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St John's Church of England Primary School

Primary · Dorking · RH4 2LR

Data updated

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Needs attention

Report-card inspection (current system, from November 2025)

The headline grade shown is the Achievement area of the school's report card.

Safeguarding: MetCurriculum & teaching: Needs attentionAchievement: Needs attentionAttendance & behaviour: Expected standardPersonal development: Expected standardInclusion: Needs attentionLeadership & governance: Needs attentionEarly years: Needs attentionPost-16: Not applicable

Inspected 16 June 2026 · report published 7 September 2026

Read the Ofsted report ↗

At a glance

210 pupils · 80% of 262 capacity (January 2026 census)

School type
Academy sponsor led
Age range
3–11
Gender
Mixed
Religious character
Church of England
Free school meals
33.8% of pupils (January 2026)
English as additional language
10.9% of pupils (2024/2025)
SEN support
27.8% of pupils (2024/2025)
EHC plan
7.4% of pupils (2024/2025)
Nursery
Yes
Website
www.stjohnsdorking.uk
URN
139721

In figures

For September 2026 entry, 21 families named it first for 22 Reception places, 0.95 first choices per place. We hold 8 Reception admissions rounds for it, 2019 to 2026; none was decided by a published distance. At its report-card inspection on 16 June 2026, under the system Ofsted introduced in November 2025, the Achievement area was judged Needs attention. In the 2025/26 autumn and spring terms its pupils missed 5.9% of sessions, against 6.6% across England.

Admissions demand: Reception entry, September 2026

0.95 first-choice applications per place

22 places offered · 21 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. Every applicant was offered a place for 2026 entry, so distance was not needed to decide places.

Admissions cutoff distance: Reception

Every applicant was offered a place for 2026 entry, so distance was not needed to decide places.

Cutoff by admission criterion (2023 entry)

Criterion 4 (Any other children)
4.333 km (≈2.69 mi)

2023 is the most recent year we hold a cutoff for this school. It describes that year, not 2026.

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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
33%
England 62%
Reaching the higher standard
0%
England 8%
Average scaled score (reading)
103
England 106
Average scaled score (maths)
100
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 school33%
Median of its 12 closest peers57%
Surrey average66.8%
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
Severnbanks Primary SchoolLydney · 101 miles awayExpected standard68%
Discovery AcademyHyde · 170 miles awayGood60%
Twydall Primary School and NurseryGillingham · 41 miles awayGood52%
Edith Cavell Academy and NurseryNorwich · 118 miles awayGood57%
Nantwich Primary AcademyNantwich · 158 miles awayGood61%
Hale Nursery & Primary AcademyFarnham · 21 miles awayGood51%
Yohden Primary SchoolPeterlee · 248 miles awayGood57%
Exeter Road Community Primary SchoolExmouth · 140 miles awayRequires improvement8%
Broadgreen PrimaryLiverpool · 187 miles awayExpected standard66%
Bream Church of England Primary SchoolLydney · 104 miles awayGood41%
Cashes Green Primary SchoolStroud · 91 miles awayGood47%
NCEA James Knott CofE Primary SchoolAshington · 278 miles awayGood72%

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

Pupils by ethnicity (January 2026)

White British 82% (Surrey 64%, England 60%) · Any other ethnic group 3% (Surrey 2%, England 3%) · Any other White background 3% (Surrey 9%, England 7%) · Any other Asian background 2% (Surrey 3%, England 2%) · Mixed White and Asian 2% (Surrey 3%, England 2%) · White Gypsy/Roma 2% (Surrey 1%, England 0%) · Any other Mixed background 1% (Surrey 4%, England 3%) · Asian Bangladeshi 1% (Surrey 1%, England 2%) · Any other Black background 1% (Surrey 0%, England 1%) · Black African 1% (Surrey 2%, England 5%) · 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)
5.9%
England 6.6%
Pupils missing 10%+ of sessions (persistent absence)
18%
England 17.5%

Suspensions and permanent exclusions (2024/25)

10.43 suspensions per 100 pupils and 0 permanent exclusions · England, primary schools: 2.47 suspensions and 0.03 permanent exclusions per 100 pupils · Surrey: 2.93 suspensions and 0.04 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
18.3
England 18.5

Full-time-equivalent, 2025/26.

Teacher retention (2024/25)

74% of teachers stayed at the school the following year · 26% 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)

55.6% of teachers took sickness absence, 6 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 £47,171; 6.7% 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£8,105
Typical primary school£7,202

Where the money went (2024-25)

Share of spending, with the median for primary schools in brackets: Staff 79% (77%) · premises 7% (5%) · occupation (energy, rates, cleaning) 8% (8%) · supplies and services 6% (9%) · educational supplies 2% (4%) · bought-in professional services 2% (2%) · catering 3% (5%)

Reserves (2024-25)

Revenue reserve £0; in-year balance +£192,000

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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)
3/10more deprived than most of England
Census 2021This areaEngland
Adults with a degree or higher18.7%33.9%
Adults with no qualifications28.2%18.1%
In managerial or professional work20%33.2%
Households deprived in two or more ways29.7%18.1%
Residents in very good health44.8%48.5%
Homes owned by the occupier32.5%62.3%
Social housing60.4%17.1%
Privately rented7%20.5%
Detached houses1.8%22.9%
Flats45.2%22.2%
Homes with four or more bedrooms6.4%21.1%
Households with no car or van24.6%23.5%

These figures describe the area, not the pupils. Source: Census 2021 (ONS) and English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (MHCLG) for small area E01030547 · how to read area figures

What homes cost nearby

Median sale price
£417,000205 sales within 1 km, January 2024 to September 2026
Typical range
£340,000–£640,000the middle half of sales
England median
£300,000all sales over the same period
Detached (49)£810,000
Semi-detached (47)£484,000
Terraced (69)£375,000
Flat (40)£252,500

Homes around this school are dearer than three quarters of 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
2an urban school averages 5.7
All reported collisions
22an urban school averages 30.5
Of those, serious or fatal
10an 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