayed at the school the following year · 38% left the state-funded sector

Vacancies (November 2025)

0% of teaching posts vacant, 0% filled temporarily · England, primary academies: 0.3% vacant, 0.32% temporary

Teacher sickness absence (reported in the November 2024 census)

66.7% of teachers took sickness absence, 5.4 days each on average · England, all state-funded schools: 61.8%, 8.1 days

Teacher pay (November 2025)

Mean salary of full-time qualified teachers £48,251; 9.1% on the leadership pay range · England, primary schools: £50,856, 17.3%

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Source: DfE School Workforce Census · how these figures are counted

Spending per pupil (2024-25)

This school£5,629
Typical primary school£7,202

Where the money went (2024-25)

Share of spending, with the median for primary schools in brackets: Staff 78% (77%) · premises 7% (5%) · occupation (energy, rates, cleaning) 9% (8%) · supplies and services 6% (9%) · educational supplies 3% (4%) · bought-in professional services 1% (2%) · catering 6% (5%)

Reserves (2024-25)

Revenue reserve £0; in-year balance +£124,000

Spending and reserves, last three years Premium

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Higher spending is not a measure of quality. Source: academy finance return, 2024-25, DfE · how spending is compared

Inspection history since 2015

Source: Ofsted management information · ungraded visits and the two inspection systems

The area around the school

Child poverty (IDACI)
3/10more deprived than most of England
Overall deprivation (IMD)
5/10around the middle for England
Census 2021This areaEngland
Adults with a degree or higher29.1%33.9%
Adults with no qualifications19.2%18.1%
In managerial or professional work33.5%33.2%
Households deprived in two or more ways18.1%18.1%
Residents in very good health47.1%48.5%
Homes owned by the occupier48.5%62.3%
Social housing23.5%17.1%
Privately rented28%20.5%
Detached houses5.3%22.9%
Flats41.1%22.2%
Homes with four or more bedrooms9.7%21.1%
Households with no car or van23.3%23.5%

These figures describe the area, not the pupils. Source: Census 2021 (ONS) and English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG) for small area E01021853 · how to read area figures

What homes cost nearby

Median sale price
£302,500366 sales within 1 km, January 2024 to September 2026
Typical range
£227,000–£340,000the middle half of sales
England median
£300,000all sales over the same period
Detached (7)£422,000
Semi-detached (31)£370,000
Terraced (187)£325,000
Flat (141)£215,000

Homes around this school are dearer than most school neighbourhoods in England, comparing the median within 1 km across every state school.

Source: HM Land Registry sales within 1 km since January 2024 · how sales are counted. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. This data is licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Postcodes located with OS Code-Point Open: contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026; contains Royal Mail data © Royal Mail copyright and database right 2026; contains National Statistics data © Crown copyright and database right 2026.

Roads around the school

Child pedestrian casualties
4an urban school averages 2.0
Collisions at school-run times
7an urban school averages 5.7
All reported collisions
49an urban school averages 30.5
Of those, serious or fatal
13an urban school averages 6.1

A high count usually reflects traffic, not an unsafe school. Source: DfT road casualty statistics (STATS19), collisions within 500 m, 2021–2025 · what is counted

Nearby schools